Using Social Security to Benefit You After Knee Surgery

Having to go through knee replacement surgery is hard enough without worrying about the expenses that you will incur and whether you'll receive any benefits from Social Security. Before you have your surgery you will need to find out whether benefits could be available. Not all states consider knee replacement surgery a disability so getting the proper information is critical beforehand. You could be a candidate for Social Security benefits to help defray the cost of the surgery as well. Learn what kind of application process is involved towards receiving benefits.

If after six months you are still unable to be mobile you could qualify for Social Security benefits for being disabled. If you have a history of knee arthritis you could receive Social Security benefits as well. You will need to consult with a lawyer specializing in disabilities to see if you can qualify and apply for these benefits. A skilled lawyer will know what you are going through and how to get the benefits you deserve, especially if you have been denied in the past. Remember, claims made by people with attorneys have an increased chance of getting the benefits they need over people who are unrepresented. A lawyer can help you file the correct papers with the proper authorities.

With arthritis, the loss of the range of motion will dictate if you may qualify for certain benefits. You may even qualify for knee arthritis surgery. The National Institutes of Health have determined that paying out for surgery could be less than the expected payout of disability benefits over the expected lifetime of the patient. Having surgery can improve the life of an individual 85% - 90% so that paying out disability benefits would not have to be an issue. Again, hiring a lawyer specializing in disability and Social Security insurance could be a great benefit to you if he finds that you are eligible. After possibly years of living with painful knees and the inability to walk, you should not have to worry about whether you will be financially compensated. Give yourself some piece of mind.

If you have become disabled due to arthritis, knee surgery or a lack of mobility, you may have a right to disability insurance from the Social Security Association. Do not let a lack of information hold you back from getting the benefits you deserve, find out all that you can about how to make your quality of life better and how to be financially secured when the need for knee replacement surgery becomes a reality. You are not alone with your suffering. Learn more at knee-replacement-video.com.

Protect Your Knees While Playing Soccer - Best Knee Braces For Soccer

Soccer is a sport that is played by thousands of people all over the world, young and old alike. You will find informal soccer games going on in many schoolyards and sports fields, and it is also a professional sport that is extremely popular in Europe, where it is called football or, more affectionately, footie.

Soccer involves a considerable amount of running, and players are not allowed to touch the ball with their hands, which means players use and injure their legs more. The only player who is allowed to pick up the ball with his or her hands is the goalie. The object of the game is to get the ball from one end of the field to the other, and get it past the goalie into the net, which will earn the player a point.

Knee Braces are Worn by Many Players for Support During Play

Soccer players shouldn't wait until they have a knee injury to wear a knee brace. In fact, wearing a brace can help to reduce the chance of knee injuries by providing support to the joint while moving. Many soccer players understand the benefits of wearing knee braces, and one of the preferred models is the DonJoy Full Force Ligament Knee Brace, because it is extremely durable and lightweight enough to make it comfortable for the wearer.

Don't Get Weighed Down by Your Knee Brace

Most athletes who wear braces need to make sure that they get one that is lightweight and easy to move around in. After all, the last thing most athletes want to do is give up playing their favorite sport just because of a little old knee injury, and wearing a brace can often make it more comfortable for them to play, especially if they are recovering from a knee injury of any kind. The DonJoy Full Force Ligament Knee Brace is extremely popular with soccer players because its lightweight design relieves knee pain makes movement much easier than if they were wearing traditional, heavy braces.

Other Benefits of the DonJoy Full Force Ligament Knee Brace

There are all kinds of different types of knee injuries, and the DonJoy Full Force Ligament Knee Brace can be used to treat a number of them, including ACL, PCL, MCL and LCL instabilities and hyperextension. This brace can also help in the recovery following ACL and PCL reconstruction surgery. Plus, wearing this brace, especially while involved in activities such as soccer, can help to prevent injuries or at least minimize any injuries you may receive while playing.

The DonJoy Full Force Ligament Knee Brace has a Four-Points of Leverage Dynamic System, which helps to reduce strain on the ACL, as well as FourcePoint Hinge Technology. This helps to keep the knee in the proper position while walking or moving.

4 Major Diseases Caused Or Complicated by Obesity

There are many diseases which are known to be caused or complicated by being overweight or obese. Type-2 (adult onset) diabetes, high blood pressure, certain cancers and osteoarthritis are four major diseases linked to obesity.

Type-2 diabetes

Type-2 diabetes used to be known as adult onset, or non-Insulin Dependent Diabetes. Type-2 diabetes tends to run in families and more common in people who are overweight or obese. The incident rate is increasing correlating with the increase in obesity in the population.

Type-2 diabetes is characterized by the body not making enough of the hormone insulin to control the blood sugar levels. Sometimes the cells in the body can also become "insulin resistant" to normal levels of the hormone resulting in higher levels of insulin being required.

This form of diabetes can be controlled through proper diet, physical exercise, and weight loss.

High blood pressure (hypertension)

Having high blood pressure is one of several 'risk factors' that can increase your chance of developing heart disease, a stroke, and other serious conditions. As a rule, the higher the blood pressure the greater the risk.

Blood pressure is a measure of the pressure of the blood against the arterial wall at the start of a heartbeat (systolic pressure) and end of the heartbeat (diastolic pressure). Blood pressure varies with time of day but if it remains consistently high over a period of time it is classified as "high blood pressure", often called "hypertension".

The risk of hypertension is 5 times higher in the obese as compared to those of normal weight and up to two-thirds of cases can be attributed to excess weight.

Treatment for hypertension includes a change in lifestyle risk factors where these can be improved i.e. losing weight, taking regular physical exercise, having a healthy diet, reducing alcohol consumption and stopping smoking.

Cancer

Most people do not associate obesity with cancer and are often surprised by the connection. Often by time people are diagnosed with cancer they tend to be ill and thin, so the association with obesity is not made readily. However, experts have now concluded that there is now ample evidence that obesity increases the risk of cancers of the breast (postmenopausal), endometrium (the lining of the uterus), colon, kidney, and esophagus.

In 2002, about 41,000 new cases of cancer in the United States were estimated to be due to obesity. This means that about 3.2 percent of all new cancers are linked to obesity. A recent report estimated that, in the United States, 14 percent of deaths from cancer in men and 20 percent of deaths in women were due to obesity.

Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis is a type of (degenerative) arthritis that's caused by wear and tear of the joints. It makes your joints feel stiff and painful and commonly affects your hands, knees, hips and back.

You're more likely to get osteoarthritis if you're obese. Overweight women have nearly 4 times the risk of knee osteoarthritis, and for men the risk is 5 times greater. Being overweight increases the pressure on your joints, especially in your knees, ankles and lower back. This increases the stress within the joint can wear away the protective cartilage between the bone. Losing even a small amount of weight can ease the pressure on your joints, helping you to move around more freely and leading to a lower dependence on pain relieving medication.

Knee Overuse Injuries

Your knees take a lot of stress during the day, especially if you are a sports person or someone who does regular physical activity. Often, if the load is too great, or there are bad biomechanics involved, then you can end up with a chronic injury. These can develop over time, and can come in a number of forms. They are very painful and can be quite serious if not treated properly.

Types Of Overuse Injuries

There are many different types of knee overuse injuries, and it is very important that you know which one that you have in order to treat it correctly. Here is a list of common chronic knee injuries:

* Patella Instability

* Runners or Jumpers Knee

* Osgoods-slatter's Disease

* Chondramalacia

* Patella Tendonitis

* Arthritis

* Bursitis

All of these can be a result of excess loads and stress on the knees that they cannot handle. Although they are very different in their causes and their treatment, it is likely that bad biomechanics and an abnormal stress on the knees have contributed and cause the injury.

How To Treat Overuse Injuries

There are a few things that you need to do to make sure that you treat your knee overuse injury correctly. If you follow these tips then you will be able to reduce your pain significantly.

• Ice: This is important as usually there is a lot of inflammation and swelling involved in the injury. Ice will help decrease this, and thus the pain. When the inflammation goes down there is much more chance that the knee will heal.


• Rest: This is extremely necessary. If you cannot rest totally, then you should do relative rest. This means that you need to stop doing what is hurting you. You can keep fit and train in other areas, but if it causes you pain then you need to stop.


• Correct Biomechanics: If you have bad biomechanics then you will likely be putting extra stress through the knee. This is a very common cause of an overuse injury and it is very important that you correct the problem. For example if your patella is not moving correctly, you can get a lot of pain, you can correct this with a knee strap and it will make it move in the correct position and take the pain away.


• Rehabilitation: Doing the correct exercises is very important. You probably need to strengthen the area as it is likely that you have an imbalance somewhere.

The Dangers of Obesity and Knee Replacement

The solution to people with knee problems can be a mix of medication and proper diet. For more serious cases, knee surgery may become inevitable. This means that the entire knee will have to be replaced with an artificial joint so that they can walk again without pain. Unfortunately, it may be more difficult for people who are considered to be obese to enjoy the long-term effects of surgery. There are even experts that say obesity and knee replacement do not particularly mix well.

Why Knee Replacement Is Important

The joints that make up our knees are cushioned and protected by a material called cartilage. It is the same organic material our ears are made of. Factors such as too much fast food and sports like running or basketball can contribute to the reduction of cartilage in the knee. The problem results to the joints not moving properly and excruciating pain.

Obesity can even play a part in the degradation of the knee. As mentioned above, certain foods that cause obesity in general can also affect the cartilage. Furthermore, the knee of an obese person is under more weight and pressure compared to a healthier individual, increasing the possibilities of osteoarthritis.

How Can Obesity Affect Knee Replacement?

Arthroplasty or knee replacement is considered a major surgery. Hence, there are several tests that patients are required to take to make sure that they fit to be on the operation table. These tests include a blood-clotting test and electrocardiogram or ECG, among others. These tests may reveal other conditions that may affect the success of the operation.

This is where obese patients usually have a problem. Due to their weight condition, it is more likely that they also have high blood pressure and heart ailments. This means doctors will have to take extra precaution during the actual surgery. It is even possible that surgery will not be an option once obese patients have been found to have other medical problems.

Issues after the Knee Surgery

Even if the surgery becomes successful, obesity can still become a major hurdle during the recovery period. The existing conditions of the patient may delay the complete healing of the wounds and how the artificial knee adapts to the leg. Most importantly, physical rehabilitation may be longer for people who are weight challenged.

It will actually take more time for them to get back the strength of the muscles and bones. Because of their weight, they are mostly likely to be given continuous passive motion or CPM treatments, so they and their artificial knees can start physical exercises without so much strain.

Aside from the long recovery, certain studies have shown that 1 out of 10 obese people who had arthroplasty found that the surgery was not successful after five or six years. This is because the additional weight caused more stress on the artificial joint. This caused the joints to develop stiffness or malfunction altogether. This is a stark contrast to the 100 percent success rates of knee surgery on people who are not obese.

A strict doctor ordered rehabilitation always follows knee replacement surgery. Unfortunately, this rehab is only enough to give you some mobility and get back part of your life. They don't expect people with knee replacements to have the full abilities like they once did, so they don't even try. With the right exercise and routines, though, you can have that life back, despite what the doctors tell you. Take the time to learn about rehabilitation from knee replacement surgery, and how you can ease your fear of living a sedentary life by taking action.

Knee Pain And Exercise

Knee pain is the most common ailment of the body. Ironically the knee is the most complicated joint; it bears virtually all the body weight while performing straightening, bending, twisting and rotating functions. All these functions increase the risk of knee injury. Whereas the more acute knee injuries like torn ligament and cartilages are more prevalent in sports involving jumping, running and turning.

However these injuries are caused when the knees are overworked. These pains gradually develop over days or weeks and gradually worsen over time. When muscles and tendons are overstretched microscopic tears occur (the prevalent pain is usually as a result of inflammation). Avoid chronic problems by giving the tear time to heal. Knee pain is usually caused by the following:

1. When the knees are overworked over a short period of time- this usually occurs when one indulges in very strenuous exercises after a very long exemption.

Usually, the risk of knee injury is higher with age- it can lead to knee osteoarthritis, which is a gradual disintegration of the cartilage.

2. Runner's knee-It is usually found in young people and it is a diffuse pain behind the knee cap. The pains usually get worse after activities such as running and climbing.

There are various solutions or ways of preventing knee pain through exercise but they all center on developing the muscles and supporting the knee.

Knee injuries require time to heal; exercises should be done gradually by increasing the count, and should be stopped once you experience any pain. During these exercises the muscle will tear and after the process of healing the muscle becomes bigger and stronger. These exercises help to correct the problems in the knee joint. Here are some of the exercises required to solve and prevent knee injuries and pain:

Knee exercise for runners - by indulging in this form of exercise you will get to muscle groups in the body like the quadriceps and hamstrings.

Leg raises - this is a simple exercise and it can be done at home.

Standing leg raises - this kind of exercise needs support and it is very similar to the leg raises.

Single leg dip - this exercise strengthens the knee and squads. It also requires support on both sides.

Wall squat - this is a simple compound quad exercise for runners. However, the quadriceps strengthening contraction is possibly the safest, easiest and most recommended exercise you can perform to avoid knee pain and injury. You can always do most of these exercise even while watching television especially if you find difficult to fix exercise in to your program. For optimum result, adhere to the recommendations of the experts like the fitness trainers, gym instructors as well as your physical therapist.

It is important to note that the most feasible way of protecting your knee from injury is by developing and strengthening the muscles around the knee.

Best Home Alarm System

The other day my neighbor Jim had called because he was having trouble going down the stairs so I told him to wait until I came over to help him down the stairs. He's about 90 years old and usually a very careful person when he's by himself.

I remember him telling me that he was going to buy a Home Safe Auto Dialer Security and Safety Alarm system but at the time didn't remember if he installed it or even purchased the alarm. The "home Life alarm system is a very easy to install system with only batteries to install.

For some reason my car was out of gas and I couldn't get it started so i was delayed on getting over to his house. Being 90 years old and set in his ways i later learned just how set in his ways he was. He didn't wait for me to come over to his house to help him so he went ahead and started on his own to go down the huge curving stairs in his big old house.

According to his wireless security camera that was installed he had only taken a couple of steps when he lost his footing and slipped down the stairs head first. From what I had watched on the video of the camera he fell with his face hitting the steps first. He looked like he was not breathing but he was ever so slowly.

I was not able to tell from the camera if he was going to get up or not from the video but as time went on and on he started to move his arms a little. its good that he had installed a Home Safe Alarm a couple days ago. He had forgotten to turn it off so it was triggered when he fell down the steps. The system quickly monitored his actions as he fell. The auto dialer called his daughter, 911, and myself.

In only a few minutes the emergency crew plus the fire department had arrived to help with the situation and quickly acted on the situation. About twenty minutes later his daughter Cathy arrived and in a frantic mood not knowing what to expect but was happy to know that the emergency team and came so quickly to help. Even tho she didn't know what was going on and was in shock when she noticed her dad was on the floor but was breathing she ran to him.

I told her what was going on and she was happy that the auto dialer had done its job well. I knew he had made the right purchase after seeing how quickly the alarm system had called for help. He was rushed to the hospital and admitted right away. They started checking him out and found that he had several broken ribs, a broken shoulder and a twisted angle. The next day at the hospital Cathy was walking up and down the floor as her dad was in surgery. He was having a replacement knee joint done hopefully so he could walk again. The ribs will heal on their own over time. Even though he did break a couple of bones he is still mighty lucky that it wasn't worse at his age. After a few days and some rehab he will be able to return home and once again staying in his house by himself which is what he wants.

This is one of those times when a wireless alarm with an auto dialer was worth ten thousand times what was paid for it and possibly saved a human life. He was able to install this system even at an older age.

The Auto Dialer can also be used in Chime mode, such as in a store, where a chime will alert you when motion is detected. The Auto Dialer is easy to set-up. Install a 9 volt battery (not included), connect the AC power cord and telephone line (included). Then mount the Auto Dialer to the desired location 5-6 feet above the floor.