Fine line with knee injuries
CONTRADICTION: EXERCISE GOOD, BUT IT CAN ALSO CAUSE PROBLEMS
Most of us have at some time or another experienced knee pain. We, or should I say most of us, know of someone who has had knee surgery. a Studies have shown that almost one third of the population suffers from pain kind of knee pain or another. The and after the surgery is excruciating hard the recovery period is often a long, road fraught with much inconvenience. knee Damage can be caused to the due to various reasons. The misconception exercises is that by keeping fit and doing from will prevent most problems affecting us – this is not always true. While I cannot emphasise enough to the advantage of exercising, I need be the impress that exercise can often you will exact cause of a knee injury, and analysis. know that sport is included in this “with How often is a player sent off how a knee injury” and held back for many games due to recovery? So what are some of the causes of knee pain or knee injury? the injury feared most Dislocations: by cyclists. A severe fall can dislocate complications. a kneecap in a flash with severe This is because the kneecap sits within the tendon of the quadricep knee muscle and is kept in place by the muscle – enhancing its vulnerability. The trauma most feared by sportspeople bands are torn ligaments. The tough the bones of intricate tissue which connect in your body to various destinations, cause which, by their very nature can recovery excruciating pain with long-term times. and osteoarthritis are Arthritis very real reasons for knee problems. to the Because of the poor blood supply and the cartilage, it cannot repair itself firing ligaments and meniscus are in the line when it comes to fractures. the These injuries interfere with unless daily functioning of the body and can treated and seen to timeously, intervention become irreparable or require major then such as surgery – either an injury and there or later on in life. Often and/ can be treated with injections or medication and recovery will take place, but the bottom line is that there is a real and true problem in that once an injury has taken place the body will temporary heal, and if not treated in time will develop into a bigger problem as the body ages.
The body has a wonderful way of remembering and holding on to its injuries.
As a sports scientist I am prompted here to briefly advise on knee exercises to strengthen the knees. The golden rule is: always warm up. This is a crucial requirement to exercise.
Why, you ask? To primarily increase the blood flow to your heart, thereby reducing the risk of a sudden change in blood pressure and blood temperature. Your system needs to be warned of what is coming and by doing a warm up you are informing your body that something is about to happen and it in turn increases the oxygen and nutrients to your muscles.
This generally tunes your body in to what is about to happen. your body puts into action it’s natural “vaseline” to your muscles including ligaments and tendons, thereby reducing the risk of sudden injury.
A good warm-up should not take too long, maybe 10 minutes or so, but the benefits both physically and psychologically are a great advantage. They also form part of the exercise itself – so don’t be afraid or impatient to do the warmup.
A knee pain or injury will most probably develop into some form of arthritis eventually.
This brings me to my next point. Over the years there have been many studies on treatment of knee pain arthritis. According to a report by Roger Dobson for the Daily Mail, the latest exciting news is that a new high tech gel has been tested as a treatment for arthritis.
A treatment is already available which involves injecting gel into the damaged areas, which has not always proved to be successful, but this new gel, called Gelrin C, could be the saving grace for arthritis sufferers. Because of its functionality it provides a “scaffold” or shield. This gel allows the body to form a stronger cartilage at a slower healthier rate, thereby preventing the body’s natural attempt to do the repair job itself – and not always with a positive result.