Anterior Knee Pain  Sometimes physicians and physical therapists will use the term “anterior knee pain” to describe activity related pain that is located in front of the knee. So what is anterior knee pain? First of all, it is not a specific condition. There are many structures or tissues that can give rise to anterior knee pain. A common coause of anterior knee pain is inflammation or irritation of the patella-femoral joint, which is part of the knee joint complex. This is cal...

ACL Injuries: Surgical versus Non-surgical Treatment  There are approximately 200,000 ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) injuries in the US every year. ACL injuries usually occur in active individuals, especially those participating in sports. The most common sports associated with ACL injury are basketball, soccer, skiing and football. About half of these injures are treated with surgical reconstruction procedures. So who should have surgery and who should opt for conservative care? A rece...

Chronic Tendon Pain  Tendon pain is a common problem among active individuals seen in physical therapy practice. The most common sites for tendon pain include the elbow (involvement of the extensor muscles wrist and hand muscles), heel (achilles tendon), shoulder  (rotator cuff tendons) and the hip (gluteal tendons). Tendon problems may begin as an inflamed tendon following exposure to excessive stress. Tendonitis is best treated with activity modification, ice, and if necessary, ove...

Exercise is Better than Drugs for Chronic Pain  This past week, the Centers for Disease Control released clinical guidelines on the use of opioid medications for chronic pain. Chronic pain was defined as pain lasting greater than 3 months, or pain lasting past the time required for tissue healing after injury. It is important to know that clinical guidelines are derived from a thorough review and analysis of medical research studies. Among other recommendations, the CDC concludes that, ou...

What to do when you have an acute episode of back pain Last week, we posted a link to a news release from Excellus on back pain management. Excellus has analyzed information on back pain treatment in upstate New York over the course of the past several years. Some of the findings are alarming, particularly the increased utilization of medications and surgery to treat what really amounts to a normal aspect of life. Yes, back pain is a normal part of our life experience. Most of us by far will ex...