Weight loss and substitution of high-impact for low-impact exercise can help slow progression of the condition. With every step, the patient's weight places a distortion on the knee toward a knocked knee position, and the effect is increased with increased angle or increased weight. Even in the normal knee position, the femurs function at an angle because they connect to the hip girdle at points much further apart than they connect at the knees.
Physical therapy is generally of benefit to people with knock knees. To correct knock knees, the entire leg must be treated, especially:
Activating and developing the arches of the feet,
Waking up the outer leg muscles (abductors), and
Learning how to move the inner ankle bone inwards towards the outer ankle bone, and upwards towards the knee.
Working with a physical medicine specialist such as a physiatrist, or a physiotherapist may assist a patient learning how to improve outcomes and use the leg muscles properly to support the bone structures. Alternative or complementary treatments may include certain procedures from Iyengar Yoga or the Feldenkrais Method.
Rarely, the bone malformation underlying knock knees can be traced to a lack of nutrition necessary for bone growth, which can cause conditions such as rickets (lack of bone nutrients, especially dietary
vitamin D and
calcium), or scurvy (lack of vitamin C). The correction of the underlying vitamin deficiency may restore a more normal progression of bone growth.
Next Steps
Weight loss and substitution of high-impact for low-impact exercise can help slow progression of the condition. With every step, the patient's weight places a distortion on the knee toward a knocked knee position, and the effect is increased with increased angle or increased weight. Even in the normal knee position, the femurs function at an angle because they connect to the hip girdle at points much further apart than they connect at the knees. Physical therapy is generally of benefit to people with knock knees. To correct knock knees, the entire leg must be treated, especially: Activating and developing the arches of the feet, Waking up the outer leg muscles (abductors), and Learning how to move the inner ankle bone inwards towards the outer ankle bone, and upwards towards the knee. Working with a physical medicine specialist such as a physiatrist, or a physiotherapist may assist a patient learning how to improve outcomes and use the leg muscles properly to support the bone structures. Alternative or complementary treatments may include certain procedures from Iyengar Yoga or the Feldenkrais Method. Rarely, the bone malformation underlying knock knees can be traced to a lack of nutrition necessary for bone growth, which can cause conditions such as rickets (lack of bone nutrients, especially dietary
vitamin D and
calcium), or scurvy (lack of vitamin C). The correction of the underlying vitamin deficiency may restore a more normal progression of bone growth.