Knee pain can make everyday movement frustrating.
Walking, climbing stairs, getting out of a chair, kneeling, running or playing sport can all become more difficult when your knee is painful, stiff or feels unreliable.
At Summit Physio, we’ll assess what’s happening, explain what may be contributing and build a rehabilitation plan around the activities you want to get back to.
There isn’t one single type of knee pain.
Symptoms may develop gradually over time or appear suddenly after a twist, fall, training session or sporting injury.
The knee also has to cope with different demands depending on what you’re doing.
Walking places very different demands on it compared with running, jumping, lifting or changing direction during sport.
That’s why the right starting point is understanding your symptoms, your movement and what your knee needs to cope with.
Knee problems can present in different ways.
You may experience:
Symptoms alone don’t always tell us exactly what is causing the problem.
A full assessment helps us understand which factors appear relevant.
Knee pain can develop for many different reasons.
These may include:
Sometimes several factors are involved at the same time.
Rather than assuming that one scan result or one painful structure explains everything, we consider your symptoms alongside how you move and what you need your knee to do.
Physiotherapy can help assess the problem, manage symptoms and rebuild your knee’s ability to cope with everyday activity, exercise or sport.
Your plan may include:
Improving strength around the knee, hips and lower body can be an important part of rehabilitation.
If stiffness or restricted movement is affecting you, we may work on improving the range of movement needed for your activities.
Your exercises can be progressed from simple early-stage movements through to more demanding tasks as your knee improves.
We can help you understand how much activity your knee is currently tolerating and how to build up gradually.
Hands-on treatment may be useful for some people alongside exercise and rehabilitation.
If your goal is running or sport, later-stage rehabilitation may include jumping, landing, change of direction and more sport-specific movement.
Knee pain doesn’t have to come from sport.
Many people first notice a problem during everyday activities such as:
These movements all require a combination of strength, mobility and confidence.
Physiotherapy can help identify which parts of the movement are difficult and build your capacity gradually.
An ACL injury can significantly affect knee stability and confidence, particularly during sports involving pivoting, landing or changing direction.
Rehabilitation may involve:
Some ACL injuries are treated surgically, while others may be managed without surgery depending on the individual.
Your rehabilitation should reflect the advice from your medical or surgical team and the activity you want to return to.
We consider your symptoms, movement, strength, activity and goals rather than focusing on one painful area in isolation.
Your exercises can develop as your knee becomes stronger and more capable.
Walking comfortably, returning to the gym and getting back to competitive sport require very different rehabilitation plans.
You’ll understand what we’ve assessed and why we’re recommending a particular approach.
Choose the Summit location that works best for you.
Wrightington Hotel & Country Club
Moss Lane
Wigan
Greater Manchester
WN6 9PB
Not always.
Some knee problems may benefit from temporarily reducing certain activities, but complete rest is not necessarily the best approach.
Your physiotherapist can help you decide what you can safely continue doing.
For many people, walking can remain an appropriate form of activity.
The amount you can comfortably manage will depend on the problem and severity of your symptoms.
Often, yes.
Exercise may need modifying, but rehabilitation frequently involves gradually rebuilding strength and movement rather than avoiding activity completely.
Potentially.
You may need to adjust certain exercises, loads or ranges of movement for a period of time.
Your physiotherapist can help you work out what is suitable.
Coming downstairs places relatively high demands on the muscles controlling the knee.
Pain may be influenced by several factors including strength, load tolerance and irritation around the joint or kneecap.
Assessment can help determine what appears relevant to you.
Clicking is common and does not automatically mean something is damaged.
However, clicking associated with pain, swelling, locking or loss of movement may be worth assessing.
A feeling of giving way can happen for several reasons, including pain, weakness or ligament instability.
If it is happening repeatedly, a physiotherapy assessment can help investigate why.
No.
There are many possible causes of knee pain.
Arthritis is one potential explanation, particularly as we get older, but symptoms can also come from soft tissues, tendons, the kneecap, previous injuries or activity changes.
Not everybody with knee pain needs imaging.
Your physiotherapist can assess the problem and advise if further medical investigation may be appropriate.
Physiotherapy may form part of rehabilitation for some meniscus injuries.
The right approach depends on the injury, symptoms and whether surgery is required.
Yes.
Rehabilitation is an important part of recovery following ACL injury, whether the injury is managed surgically or non-surgically.
There isn’t a single timeframe.
It depends on the type of problem, how long it has been present, your starting point and the demands of the activities you want to return to.
In most cases, you can book private physiotherapy directly.
If you’re using medical insurance, check whether your provider requires a referral or authorisation.
Seek prompt medical advice if:
If you’re unsure about the severity of an injury, seek appropriate medical advice.
Whether knee pain is affecting everyday life, exercise or the sport you enjoy, start by understanding what’s going on.
We’ll assess the problem, explain what we find and help you build the strength and confidence to move forward.
