Paris Olympics Tennis 金 Nori Djokovic, Knees Key
Jul 26, 2024
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Djokovic, who is breaking all the records of men's tennis, including the most wins in men's singles at the Grand Slam (Australia-France-Wembley-US), is considered a living tennis legend. However, he failed to shake off the aftermath of his knee injury in the Wimbledon final, which recently ended, and was beaten by Holy Carlos Alcaras (Spain, world No. 3). Djokovic suffered a meniscus cartilage rupture at the French Open a month before the tournament.
The meniscus cartilage to which Djokovic was injured is a semicircular cartilage tissue located between the femur and tibia. It acts as a cushion for the knee to absorb shock and help the knee to bend and stretch naturally. In particular, there is a high probability of injury when doing rapid change of direction and weight-bearing exercises such as tennis. If symptoms such as stiff knee pain after exercise, pain that comes with a sound of 'tuk', knee swelling, knee shaking, pain when going down stairs or squatting, and sudden joint locking should be suspected.
Stretching before exercise is more important than anything else to prevent meniscus cartilage rupture.
Director Moon Sung-chul of the Joint Center at Gangnam Nanuri Hospital said, "It is better to relax the muscles around the knee, the quadriceps and hamstrings before exercising. It is helpful to prevent injuries by continuously strengthening the quadriceps, such as squats and leg extensions."."
However, it is considered a problem as many people neglect the rupture of meniscus cartilage. Once damaged cartilage does not recover naturally, but young people may also suffer from degenerative arthritis as the stability of the knee joint decreases. When degenerative arthritis progresses, muscles around the knee and important structures are likely to be damaged together and the quality of life is greatly reduced.
If knee pain and discomfort persist after exercise, it is important to receive accurate diagnosis and treatment by a specialist such as orthopedic surgery. If cartilage damage is mild, non-surgical treatment such as injection therapy, exercise therapy, and exercise therapy is expected to improve.
However, if the diagnosis shows that the degree of rupture is severe and the pain is so severe that daily life is impossible, surgery using an arthroscopy can be considered. Using arthroscopy, resection, sutures, and transplantation are performed to seal the ruptured area, and when it is difficult to regenerate the damaged area, the damaged area is removed by resection. Since it proceeds with a minimum incision of less than about 1 cm, there is little concern about bleeding or infection and a rapid recovery can be expected.
Director Moon Sung-chul said, `Those who enjoy intense sports such as tennis should always keep in mind the risk of meniscus cartilage rupture and thoroughly prevent and manage sufficient stretching and muscle strengthening exercises"It is advisable to avoid heavy lifting or squatting in everyday life." he advised.
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bellho@sportschosun.com