Consequences of Knee Joint Immobilisation

The article reviews the influence of knee joint immobilisation on its structural components: muscles, bones, ligaments, tendons, joint capsule and articular cartilage. Immobilisation results in measurable decrement of muscle strength and their atrophy. It produces a decline of bone mass, a weakening of the joints’ dense fibrous tissue and a gradual loss of articular cartila­ge, which is ultimately replaced by fibrous fatty tissue. On the contrary, mobilisation and par­tial weight-bearing have beneficial effect on healing of traumatised knee structures. Conservatively or surgically treated, it is better to protect them by using functional braces or taping, than to immobilise them.