Throbbing knee pain: What PT can do to treat it

Are you experiencing throbbing knee pain? Persistent discomfort around the knee can significantly affect your daily life and mobility. Like other symptoms, knee pain does not typically arise spontaneously. There are many different underlying conditions that can lead to pain in the knee. Besides chronic health conditions, injuries are one of the most common sources of knee pain. Damage to your knee tissue can take a long time to heal. While healing, you may experience nagging pain. Whether your pain is due to an injury or a different issue, physical therapy can be a highly effective treatment option. Particular physical therapy treatments tend to vary between patients. However, certain kinds of treatment are commonly used for their efficacy in addressing knee pain. A physical therapist can develop a treatment plan designed to help you find relief and get back on your feet.

Top physical therapy treatments for throbbing knee pain

• Strengthening exercises — Knee pain is often caused by muscle imbalances. You may not have enough muscle strength to give your knee the support it needs. Muscle imbalances can cause pain in addition to limiting your mobility. With physical therapy, you can work to build strength in key muscles. Your physical therapist may prescribe exercises that target the muscles surrounding the knee. The quadriceps, hamstrings and calf muscles all contribute to keeping your knee stable. By strengthening these muscles, you can help alleviate and prevent throbbing knee pain.
• Hot and cold therapy — Hot and cold therapy is a kind of treatment you can apply at home. This makes it a great choice for managing your pain levels between physical therapy sessions. By applying heat and cold to your throbbing knee, you can help alleviate your pain. This kind of therapy affects the muscles, encouraging relaxation. If your pain is caused by muscle tension, hot and cold therapy may be beneficial.
• Dry needling — Don’t want to wait to experience pain relief? Dry needling can act fast to immediately reduce pain and muscle tension. When you receive dry needling treatment from a skilled physical therapist, you can expect top-notch care. The treatment involves the insertion of sterile needles into certain areas such as injured or tense muscle tissue. Rather than delivering medicine, these needles are designed to trigger natural responses in the body. Dry needling is often used to activate healing processes in damaged tissue. With this kind of treatment, you can experience short-term relief and a boost on your long-term recovery journey.
• Range-of-motion exercises — Throbbing knee pain can limit your mobility. Depending on the source of your pain, your knee joint may feel stiff or restricted. To reduce your stiffness and increase your range of motion, focused exercises can be essential. Your physical therapist can guide you through various stretches designed to improve your knee flexibility. In one-on-one sessions, you can discuss your current capabilities with your physical therapist. Your current capacity will help inform the development of your treatment plan. As you make progress, your exercises can also be adapted. These exercises are meant to make performing daily activities easier. Having more flexibility can also reduce discomfort in the knee.
• Gait correction — The source of throbbing knee pain is not always a strictly internal condition. In some cases, knee pain can be exacerbated by poor posture and gait. A gait analysis from your physical therapist could identify aspects of your gait that contribute to knee pain. Once gait issues are identified, you can work to make any necessary corrections. Your physical therapist can guide you through the process of improving your gait and posture. By correcting abnormalities, you can help prevent future knee problems and alleviate your current symptoms.
• Manual therapy — Looking for hands-on physical therapy? You can find relief through physical treatments with manual therapy techniques. There are many types of physical therapy, each geared toward specific conditions. Your physical therapist can help determine what kind of manual therapy should work for you. Manual therapy is meant to be effective in promoting healing and reducing inflammation. One of the key benefits of this approach is pain relief. If you want a multifaceted approach to care that can address your throbbing knee pain, manual therapy is a great choice.

Find relief for throbbing knee pain at SSOR

Ready to address your throbbing knee pain? Find care that matches your needs at SSOR (Specialists in Sports and Orthopedic Rehabilitation). With our expert guidance, you can experience long-term relief. We are committed to ensuring that each patient gets quality care tailored to their needs and health goals.

Contact us today for more information or to schedule an initial appointment.