Case Study: Treatment For A Injured Knee Ligament
A study of 3 patients, each of whom underwent different treatments for ligament issues, brought on by sports injuries, revealed different outcomes to their respective treatments. Anyone who suffers from a hurt knee ligament has several options when it comes to treatment. However, the best option for any individual is determined by taking into consideration several factors.
Patients who present with a hurt ligament often are given the following options:
1.) Physical therapy treatment
2.) Knee surgery
3.) Conservative Treatment
Heather, Dave and Rick were the three patients who all had a hurt knee ligament and who underwent these various treatments.
Dave - Physical Therapy
Dave hurt his knee on the job and went to see his family doctor who referred him to an orthopedic surgeon. The surgeon diagnosed the hurt ligament and advised physical therapy as a way to deal with the pain as well as to heal the knee. He also advised Dave to wear a brace to keep the knee straight and supported and to take pain killers to alleviate the pain. Dave had developed a problem with pain pills in the past and rejected the idea of pain medication.
The physical therapy and knee braces worked well for Dave. He uses the knee brace whenever the knee hurts and continues with the exercises he learned in physical therapy. Both these measures work very well for him and he has managed to stay away from pain medication.
Rick - Knee Surgery
Rick was overweight and excessive pressure on the knee had caused him to injury his knee ligaments. His doctor advised him to lose weight but also offered surgery to repair the ligament. The surgery was expensive and also required a period of rehab. Rick was unable to lose weight despite the surgery and after a short while, found that his knee began to hurt again. He is now treating the matter more conservatively and trying to lose weight.
Anyone who has a hurt knee ligament needs to be examined by a doctor, have the condition diagnosed and also make sure that any underlying conditions are also addressed at the time of the diagnosis.
Heather - Conservative Treatment
Heather played basketball for her college and hurt her knee one day during a particularly strenuous game. After an examination by her doctor, it was determined that she had a hurt knee ligament. The doctor prescribed an ice pack, rest and pain pills and recommended that she wear a knee brace while walking. After a week of this conservative treatment, Heather felt much better and got right back into the swing of things and even participated in the inter-collegiate basketball championship.
Heather was fortunate; she had youth on her side and no underlying condition to impede the healing of the hurt ligament. The brace really helped to provide meaningful support which gave her back confidence. She knew that the brace would not cure her knee ligament injury, but the brace did provide effective support and was not nearly as expensive as surgery. After a short while she was able to heal naturally and praised the brace for helping her to protect against any further injury.
From these three case studies, it is obvious that surgery should not always be the first option when it comes to treatment for a hurt knee ligament. Conservative treatment should be considered first and pain killers should always be discussed with your physician prior to using them. Using a knee brace and doing select (doctor approved) exercises that do not aggravate the condition are the among the best ways to help treat a hurt knee ligament.
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