My knee hasn’t been good for a while. I can’t run on it as it feels like there is no “damping” around the joint. Twisting and side loading it are also painful.

Is there any point in seeing a GP about this?

in that they can refer you onwards, I’d say yes

how much money do you have?

how much money do you have?

Not enough.

It eventually worked for me..
GP referred me for physio, then onto a specialist and eventually I got an MRI scan..

That’s the most I could hope for I guess.. Unfortunately the specialist was stumped 🙁

Depends, are you over 40?

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ey4WSb-BVDQ[/video]

Yes definitely. Got referred to have an MRI when I was having problems a couple of years ago – didn’t even have to wait that long. With other movement related stuff I’d normally recommend skipping the middle man and paying to see a physio, but that sounds very similar to mine and the sort of thing where getting it scanned might also be useful. In my case the issue wasn’t what they thought it might be and were looking for, but the scan report was useful for the physio (my usual private sports specialist) as she knew exactly what she was treating rather than guessing.

The funny thing was that I took my mum in for a CT scan a few days later (hobbling down the corridor looking less capable than 84yo mum) and somebody did recognise me and comment on me coming back.

Harry I became a proper pain in the arse for my GP went back 3 times with the same issue after being fobbed off with ibuprofen etc.. and eventually he referred me to physio.

1st was **** useless and told me lots of things I should not be doing (rest it, do not to any exercise it etc..)the 2nd was a bloody genius all the previous information the first one told me was incorrect she knew what the problem was dished out the exercises, give me a bollocking when I had not been doing them (she just knew!)

And now it’s in a much better place. You pay enough enough NI just tell them your still not happy with assessment, I originally told him I was not happy with his diagnosis and wanted a scan I suppose a referral to a physio is cheaper than having the scan?? Who knows 🙂

Anyway my knee works much better now, and it’s not a bad thing having an extremely attractive young woman running her hand over your legs ether 😀

I would pursue the GP line to get a referral.

They will try to put you off with waiting list times.

It must work as i have had my schedule accelerated in the past and received good quality physio at a time that suited me a few years back when i tore the cartilage while trying to lever down a wishbone on a car to do a shock change.

It clicked for a couple of years but the locking was stopped by the physio.

Now i don’t even consider it an issue.

Be like Andy Dufresne, write a letter a day, they can’t ignore you forever.

When I had a very poorly knee. I went to the doctor and he said no cycling for 2 weeks and come back in 2 weeks and if it was not any better he would book me in for a operation. 2 weeks later still very sore but a little better. The doctor was ready to book me in for an operation, but I asked for physiotherapy first. He agreed to this. The physio was good and got me going again. The cause was falling off my bike on black ice, running single speed and a misaligned cleat. All sorted by Salford NHS.

I’d certainly go and see the gp.. They are obviously not specialist sports physios.. But that’s not thier job, thier job is to assess and refer you to a more specialised doctor where necessary.

Yes – explain that it is stopping you from keeping fit.

It may take a go away with anti inflammatory drugs before will refer but so be it.

It’s in their interest to get you fixed. if you start hobbling around it could cause other problems with your back for instance, so they save money overall by treating the initial problem.

They will refer you but could be a long waiting list.
Might be worth booking in one diagnostic session with a private physio if you have to wait a long time.

Personal experience says not. Depends on the GP so give it a go.
It depends what they think it is.
My GP after persistence referred me on to a ‘specialist’ who just wasn’t interested or up to the job. Said I would have to live with the problem. Unless it was locking he had no idea. Wouldn’t consider MRI scan either.
Went to a private physio that worked with the GB athletics team and he couldn’t get to the bottom of it either but I ended up paying for a MRI scan & got referred on to a consultant surgeon in the end. He knew within 2 minutes that there was an issue with my ACL and maybe torn cartilage – put me on his NHS waiting list. Operation & sorted within 18 weeks,never looked back. Cost me £700 & faith in the NHS. Gutted to hear the surgeon died last year in a surfing incident with kids down south. Top bloke.

Yes.

I didn’t.
It got ‘better’.
Then my ankle went.
I ignored it.
It got ‘better’.

Turned out to be my back.
Went to GP.
Referred to NHS physio who is now in the process of trying to sort the lot out.

Unless you really, really like The Professionals, which is on every afternoon about 3ish, I’d go.

Ask your GP’s surgery if you can self refer for Physio. You can here (NHS Lothians) and cuts out a lot of time. My wife did it recently and got a Physio appointment in a week or so.

IME a good physio will have a better chance of working out what’s wrong. They can always point you back to the GP for a referral if it’s something more serious.

I went to the GP, referred me to 6 months physio then they x-rayed it and found i needed a new knee!

Yeah, the self referral system seems to work- you’d think it’d cause lots of timewasters but apparently it’s a net benefit, GP time saved greater than physio time wasted. Have to say, I’ve had excellent treatment from NHS physios over the year- it’s the reason I can walk never mind ride a bike.

But if I’ve got a short term thing, I tend to go to our private sports physio just because it’s more focused and it’s very fast- like, when I spannered my back a week before tweedlove, I had my first physio session the day I called, and another 2 in the next 2 weeks. And totally focused- they made sure i was safe, then concentrated on getting back the functionality I wanted in a hurry. It wasn’t cheap but I think our perspective of this can be weird- it’s about £30 an hour to fix a car, why does £40 to fix a you feel expensive?

in that they can refer you onwards, I’d say yes

this, only way forward unless you have private medical insurance or lots of ££

A lot of NHS physios let you self refer now. Check your local trust

I would just pay to see a Physio privately, just to get an assesment.

To be fair now I remember that actually I went to the GP with a letter from my private physio asking to be referred for a scan. I presume this is fairly normal – though my GP is great about sports injuries anyway as has done sports at quite a high level.

The only time I had physio on the NHS I had to wait months for an appointment, so after that I just found a good private sports physio. Interested to hear about self referral, though as always these things vary depending on the area you’re in – as mentioned above at least it didn’t take long to get a scan here.

Yes . Do the physio,if you can, get an MRI ,it makes diagnosis easier(in my case, three times!).
My knees have been much better since treatment and since I stopped wearing shoes with worn out heels ,as well as
keeping them warm when below 10degrees. Simple things.

You need to crash your bike and land on a big pointy rock. Guaranteed to get you a consultant and an mri scan.

That’s what I did last time!!

Me too 😕

I paid for a couple of sessions with a good local Physio when one of my knees was giving me grief. 2x £40 – worth every penny.