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

Total Knee Replacement

Joint replacement is one of the most successful medical technical interventions with the highest quality of life improvements of any treatments. The most common reason for having a knee replacement is the occurrence of osteoarthritis, the typical age related joint change which occurs in many millions of people around the world. Osteoarthritis causes joint pain, stiffness, gradually increasing loss of range of movement and difficulties with walking, climbing stairs and rising from sitting. If conservative treatments are not successful and there is significant disability associated with continual pain and difficult sleeping then joint replacement may be considered.

In knee replacement the joint surfaces are replaced by stainless steels components and a plastic liner is inserted between them and on the back of the patella. The operation takes up to two hours and the person is typically seen and mobilised up into standing or walking the next day by the physiotherapist and an assistant. Rehabilitation with the physios is now very important, with exercise practice, gait supervision and functional activities. Length of stay in hospital varies between three and seven days with routine referral to physiotherapy on discharge to work on range of movement and strength.

Osgood-Schlatter Disease

Osgood-Schlatter disease is a condition affecting the tibial tuberosity (bony lump just below the kneecap) in children around eight to thirteen years old. It typically affects around 20 percent of athletic children of these ages as compared to less than 5 percent of nonathletic children. It tends to coincide with spurts of growth and is three times more likely in boys rather than girls. In young children the tibial tuberosity or tibial tubercle is formed of cartilage and only ossifies into bone later and it is postulated that repeated traction applied to this area can cause minor fractures or inflammation. This leads to pain on vigorous activities where the quadriceps are involved.

Pain, tenderness and swelling typically develop over the tubercle, exacerbated by activity, but the condition is self-limiting and as the growth plate areas fuse into bone the condition gradually settles. As the athletic young person perform sport, the stresses cause minor fractures in the tendon insertion area, which then heals with bony repair. When this is repeated many times the tibial tubercle may become very prominent and give long term problems with functional activities such as kneeling. Limitation of the aggravating activity or short-term immobilisation is required until the inflammation settles.