Physiotherapists in Stockport treat many different conditions including the issues profiled below.

Flexion Wrist Fracture

Fractures of the last inch of the radius and ulna make up seventy-five percent of all wrist injuries and require careful assessment and treatment to ensure a good functional outcome. The hand is a very important part and any residual disability can have long term functional consequences. A fall on an outstretched hand (FOOSH) often results in a Colles fracture but it can also result in a flexion fracture which is called a reversed Colles fracture or a Smith fracture. This latter type of fracture is much less common than the Colles fracture and is generally used to describe a fracture of the end of the radius which results in the fragment being displaced in a palmar direction.

This injury is commonly caused by falling onto the hand with the palm facing upward and the wrist tending to be forced into flexion. The hand stays in place on the ground as the forearm rotates inwards under the force of the fall, generating the fracture. This fracture can also be produced by punching something with the wrist in a slightly bent position. Overall management is the same as for Colles fracture, with realignment of the bony fragments and immobilisation.

Knee Cartilage Injuries

The knee cartilages are properly known as menisci and are almost circular cartilaginous structures which look like banked tracks, sitting between the flat upper surfaces of the tibia and the large rounded condyles of the lower end of the femur. Their function is not entirely understood but may be to guide the femoral condyles as they slide and glide, to distribute synovial fluid evenly around the knee or to give sensory feedback about the complex positions adopted by the knee at any moment. The menisci are vulnerable at times as the large femoral condyles can roll over them and being attached to the tibial upper surface they cannot always move out of the way.

This can result in the meniscus suffering compressive forces applied by the condyle and becoming injured in the process. Tears of the menisci are common injuries and occur in various patterns, common examples being a parrot beak tear and a bucket handle tear. The parrot beak is a small tear at the edge which then appears like a bird.s beak. If the tear is along the substance of the meniscus it can cause a loop with attachments at both ends, like a bucket handle.