By Colleen on Monday, June 05, 2000 - 05:24 pm:

I have OA in both knees, and both kneecaps are malaligned. I am experiencing calf pain and tightness. I will be having another round of physical therapy in June.
Does anyone else experience this or having any suggestions? Thanks!

By Bill Hobba on Monday, June 05, 2000 - 05:25 pm:

I have the same problem, but much worse in my left knee.

I had physio on my left knee but it did not do much good - evenually I had to see your friendly orthopedic surgon who found servere cartledge damage (OA) that I
now know is attribuatble to hypermobility.

My advice is to get an arthroscope done to find the extent of the damage (if any) before any treatment. I have found accupunture very helpful. Note it must be done
by someone who is suitably qualifed in normal medcine and has extensive experience in accupunture otherwise I think you could waste your money.

My understanding of the latest treatment for bad knees is to find out exactly what is going on with a scope. Do moderate exercise/physio, get to your correct weight
and if the problem is bad enough get your knee or knees replaced when you are old enough. Constant fidling of the knees with surgery or aggressive physio is not
considered good under this thinking.

As always be guided by a good doctor/specialist. Discuss my ideas with them first.

By Gwen on Monday, June 05, 2000 - 05:25 pm:

Colleen, I don't believe in 'miracle cures' but recently experienced what must be surely very close to one. I applied for a job selling therapeutic massage equipment
(Sonoid) I was hesitant about taking the job until I tried the product. For the first time in nearly twenty years I was pain free and slept six uninterrupted hours for the
next three nights. I have a demonstration set which I am using regularly on myself and I have only minimal pain now after only two weeks. I gave my mother, who
also had chronic pain problems, a workout and she similarly experienced dramatic improvement. After only one treatment she felt so good that she decided to
purchase a set for herself despite me saying she could use the demo set. I know this sounds like sales hype, I thought exactly the same when I was at the interview,
but I feel as if I've taken on a new lease of life. The American manufacturers are American Massage Products at Silver Creek NY. They have a website if you want
to investigate.

By Gretchen on Monday, June 05, 2000 - 05:25 pm:

Try and find a good doctor who practices prolotherapy. A good book to read on the subject is "Prolo Your Pain Away" by Dr. Hauser. Gentle stretching exercises
help me alot.

By Sue C. on Monday, June 05, 2000 - 05:26 pm:

Three thoughts:

1. My knee caps are/were also severly misaligned. PT is helping my R knee re-align a little. I opted for surgery on the L to head off OA and other problems
associated with improper wear -- in addition to getting rid of the quantity of subluxations/ dislocations. (I'm 31 and was just starting to avoid steps; sports went out
of the picture 5 years ago because of dislocations.)

2. In this post-op phase, I'm walking mostly in a peg-leg fashion. I've noticed my thigh attrophied, but my calf has bulked up. Perhaps your calf problem is a result of
not using your knees "properly."

3. Surgery is a radical treatment method, but I was fed up with the instability. For my R leg, a Don-Joy knee sleeve with a "J" shaped support UNDER the sleeve
helps to guide my knee cap back into the track. Hopefully this particular brace will let me postpone surgery for at least 10 years on the right leg. I plan to use another
brace on the left leg as added support when exercising.

(It's amazing to feel my knee cap slide in it's groove. I can't wait to start using it again without the fear of dislocating!)

By Sue on Monday, June 05, 2000 - 05:26 pm:

My main problem is in my l kneecap. I experience problems when going downstairs where my knee with totally lock and, if not careful, I could fall. When mobilising
I walk with a pronounced limp. The muscle in my upper l thigh is extremely weak these days so climbing stairs is none too easy. I also have O.A. in other lower
limbs and find wet and windy weather make my walking much worse.