Today I worked with a elderly client who had edema in their left leg. They stated it had been hurting quite badly for several days. First I used lymphatic drainage therapy on the calve, which is very light massage to help move the lymph fluid up the leg. Secondly, I used physical therapy massage to further reduce the swelling, using both effleurage to move the fluid up the leg, and light petrissage.
After this, I went to work on the client’s knee pain. Most often I find muscle contraction above the knee when pain is present. I palpated the area, and found multiple muscle contractions, not just above the knee, but throughout the quads. I worked gently to loosen these up, as the clients leg could not tolerate anything past light pressure.
The client texted later to let me know their pain had reduced considerably in their calve, knee and entire leg.