Loves exercise including tennis, gym, hiking, & yoga
“My knee had been crooked, loosey-goosey with an abnormal gait before treatment. With just 2.5 months of treatment, my knee and gait are normal and I am pain free!”
Before Treatment
I have an active lifestyle. I’m always exercising – at the gym, at home, or with my kids. In 2011, I developed pain in my big toe. When it didn’t get better, I saw my fave PT, Joni Fisher-Jones, of Laurelhurst Physical Therapy. Joni diagnosed an excessive valgus knee angle caused by different leg lengths. This was placing excessive force on my knee joints, which leads to early degeneration, pain, inflammation, and, sadly, poor prognosis for continuing my active lifestyle.
Joni referred me to Reflex Clinic since they have a non-surgical approach to knee problem.
Getting Treated at Reflex
When I phoned Reflex Portland, I was impressed from the beginning. The staff is friendly and goes above and beyond the typical rushed, unenthusiastic medical office staff. On my first visit, I met Dr. Greg Carroll and Tyler Carey. They performed a thorough exam, including x-rays taken in weight bearing. This gave me a clear visual of the difference in joint space from my normal, healthy knee to the painful toe side. To treat my knee, the Reflex team recommended Hyaluronan injections, supplements, continued Physical Therapy for a strengthening program, and an off-loading knee brace. Tyler had me try on the knee brace – I immediately felt as if I had the knees of an 8-year old! After experiencing the knee brace in my first office visit, Tyler asked me to pay attention to my knees. I realized I did have knee pain, as well as stiffness and discomfort going up and down stairs. Since the pain was at a low level and chronic, I had become used to it. When I went in for the injections, I felt a bit nervous. But, Dr. Russ Riggs tilted my seat back and treated me with extra kindness. He numbed my knee and I didn’t feel the injection at all. The series of injections went smoothly, I received my brace, and began taking supplements.
After First Treatment Series
In the months after my injection series, I followed the doctors’ orders and felt better and better that summer.
At my follow-up appointment, Tyler asked me the same questions as my first visit regarding pain and loss of function. Whereas I had scored a 45 on their pain scale before getting treatment, this time I scored a 0 because nothing hurt! When I met with Dr. Riggs, he assessed my knee joint valgus as well as my ligament integrity – they both had returned to normal.
Before treatment, my knee had been crooked, loosey-goosey with an abnormal gait. With just 2.5 months of treatment, my knee and gait are normal and I am pain free! I’ve returned to full function, participating in yoga classes, tennis, cycling, and hiking without any discomfort in my knee or big toe!