My mum's knee

[username3678]

Any medical people about please?

My mum who is 78, broke her knee badly during lockdown. She couldn't have physio so has a bit of a limp. Now she's complaining that it's painful and hurts from the knee to the ankle.

She can walk and as far as I know, it's not swollen. She has dementia so information is difficult but I don't think she twisted it.

I'm not there so am going via reports. My sister has been giving her ibuprofen and I told her to rest it elevated but of course she doesn't remember. She plays a lot of bowls so I'm wondering if the bending at the knee might have caused it.

I'm thinking about getting her a physiotherapist and was going to try and speak to her Dr next week.

Has anyone got any advice? Is physiotherapy a good idea after all this time? Is ibuprofen the way to go and should she see the Dr?

Thanks

You need to be really careful with NSAIDs in people in this age group. Your sister should probably chat with the GP if she hasn’t done already.

Great advice thank you.

after some time from the injury physiotherapy could definitely help with her mobility and pain. you might even want to get in touch with a physio for advice on getting some gentle exercises going to help ease the pain.

I hope she gets some relief soon!

Thank you so much.

A Dr saw her and recommended over the counter pain relief.

She has also been seen by a physiotherapist and has some exercises to do.

I'm glad that someone has been involved with a physio early on! Over time, those exercises can sometimes make a big difference. In the meantime, I hope the pain relief helps. Hope she has the best recovery journey and is lucky enough to have such an incredible support system!

Thank you 💐

Welcom ❤

My mum has osteoarthritis in her knees and uses Flexiseq cream which alleviates the pain - it is not a NSAID and is available from Superdrug.

Voltorol cream might also help but is a NSAID as it's diclofenac so be careful if she can't have them. - most supermarkets / Superdrug sell it

Alternatively the red tiger balm is also recommended but has capsicum so not good if she might rub her eyes after

Thank you. The physiotherapist did recommend Ibuleve or another topical gel. I will look into Flexiseq cream that sounds great. You're right, the tiger balm could be rubbed in her eyes.

Your advice is much appreciated.

Has she tried hot/cold as a pain relief? Physio might also suggest this. Some prefer hot (heat packs/hot water bottle) especially if arthritis is involved, while others find cold packs more beneficial. Could help to relieve the ache when resting. Not sure how much the dementia affects your mum so how compliant she’ll be with the PT exercises but consistency is important, it can take a while for the exercises to help and often they can aggravate a little before things improve. She may have altered her walking/movements to compensate during the injury and recovery so another suggestion is possibly seeing a podiatrist as insoles can help correct- if she’s still under the physio, ask them if this is worthwhile and they can possibly refer her on if within nhs

Thank you so much. She is no longer in pain but she had a cold compress. The physiotherapist recommended a hot or cold compress as well.

My sister will do the exercises with her, there's no way she'd remember.

She has a limp , it's very slight. The physiotherapist said her knee was in very good condition. However I could ask if a podiatrist would be helpful. That's a great suggestion.

I’ve just realised your post is a couple weeks old so I was late to the party 🤣🙈 glad your mum’s pain is under control and I hope all is good soon and she’s continuing to enjoy the bowls!

No problem at all, thanks for your advice.