Knee Pain
Acupuncture for Knee Pain
Knee pain is very common. There are many causes for knee pain. Sprain/strain is the most commonly cause for young people, especially if they participate in sports. For old people, knee pain is usually due to degeneration of soft tissues and arthritis around the knees.
The following are common causes of knee pain:
· Knee ankyloses (joint stiffness)
· Chondromalacia patella (runner’s knee)
· Lateral collateral ligament injury
· Medial collateral ligament injury
· Knee traumatic synovitis
· Infrapatellar fat pad injury
· Patellar ligament injury
· Knee osteoarthritis
· Popliteal fossa (knee pit) cyst
· Infrapatellar bursitis
· Fibular nerve pinch
· Superficial peroneal nerve pinch
· Knee post-operative kinetic barriers
· Knee rheumatoid arthritis
· Fat pad injury
More than 90% of knee pain is soft-tissue related. Inflammation and adhesion in tendons and ligaments attached to the bone surface irritate nerve endings to cause knee pain. Most people suffering from neck pain usually seek medical services such as physical therapy, pain medication, nerve block or chiropractic adjustment, and usually get temporary pain relief. However, if inflammation and adhesion are not eliminated, the knee is not cured. Many patients even go for surgery, but surgery does not remove inflammation and adhesions, so they continue to have pain after surgery.
Acupuncture is probably the best solution for most people with knee pain because acupuncture causes super-micro trauma in inflamed tendons and ligaments, which activate the body's healing process. The body heals itself from the trauma caused by the acupuncture needles and also eliminates the inflammation and adhesion in the tendons and ligaments. Thus, acupuncture can clinically cure knee pain in most cases.
Many patients are told by the orthopedic doctor that they have to submit to surgery to eliminate the pain as there is little or no cartilage left between the bones to cushion the friction. This is misleading because neither cartilage nor bone have nerve endings. It is inflammation of the tendons or ligaments around the knee that irritate the nerve endings, causing pain.
The structure around the knee is quite complicated as there are many tendons and ligaments attached to the knee. The acupuncturist needs to be very familiar with anatomy to get the best results from acupuncture. If you have knee pain, please feel free to schedule a free consultation with us so we can explain to you the cause of your pain and how we can help.
My Knee Cartilage is Thin or Nonexistent. Can Acupuncture Still Help?
Yes. With acupuncture, we have helped many patients in this area. After treatment, the mobility of their knee joints increased or was restored to normal. For some patients, knee replacement is postponed or avoided.
