Improvement of knee function with treatment of spinal joint dysfunction

Abstract

I have continued to study how therapy for spinal dysfunction can benefit peripheral joints, and have now studied 55 consecutive cases of knee problems, with 77 knees being treated. My methods for the spine have been reported in this journal in the past. The therapy consisted of placement of pillow and bar under the trunk and pelvis in side-lying, sitting, and supine. Mechanical dysfunction of the knee joint occurs if joint-play is lost through muscle spasm of the quadriceps and hamstrings or internal derangement of the knee joint such as pinching or displacement of the meniscus, which may be caused by excessive stress or injury. The muscle spasm can be eliminated by the therapy for the spinal joint dysfunction defined by dynamic radiographs. The knee problems were classified into (1) meniscus problems (acute locking/derangement 4 cases, subacute with edema or effusion 3 cases, chronic with restricted flexion 14 cases), (2) periarthritis of ligaments of the knee 10 cases, (3) knee pain caused directly (referred pain) from the spine 20 cases, and (4) contracture of the knee 4 cases. The mean improvement in degrees of flexion was, in group (1) 10, 15, and 13° in the respective categories, in group (2) 3°, in group (3) 1°, and (4) 6°. In all cases except those of contracture, the range of flexion ended at over 140°. As well as radiological determination of joint position and side-flexion range in the thoracic and lumbar spines, three clinical tests for the spine were employed, the gliding test with palpating bar to the thoracic, rib, lumbar and sacroiliac joints, cervical atlanto-axial joint with palpating thumb, and pain provoking test at end-range of flexion. The treatment is carried out by utilizing body weight in side-lying, supine, and sitting. All patients were treated with a small pillow with the core made of rolled paper and of three round wooden bars in order to treat all spinal joints in the static state. Small triangular bars (bars) and oval pillows (pillows) in different sizes are placed under the trunk and pelvis to lift the trunk off the treating table to result in releasing locking of the cervical, thoracic, lumbar, and sacroiliac joints. When joint-play was restored to the knee joint a soft end-feel was sensed for knee flexion and no pain was aroused by pressing the tibia, and there was an increase of external and internal rotation in the elastic ligaments of knee. In the cases of medial radial displacement of the meniscus within group 1, the meniscus itself was reduced by knee traction and rotation. In acute cases treatment was completed in a mean of less than 9 days; contractures were treated for a mean of 48 weeks, while all other cases were treated for less than a mean of 14 weeks.