Physiotherapy for knees

The most common type of knee pain that presents to physiotherapy is knee OA (Australian Physiotherapy Association, 2020). Between 2017-2018, 2.2 million Australians reported having OA, with over half of these individuals having knee OA (AIHW, 2022: Bennell et al., 2021). In 2019, it was found by the AIHW that OA contributed to 19% of Australia’s disease burden (AIHW, 2022: Bennell et al., 2021). This number is set to rise with Australia’s ageing population (Australian Physiotherapy Association, 2020).

Patellar tendinopathy is also a common knee pathology that presents among athletes playing football, basketball, volleyball, or other sports reliant on explosive vertical movement (Lian, Engebretsen and Bahr 2005). In a study conducted by Cook, Kiss and Griffiths (2000), showed Australian adolescent basketball players, particularly males (11%), to be at risk of patellar tendinopathy. Other common knee diagnoses are injuries to the collateral ligaments of the knee, meniscus injury, patellofemoral pain, Hoffa’s fat pad syndrome and Baker’s cyst (Maniar et al. 2022; Gaitonde, Ericksen and Robbins 2019; Subhawong et al. 2011; Demange 2011). Meniscal tears account for 12-14% of knee injuries with the percentage increased in the sporting population (McCready et al. 2016). Patellofemoral, Baker’s cyst and Hoffa’s fat pad syndrome account for approximately 25% of knee injuries (Picerno et al. 2013 and Smith et al., 2018).