In-Home Physical Therapy Can Help You To Move Freely Again
Get Back To Living A Normal Life Through In-Home Physical Therapy
If you’re dealing with chronic pain, you already know how much of an impact it can have on your daily life. It can make it incredibly difficult to do things you want to do, even around your home! This is especially true if you’re living with knee or hip pain.
The knee is considered a hinge joint while the hip is a ball-and-socket joint. They are both complex joints with a network of muscles, tendons, ligaments, bone, and cartilage all working together to keep you moving.
With this many moving parts, it’s not surprising that as we age or engage in strenuous activity that we sometimes experience pain. When you’re suffering from hip or knee pain it can make doing even the most basic daily activities difficult.
Understanding the causes of hip and knee problems is often the key to effectively treating them. If you’re struggling with hip or knee pain, our in-home physical therapist can help you reduce or even eliminate the amount of pain you’re experiencing.
Call our clinic today to learn more about the benefits of in-home physical therapy, and to schedule for our therapist to make a visit to your home.
Common causes of hip and knee pain
Hip and knee pain can be caused by a variety of underlying causes. Your physical therapist can figure out and target the exact cause of your pain, and help you learn how to manage it as well.
Hip Pain – Hip pain can be caused by a variety of medical conditions as well as from certain injuries. Inflamed tendons from over-exertion or an athletic injury can cause temporary or chronic hip pain. Tendinitis, dislocation, sprains, and pinched nerves can all contribute to or be the cause of hip pain. Hip pain may also result from repetitive injuries or poor posture.
Knee Pain – Injuries that include torn cartilage or damaged ligaments can cause knee pain. Fractures, tendinitis, and knee bursitis are all common knee injuries. Medical conditions such as arthritis or gout can cause mild to severe knee pain. You may be experiencing stiffness or swelling in one or both knees. It might be difficult to stand, walk, or fully straighten your knee. Sometimes knees will make popping or crunching noises.
In-home physical therapy for chronic hip and knee pain
Physical therapy is a non-invasive treatment option for hip and knee pain. Our in-home physical therapist will most likely start your first session with an assessment. An assessment for knee pain will most likely concentrate on the region from the hip to the foot. A spinal examination will almost certainly be included in a hip pain assessment. A range of motion and strength assessment can be performed for all forms of pain. A gait analysis and mobility assessments can be performed by your physical therapist.
An individualized physical therapy program will then be created for your specific needs. The American Physical Therapy Association states that early rehabilitation for certain types of knee pain is associated with a lower use of opioids and knee surgery.
Hip pain is commonly treated with a variety of exercises. Pressure may also be relieved by passive measures such as icing or heat treatments. To regain proper mobility and relieve pain, soft tissue and joint manipulation in the hip or spine may be needed.
A variety of exercises and stretches are also used to treat knee pain. The best part of our services is that they’re all provided at your convenience, from the comfort of your own home.
Why choose in-home physical therapy?
There are certainly other ways to combat pain, but they aren’t always successful in the long term the way that physical therapy is.
Prescription pain meds are sometimes used to treat knee and hip pain. Medication normally doesn’t solve the issue, but only temporarily reduces the pain. Medications, even over-the-counter meds, can be addictive and expensive.
Recovery from surgery can be painful and extensive. There’s always the chance of infection and sometimes surgery simply doesn’t produce the intended results. While surgery may be effective in some cases, it’s not without its drawbacks and should be used as a last resort.
Physical therapy has long been applauded as one of the most holistic and safe forms of effective pain management by the APTA. Don’t believe us? Ask your physical therapist about the recovery rates of our patients!
Other reasons you’re in pain
Hip and knee pain can be caused by a great number of problems. Some of these are related to musculoskeletal misalignment, poor posture, and/or excess weight; others occur as the result of natural aging or unhealthy sports/work habits. Your hip or knee pain may stem from:
- Runner’s knee, an instability of the kneecap
- Osteoarthritis, a painful inflammatory condition involving deteriorated joint cartilage
- Tendinitis, or stretched ligaments
- Traumatic injuries, such as dislocation of the joint
- Postural/alignment issues that throw your body off balance, straining the knees or hips
- Bursitis, an inflammation of the friction-reducing sacs surround the joints
- Infections
A physical therapist can often tell the cause of your hip or knee pain from its location. For example, pain along the inside of the hip is more likely to be caused by a problem with the bones or cartilage. Pain along the outer side is typically caused by a problem in the muscles, tendons, or ligaments.
Choose safe, effective relief
For the best results, it’s important to follow all your physical therapist’s instructions, including any stretches or exercises that can be done at home. Physical therapy can help you find lasting relief from hip or knee pain – contact us today to get started and schedule your first at-home visit!