Dr. Keith Swanson, MD

At her age I would not recommend any supplements. Healthy balanced diet is all she needs.

A good deal of any type of physical rehabilitation involves common sense. You should gradually increase activities and not try to jump in to any activity until you have built up in durance. Athletic trainers or physical therapists can help by keeping you on track and modifying your activities to prevent re-injury.. Young children can usually recovery from injuries without formal rehabilitation.

"Pulled muscles" are what we call strained muscles. This means that some of the muscle fibers have been torn and like any injury they need time to heal. With the injury the muscles are weaker and therefore more prone to injury. So it is important to modify your lifting activities so that you don't promote further injury. On the other hand I'm sure you would like to get back to your activities as soon as possible. Both heat and cold can be used to help manage the pain. So the most important thing is time. As your pain decreases then you can begin doing light exercise using pain as your guide. This would include using lower weights and less repetitions and if it hurts don't do it. Muscle strains will heal over time if allowed to do so. Anti-inflammatory medications such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen are helpful to control the pain, but do nothing to help the healing process.

Knee swelling after exercise is not normal. Joint swelling means that there is some abnormality that is underlying the swelling. My advice is to see someone such as an orthopedic surgeon or sports medicine specialist to try to diagnose the underlying problems. If there is no significant mechanical problem such as a torn meniscus or a loose body then over-the-counter non-steroidal anti-inflammatorys (NSAID) such as ibuprofen or naproxen can be taken prior to exercise to try to control the swelling.

Gout certainly cause knee pain. If the pain is mild and there is no significant swelling exercising on a treadmill is probably fine. Knee pain with gout is due to what is termed gouty arthritis. Like any type of arthritis this means that the cartilage lining the joint is degenerating. Patients with knee arthritis should exercise with low impact activities such as biking, swimming, walking, or hiking over relatively flat terrain. The treadmill is usually okay since it is not really high impact except with strenuous running. What ever exercise is performed it should be monitored by pain, or swelling. If it hurts back off. Gouty arthritis can also respond to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications which include ibuprofen, naproxen, and prescription NSAIDs

The ACL is a major knee ligament which is commonly torn in athletic activities. In most active young individuals surgery to reconstruct the ACL is commonly performed. This is a major knee surgery. The rehabilitation after surgery is also just as important. Most surgeons have a specific protocol that they follow for ACL Rehabilitation after surgery. It commonly starts within the first few days of surgery and takes 6 to 9 months to fully recover and return to sports. Your orthopedic surgeon will work closely with a physical therapist and athletic trainer to maximize your recovery. The good news is that treatment of ACL tears today is very successful. Good luck.

Surgery to repair or reconstruct the ACL is usually the treatment of choice for young active individuals. To fully recover from this surgery and return to sports is usually 6 to 9 months minimum. The reason that it takes so long is that the tissue used to reconstruct the ACL needs that long to remodel into strong ligamentous type tissue.

It depends. Ankle sprains are classified from 1 to 3. Grade 1 is a mild sprain with very little damage to the ligaments and will resolve relatively quickly. A grade 3 sprain is a complete tear of all the ligaments and if it doesn't heal properly can cause chronic ankle instability which require surgery. Treatment Ranges from a brace for a short time to casting for complete immobilization. The appropriate treatment needs to be determined by a healthcare provider such as a primary care physician or an orthopedic surgeon.

He should see an orthopedic surgeon.

If your lateral meniscus is macerated it probably cannot be repaired but will need to be partially excised. That can only be determined at the time you undergo an arthroscopic surgery procedure.

If you are doing deep squats especially with weights and you're having knee pain I would stop that exercise. You don't need to do a deep knee bend to get maximum muscle strengthening. I recommend a one third squat since it uses the same muscles as a deep squat but puts less stress on your knees.

I recommend that you see an orthopedic surgeon.

Certainly ice for 20 minutes after may be helpful and is not harmful.