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Conditions

ConditionsJoints, tendons and sport

Knee pain

For runner's knee, an aching kneecap, knee arthritis and the stiffness left after surgery. We look at the hip and ankle as well as the knee, alongside your orthopedist and physical therapist.

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Read through

Two lenses, one plan

Water 水 is the phase it is most often read through. Here the Western lens leads, with the classical lens alongside.

The Western lensAnatomy, physiology, biomechanics

Tracking and load

The kneecap glides in a groove at the end of the thigh bone, steered by the quadriceps and by how the hip and foot position the leg. Small changes in that steering can concentrate load on one patch of cartilage or one tendon.

The inner quadriceps
The vastus medialis, the inner part of the quadriceps, often switches off after knee pain, swelling or surgery. Getting it to fire again is a common goal, and electro-acupuncture is one way to add input.
The outer thigh
The IT band is a thick sheet of fascia, not a muscle, so it does not stretch much. Work goes to the muscles that tension it, at the hip and outer thigh.
Swelling and inhibition
Even a small amount of fluid in the knee is thought to inhibit the quadriceps, which is one reason a swollen knee is calmed before it is loaded hard.

The classical lensChannels, patterns, the five phases

The house of the sinews

The classics call the knee the house of the sinews, 膝為筋之府. Knee pain in older or depleted people is read through the Kidney, which governs the bones, and the Liver, which governs the sinews.

Hot or cold knees
A hot, swollen, heavy knee is read as damp-heat pouring downward; a cold, stiff knee that loves a heating pad as cold-damp. The points and any herbs follow the difference.
The knee from the arm
Master Tung's correspondences pair the knee with the elbow and shoulder, so an inflamed knee can be treated from the arm while you bend and straighten it.

Patterns we often see

  • Kidney deficiency with weak, aching knees shèn xū 腎虛
  • Damp-heat pouring downward shī rè xià zhù 濕熱下注
  • Qi stagnation and blood stasis after injury qì zhì xuè yū 氣滯血瘀

Patterns are examples of how this is often read, never a diagnosis. Yours is read at your visit.

How we work: one plan

Dry needling and orthopedic acupuncture of the thigh, calf and hip muscles, Active Release Techniques up and down the leg, and functional movement corrections for hip and ankle control, with electro-acupuncture for a quiet quadriceps and Master Tung's points when the knee is too swollen to needle. After surgery we work with your surgeon's timeline and alongside physical therapy.

What knee pain usually is

The knee is a hinge that also has to twist a little, and it relies on the muscles above and below it to stay on track. Common pictures:

  • Runner's knee, patellofemoral pain. An ache around or behind the kneecap with stairs, squats, hills or long sitting.
  • Patellar tendon pain. Just below the kneecap, sharp with jumping or deep knee bends, common in court sports and lifting.
  • IT band pain. On the outer knee in runners and cyclists, often a few miles into a session.
  • Knee arthritis. Stiffness after rest, aching with load, sometimes grinding or swelling, most common past midlife. See arthritis.
  • Meniscus irritation. Catching or pain with twisting and deep bending.

Your physician or orthopedist handles imaging and decides when a knee needs surgery. Physical therapy often runs alongside our work.

Above and below the knee

A knee that hurts is often a knee that is being asked to do another joint's job. When the hip muscles let the thigh drop inward, the kneecap tracks badly. When the ankle will not bend far enough, the knee pushes forward to make up the difference. That is why the screen includes a step-down, a squat and the ankle, and why the exercises may be for your hip. See hip pain and heel pain.

How we work with it

Dry needling and orthopedic acupuncture of the quadriceps, the hamstrings, the calf and the outer hip, with Active Release Techniques along the outer thigh and the back of the knee and functional movement work for hip and ankle control. A knee that is too swollen or sore to needle is treated first from a distance; in Master Tung's system, a point on the arm often stands in for the knee. Electro-acupuncture can help a thigh muscle that has gone quiet after injury or surgery, and moxibustion suits a knee that aches in the cold.

We retest stairs, a step-down and your squat depth at each visit.

Questions people ask

Can acupuncture help knee arthritis?

Acupuncture has been studied for knee osteoarthritis pain, and research is ongoing. We use it alongside strengthening and your physician's care, aiming at pain and how well you move, not at changing the cartilage.

Can I come in after knee surgery?

Yes, once your surgeon is comfortable with it. We work around the incision and alongside physical therapy, addressing tissue mobility and pain while your therapist rebuilds strength and control.

Why do you look at my hip and ankle?

The knee sits between them. A hip that lets the knee drift in, or an ankle that will not bend, changes how force reaches the knee with every step and squat.

Is a swollen knee an emergency?

A hot, red, swollen knee with fever needs urgent medical care. So does a knee that locks and will not straighten, gives way after a twist with fast swelling, or comes with a swollen, painful calf.

From the journal

This is general wellness information, not medical advice.

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