ALL ABOUT KNEES
The Proclaimers – 500 Miles
Recently I was thinking about a friend who has just recovered from a knee operation. She had both knees replaced with metal and plastic parts in the damaged areas, she made a good recovery and is back enjoying her life doing the things she loves such as gardening and walking the dog and she is now pain free.
This friend is one of 12 friends who when aged between 60 and 78 years have needed a full or partial knee replacement and all made an excellent recovery.
This made me think about why do so many people need knee replacements. I engaged Gemini AI and found some interesting facts about three main causes.
- Osteoarthritis: This is the main cause and due to wear and tear of the cartilage. This causes pain as bone rubs on bone.
- Rheumatoid arthritis: This is an autoimmune disease that causes inflammation of the joint.
- Post traumatic arthritis: This is usually after a significant knee injury that causes damage to the joint cartilage.
These causes can lead to severe knee pain. Treatments such as physio, pain medication, exercise and weight loss are often tried but if these don’t relieve the pain often a knee replacement is the only option.
The 12 people I know all have made a great recovery and are back being active without pain. The main negative comment was pain after the surgery. This was managed with medication, phyiso and gentle exercise. Everyone agreed that the operation was worthwhile and improved their quality of life.
Generally knee replacement is without complications. However, some complications include blood clots, infection, nerve or tissue damage and occasionally full mobility does not return.
For now I don’t have knee pain. However, I have researched how to minimise the risk of needing knee surgery with strategies to prevent knee injury.
- Maintaining a healthy weight.
- Maintaining a nutritious diet high in calcium and vitamin D. A nutritious diet also promotes bone health and joint health.
- Regular exercise such as walking and low impact exercises such as cycling and swimming. Exercise is vital for keeping the muscles in your knees strong.
- Comfortable and well fitting footwear.
- Treating knee injuries immediately. Rest, ice, compression and elevation. A knee brace may be recommended to prevent injury or for knee support after an injury.
- Some experts recommend that walking backwards (retro-walking) has benefits for knee health. Sounds crazy Right! However, walking backwards has many benefits. Walking backwards can be done in a shallow swimming pool, on a tread mill, on a walking track or an open spaces such as an oval. Walking backwards can improve balance and uses a variety of muscles that you don’t normally use when walking normally. Experts suggest that walking in reverse puts less pressure on the knee joint and kneecaps and can help with knee osteoarthritis pain management. I have added a link below from Zoe- Science and Nutrition about retro walking. Its important to be mindful of safety when walking backwards and consult with your GP or physiotherapist before commencing a backward walking program.
- Seek medical advise promptly if knee pain is severe and doesn’t improve after a short time.
If you are interested in learning more on Health Benefits of Walking Backwards click on the link below from Cleveland Clinic Health Essentials or ask AI Gemini for benefits of backwards walking.
https://health.clevelandclinic.org
If you, like me, aspire to live a long and healthy life, the above strategies can aid in knee protection. Healthy knees lead to pain free exercise and aid in staying active in our journey towards being a healthy centenarian.
Till Next Time- ‘Keep on Rocking and Rolling’
Kim