Knee Patients Take a Stand

Ivanhoe Newswire
Thursday, June 26, 2008; 4:15 AM

(Ivanhoe Newswire) – For most people, standing up from a sitting position no problem. But for people with severe knee pain, it's a major effort, and many learn to cope by changing the muscles they use to get the job done.

Now a new study out of the University of Delaware finds people with severe knee pain tend to maintain the revamped procedure even after they've had total replacement knee surgery to treat their condition.

"What is interesting about the study is that it shows that, even following surgery, this strategy continued as patients' muscle strength improved," study author Lynn Snyder-Mackler, P.T., Sc.D., S.C.S., A.T.C., F.A.P.T.A., was quoted as saying.

The investigators believe the strategy people use when they're hurting becomes an ingrained habit that must be unlearned after surgery. They lean forward to rise up Maintaining the incorrect method could also increase the risk for knee osteoarthritis down the road.

The good news is retraining with a physical therapist about four to six weeks following knee surgery can help people relearn the proper way to get up from a chair.

SOURCE: Physical Therapy, published online May 1, 2008

If this story or any other Ivanhoe story has impacted your life or prompted you or someone you know to seek or change treatments, please let us know by contacting Lindsay Braun at lbraun@ivanhoe.com.