[at-l] Re: knee injury

[ken@ehpcpa.com (tinman)]

Ouch! The answer to your problem lies very much in the nature of your
knee problems.

I blew out both knees in Virginia in 1997. Thanks to a good doctor in
Bland and a course of Prednisone and Naprosene, I was able to hike on,
somewhat slower. In my case, it was simply wearing out of the cartledge.
After my hike (limited to VA), I did a lot of therapy and found new ways
of strengthening my leg muscles that didn't stress my knees (mostly
using Spree bands). I also started using Cho-pat straps which stabilize
the patella. Those enabled me to run again. At a friend's
recommendation, I also started on Glucosomine (I used the hydrochloride
form marketed by Shaklee as Osteokinetics). I think the recommended
dosage is about 1,500 mg per day. It took a couple of weeks for the
Glucosomine to kick in, but it has really helped and I continue to take
it. Aside from being a little slower on the downhills, there has been no
recurrence of the problem.

Assuming that you haven't blown ligaments or done anything real nasty to
your knees, you should be able to hike on (with the doctor's
concurrence). Advil or Aleve will become your friend, especially in the
morning! And if you haven't already done so, reduce your pack weight as
much as possible! It does matter. As hard as the 100-mile Wilderness may
seem to you as a new SOBO, just wait. The rest of Maine is harder!

Good luck!

Tinman



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