When you’re involved in a car accident, the last thing on your mind is how it will affect your knees. You might not even think about your knees at all. However, car accidents are notoriously stressful situations that can have lasting effects on your body. If you experience car knee pain after an accident, it’s important to know what to do and to be seen by a team of car accident chiropractors. Having knee pain after a car accident is common and can be managed with time and the right care plan. In this blog post, we explore tips for dealing with knee pain after a car accident:
Check Your Knees Immediately After an Accident
This seems like an obvious first step, but you might not do it. Your knees are fragile and surrounded by soft tissue that can bruise or tear with even the mildest of impacts. After a car accident, you might have a knee injury, but it won’t show up for a few hours, days, or even weeks. The best way to find out if you have a knee injury is to get checked right away. You’re likely to see your primary care or orthopedic doctor, but you should also ask if they recommend a physical therapist. Getting a second opinion from a physical therapist can be helpful because they specialize in working with people who have knee injuries.
Know What Caused the Car Knee Pain
Your knee pain after an accident could come from a variety of causes. You may have bruised your knee by hitting the dash or injured the knee with a sudden twist or lunge in the accident. In either case, you may have to deal with knee pain for a few days. Any knee pain that lasts longer than a few days after an accident should be treated as a knee injury. The most common knee injury after a car accident is a sprained knee. It can cause pain in one or both knees, swelling and bruising, and limited knee movement. If you feel knee pain after an accident, it’s best to start treating it as an injury. Treat knee injuries as soon as they occur because they’ll likely get worse if you don’t treat them.
Start a Knee Care Plan ASAP
If you’ve been diagnosed with a knee injury, you’ll need to get started with a knee care plan. A knee care plan can help you get back to your daily activities and manage knee pain. Depending on your injury, you may need to wear a knee brace to support your knee. You may also need to adjust your daily activities to reduce stress on it. When you have knee pain after an accident, you need to take rest breaks often, avoid stairs, and try to sit as upright as possible. You can also use ice to reduce knee swelling and implement strength training exercises for mobility.
Keep Moving for Healthy Knees
It’s important to try and keep your knees active if possible! Inactivity makes knee injuries worse and can lead to long-term knee pain. You should avoid high-impact activities while you’re recovering from a knee injury. However, you don’t have to stop working out altogether. You can even keep running if you have knee pain after a car accident. The trick is to keep your knee injury active and build up your knee strength as you heal. A knee injury is just an opportunity to change things up to keep your workout routine fresh. Focus on low-impact activities, like swimming or cycling, and add some knee-strengthening exercises to your routine.
Get Professional Help for Serious Injuries
Finally, if you’re dealing with a serious knee injury after a car accident, you might want to consider seeing a car accident doctor. Doctors and chiropractors are experts when it comes to knee injuries. They can help you choose the right knee strengthening exercises, manage your knee pain, and ensure you’re progressing properly. In addition, our team can work with your health insurance company to find a treatment plan that fits your needs. By contacting us here at Affordable Chiropractic and getting the right treatment plan, you can manage knee pain after a car accident and get back to your daily activities sooner than you think.