Among the body's lower joints, the knee stands out as the one most likely to necessitate a visit to a physiotherapist. This hinge joint bears the brunt of our body weight and lacks the secure, socket-like structure of other joints, making it particularly vulnerable.
Why Knees Are So Vulnerable to Injury
"The knee carries most of the body's weight, and being a hinge joint, it means that it doesn't have a nice socket structure," explains Dr Jillian Eyles, a physiotherapist from the University of Sydney. "It relies on the ligaments, joint capsules, and surrounding muscles for stability, which makes it fairly easy to injure compared to a more supported joint."
This inherent vulnerability is a key driver behind the staggering number of knee surgeries. In Australia alone, more than 53,000 knee replacement operations are performed annually. Experts project this figure will more than double by the year 2030, often as a consequence of injury and the subsequent development of osteoarthritis.
Practical Steps to Protect Your Knees
Prevention is paramount. A serious knee injury, such as a tear of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), dramatically increases the risk of developing knee osteoarthritis later in life. Physiotherapist Dr Kathryn Mills of Kensington Physiotherapy and Macquarie University emphasises that a proper warm-up is crucial for injury prevention.
"That’s not going for a run and a stretch – it’s doing a designed programme that trains both how your muscles are working and how your brain is activating them," she advises. Effective warm-up activities to help prevent ACL injuries include squats, walking lunges, high-knee running, and side-to-side jumps.
The Role of Weight and Consistent Activity
As a primary load-bearing joint, the knee is profoundly affected by body weight. Professor Rana Hinman, a research physiotherapist at the University of Melbourne, highlights the cumulative impact. "If you think about how many steps a day someone walks, that accumulates over a lifetime. Excess load from body weight can be a major contributor to joint damage," she states. Maintaining a healthy weight reduces both mechanical load and inflammation.
Dr Eyles adds that for overweight individuals with knee pain, losing just a small percentage of body weight can significantly reduce pain and osteoarthritis symptoms.
Keeping active is equally vital. Natalie Collins, an APA sports & exercise physiotherapist at the University of Queensland, recommends 150 minutes of moderate activity weekly, plus resistance training twice a week. "This builds muscle capacity for daily tasks like squatting, using stairs, or playing sport," she says. Simple exercises like chair squats or lunges are excellent starting points. Gym-goers can benefit from leg extensions and leg curls to strengthen the quadriceps and hamstrings.
The Importance of a Gradual Approach
While activity is encouraged, rushing into a new fitness regime is a common pitfall. Dr Michael O’Brien from La Trobe University notes that during Covid lockdowns, many people took up running enthusiastically but quickly suffered from overuse injuries. "The key is to expose the body – especially the joints – to load gradually," he cautions.
Dr Mills suggests a methodical build-up: "Start off really small, and every week you can increase your activity level by between 10% and 30%. You’ll make consistent improvement and reach your goals safely." By warming up properly, managing weight, staying active with strength training, and progressing gradually, you can significantly bolster your knee health and avoid becoming a future surgical statistic.
