Cure urgently kneeded

Laurie

Active member
Saturday my right knee decided to play up a bit. 'twas becoming quite painful.
Saturday night things were bad enough to give up my bed for something more comfortable, my recliner chair.
Sunday morning I couldn't walk and, by the afternoon I was in an ambulance heading for the local A&E (that's after the two otherwise lovely young lady ambulance crew had reloaded me into their wheelchair after it fell in a pothole and tipped me out!)
A sleepless night via several passages and miniwards found me in somewhere more permanent where I was addressed and prodded by various assorted from young and pretty to tall and bearded. New pills and potions were added to my ever growing mountain of drugs along with an x-ray or two.
On the stroke of Wednesday the old failsafe was issued, albeit in smaller safer quantities - The dreaded Morphine!!!
By Thursday no-one was any the wiser, especially me. Two more trips to x-ray made sure I missed both the doctor's visits!
Tomorrow - will they be scanning my nose when the doctor comes? Will there be any clue to the problem that has so far baffled the medical minds of Sussex? Will the knee stop screaming and......
Will people please stop tripping over my foot?!!!!! :eek:
 

royfellows

Well-known member
I have been dogged by knee trouble for last 3 years. Not affect my going underground much, but puts a stop to karate.

I was suggested a series of 'quack' cures by different people, tried them all but found one that seemed to work. Baking Powder dissolved in a little water. You drink it by way.
Problems went but have come back slightly. Started Sunday underground, OK aikido Monday, karate Tuesday had to leave the floor about 10 minutes before finish, aikido last night was a light night, today went to Sainsbury's for shopping and was hobbling, so giving karate a miss tonight. Have to see how it goes.

My point is that the quack cures, if it does no harm to try them, then try them. Doctors dont know everything.
Whats interesting about my knee is that although its playing up, it isn't swollen. Before I started on the quack cure it was.

I will be underground this weekend, fingers crossed.
 

tony from suffolk

Well-known member
For reasons I've never grasped, many folk will trust ?Quack? cures, promoted by dodgy ?Alternative medicine? internet postings, over conventional treatment based on rigorous scientific method. By all means give such things a try (as long as you're not paying for them), because sometimes having faith in something is enough to effect some relief. It's true conventional medicine doesn't know everything, but I know what I'd rather trust!

My brother-in-law struggled on with a completely worn-out and painful knee joint for many years while trying the usual list of useless ?cures? such as copper bands etc., refusing a total knee replacement on the basis of the postman's mother's auntie, or some such nonsense, had the operation and it went wrong, choosing to ignore the evidence that statistics proved how successful this operation had become. It was only when I had my right knee replaced, and he saw how successful this was, that he agreed to do the same. After the event he realised how many years of his life he'd wasted enduring the pain.

Good luck Laurie, I'm sure they'll figure out what's going on & sort it out for you.
 

ZombieCake

Well-known member
It's not gout by any chance?  Mega painful and stops you walking about.  Strong anti-inflammatories and stopping eating so much high purine fish helps.
 

Pitlamp

Well-known member
This may or may not help but I had quite a bit of bother with knee pain last year, not helped by a big increase in fell running mileage. I spent some time researching it, largely on websites of relatively reputable sports injuries "authorities". As Tony points out - this is free.

I soon learned that a very common cause of knee pain is that the femur and tibia are often rotationally misaligned, causing knee components to rub which shouldn't. Two remedies were frequently suggested to help realign the offending bones:

1. Wearing insoles with good foot arch support to reduce pronation of the feet, which indirectly rotates the tibia back into its correct position.

2. Strengthening exercises for the hip abductor muscles (specifically the gluteus medius) on the outer part of the hip, which has a similar effect of rotating the femur slightly  back into line (once the hip abductors are stronger).

Well, it seems to have worked! I understand Tony's comments about being better off under scientifically tested medical care - and that what's on the internet is not well vetted and may be bunkum. (I tend to agree.) I also realise that my knees might have got better anyway, whether or not I wore these insoles and / or worked on strengthening my medial glutes. I'm no expert in biomechanics but all the above does seem fairly logical and, as they say - what works, works.

Use the internet by all means but use it intelligently. Look for the common ground from a number of sources rather than just relying on one. But if in doubt of course, follow Tony's advice and go see a medical professional.
 

royfellows

Well-known member
There might be a bit of logic in the quack cure
When I was about 19 I was hit by a car while leaning against the drivers door talking to the driver of a Wolsey 6/80 ( worth a fortune now, probably). I was hit on the ass, knocked up in the air, and came down about 20 feet in front of the car. Would probably have been OK except my foot caught in the front wheel arch and everything was twisted, I was black and blue all up the one side but nothing broken. I walked sort of 'off' for years and wore shoes funny, but it corrected a few years ago.
By the way, for those who don't know, I am 74.

In short, I recon I have 2 issues, not one. One is an injury from years ago, the other is rheumatics or arthritis getting into it.
I have always had twinges now and again, but the swelling and throbbing I put down to the later. No swelling still after 6 months .
 

tony from suffolk

Well-known member
Us older folks always relish the chance to discuss our various ailments at length on internet forums. The problem is, chances are that our fellow posters in pain might have similar symptoms but causes and treatment will differ wildly.

When I was a working sort of chap, Biomechanics was part of my speciality (forgotten most of it now) and Mr Pitlamp is pretty on the money with problems caused by bodily misalignment of various sorts. From measurements I took of myself when I was studying, it was apparent that my right foot was slightly malaligned due in all probability to cutting my foot open on an underwater broken bottle and damaging tendons when I was thirteen. Hard to be definitive, but chances are this old injury caused my right knee to give up the ghost fifty-three years later.

I wouldn't worry about the morphine Laurie. I was given some post-op after the knee replacement and it certainly worked a treat; however, a slight worry when SWMBO turned up to see me and I suddenly spotted a particularly large and slimy turbot clinging to the wall by my bed.
 

Fulk

Well-known member
Hi Laurie, I know that some folk dismiss osteopathy as a quack cure, but it isn't ? it might be worth trying.
 

Jopo

Active member
Like many I suffered from knee pain. Xrays and scans showed no particular problem. Osteopath nearly creased me. Two years ago a cortisone injection directly into the, somewhat worn, knee cartilage worked wonders. I was told the effect should be good for 8 - 12 months but indeed I have suffered no more pain since.

Jopo
 

droid

Active member
You have my sympathy Laurie. I have fewer problems despite taking all the flesh off me left knee on the A38 and breaking the right kneecap 7 months later on the A444.....bloody bikes.... ::)
 

Laurie

Active member
I hope it does get better soon.
I've just spent four thousand quid on a new camera and lens!!!
 

Laurie

Active member
droid said:
Laurie said:
I hope it does get better soon.
I've just spent four thousand quid on a new camera and lens!!!

Your pension is clearly better than mine, mate.... ;)
41SMcd7H-oL_zpsgevaooei.jpg
Canon%20100-400_zpskuxvhhs1.jpg

Plus a few bits and bobs....
 

2xw

Active member
I do wonder about sports injuries from caving. We do some pretty weird stuff - lifting boulders out of tight spots in figs, twisting in squeezes and stuff - and how many of us warm down or up or do any stretches pre/post
 
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