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 MARCH 31, 2011 How to Help Heal an Injured Knee Joint You've sprained your knee by twisting it in a fall or by stepping in a hole while running, and now you face weeks of rehab. How do you, and your doctor, know it's healing properly? A new futuristic knee brace may hold the answer. Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA in Stuttgart, Germany, have developed a system for gathering exact data on knee mobility. It shows patients as well as medical staff how the joint is doing. "It not only lets sufferers see how their healing process is coming along, it also means doctors can tell straight away whether they need to adapt the treatment," says Dipl.-Ing. Bernhard Kleiner of Fraunhofer IPA. "This can give patients a psychological boost." The light-weight knee brace integrates miniaturized sensors that record knee movement and determine exactly how well the knee is moving. Depending on the injury and treatment, the system, which is not yet commercially available, records the joint's range of motion, to what degree it rotates, and what forces are acting upon it. This allows doctors to observe how the knee's range of movement changes over time so they can recognize trends and, where necessary, adjust treatment. Knee Sprain Rehab Mild knee sprains usually respond to early rehab using a stationary bicycle and leg extension and curl exercises. Ride a stationary bicycle for 20 minutes with the seat high so that your range of motion is minimal and with little drag on the bike. Gradually lower the seat and increase the drag until you get back full range of motion. Do leg extension and leg curl exercises to strengthen the quadriceps muscles in the front of the thigh (leg extension) and the hamstring muscles in the back of the thigh (leg curls). These muscles, particularly the quadriceps, begin to lose strength within 12 hours of a knee injury. Both of these muscles control the knee and must be restrengthened. |
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