Knee Problems

Anterior knee pain and spinal dysfunction in adolescence. Sweating RC, Fowler C, Crocker B, J of Manual Medicine 1989; 4:65-668.

This is a review of 260 patients presenting with knee pain in a general orthopaedic practice. It was revealed that 16 cases (6% of the total) had similar clinical features with peripheral muscle weakness associated with segmental spinal dysfunction.

Chiropractic side-posture adjustments resulted in immediate strengthening of the weak muscles. Full resolution of the knee problems were seen to require 3-6 weeks of care. Midlumbar somatic dysfunction was seen as a potential cause of some cases of knee pain.

Conservative lower back treatment reduces inhibition in knee extensor muscles: a randomized controlled trial. Suter E, McMorland G, Herzog W, et al. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics Feb 2000:23(2), pp.76-80.

Twenty-eight patients with anterior knee pain (AKP) were randomly assigned to receive chiropractic care or no care (control group). The chiropractic care was designed to correct SI-joint dysfunction. Before and after care, knee-extensor moments, muscle inhibition (MI), and muscle activation during full effort and isometric knee extensions were measured.
Patients showed substantial MI in both legs. Functional assessment revealed SI-joint dysfunction in all subjects (23 symptomatic and 5 asymptomatic). After care, a significant decrease in MI of 7.5% was observed in the involved legs of the adjusted group. MI did not change in the contralateral legs of the treatment group or the involved and contralateral legs of the control group. The results of this study suggest that SI-joint manipulation reduces knee-extensor MI. Spinal manipulation may possibly be an effective treatment of MI in the lower limb musculature. (J Manipulative Physiol Ther 2000;23:76–80)

Conservative treatment of torn medial meniscus via mechanical force, manually assisted short lever chiropractic adjusting procedures. Polkinghorn BS. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, September 1994; 17(7): 474-484.

This is the case of a 54 year-old woman complaining of right knee pain for several months. She was diagnosed with a tear in the posterior horn of the ipsilateral medial meniscus and this was confirmed by MRI.

Instead of surgery, the patient agreed to try chiropractic care. The patient received 23 adjustments over 11 months. A chiropractic adjusting instrument was used and resulted in the complete resolution of the patient’s disability, with full function of the knee returning. More research is necessary in this area. The author cautions that due to the length of time under care, the patient could simply have had a spontaneous resolution.

Case report: upper cervical adjusting for knee pain. Brown M and Vaillancourt P. Chiropractic Research Journal 1993. Vol. 2 No. 3.

This is the case study of a 35-year-old male patient suffering from chronic knee pain after dislocating his knee playing football 15 years earlier.

The patient was symptom free after initial chiropractic care and in 1991 was in a car accident and received a whiplash injury. The knee began to swell and lose range of motion, stability and strength and patient described chronic, sharp and deep stabbing knee pain. After a medical examination, knee surgery was considered.

The patient was adjusted using The Grostic Technique, a method of upper cervical analysis and atlas adjusting. Adjusting atlas only, the patient was relieved from his chronic knee pain. It is hypothesized that the atlas subluxation can cause a functional short leg which in turn can affect the function of a knee joint.

Effectiveness of chiropractic management for patellofemoral pain syndrome’s symptomatic control phase: a single subject experiment. Meyer, JJ, Zachman, ZJ, Keating JC, Traina AD. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics Vol 13 No. 9 November/December 1990

This is the case of a patient with bilateral knee pain. Care consisted of long axis tibiofemoral adjustment, passive patellofemoral mobilization, and continuous ultrasound. After about four weeks of care “reliable and demonstrable changes in the patient’s signs and symptoms” occurred.


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