Knee arthritis is a complex disease that can grow more severe over time, drastically limiting your mobility and overall and hurting your quality of life. This debilitating condition has no actual cure, but with enough medical oversight and preparation, it’s possible to manage the symptoms and slow down its progression.
At Gramercy Pain Center, we understand that the pain our patients feel is a complicated issue. It's not enough to treat the underlying condition – we also need to determine the best way of treatment for the patient, in such a way that it improves their quality of life without putting more strain on their body. If you have knee arthritis of any kind, you can rest easy that our staff will be dedicated to helping you improve your condition.
The knee is an important part of our mobility, yet it also faces the most strain from our day-to-day activities. Responsible for bearing the weight of our body, allowing us to walk properly, and overall aiding in our mobility, the knee joint can experience incredible wear and tear throughout our lifetime.
Knee arthritis occurs when the cartilage surrounding your knees becomes inflamed or deteriorates. Because the cartilage is responsible for cushioning the joints in your body, the lack of this cushioning can cause a variety of symptoms like swelling, pain, and weakness in your knee joints. Some common culprits of knee arthritis include:
The knee is an incredibly complex part of the human body despite its size. There are over 100 different types of knee arthritis, which can make diagnosis difficult. Fortunately, our knee arthritis specialist has the experience necessary to assess your situation. Common types of knee arthritis include:
Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune condition where your knee joints experience inflammation as a response to a perceived threat. Normally, the body only experiences inflammation if there’s a foreign invader that it needs to defend itself against. However, an autoimmune disease like rheumatoid arthritis causes your body to attack itself, which can lead to severe pain, degraded cartilage, and joint weakness.
When your cartilage starts experiencing significant wear and tear, osteoarthritis occurs. This takes away the cushioning between the joints in your knee, which causes them to grind against one another whenever you move. This friction manifests in acute pain, joint stiffness, and limited mobility. Without management, the symptoms only worsen over time and may develop into other complications like bone spurs.
A major injury to the knee can cause the cartilage to wear away – and in some severe cases, even break entirely. What makes this type of knee arthritis difficult to manage is that symptoms may sometimes take years before they manifest, which can make treatment difficult. It shares the same symptoms as osteoarthritis, though the severity can be greater depending on the circumstances of your injury.
Gramercy Pain Center recommends that you look for a knee arthritis specialist as soon as you encounter any symptoms of knee arthritis. The earlier your knee arthritis treatment starts, the better your prognosis will be. Look for a specialist especially after:
A: Some pain management methods can be done at home, but it’s important to get yourself checked regularly by a specialist so you have a better idea of how your knee arthritis is progressing. Doing this ensures that you’ll be as comfortable as possible without putting your body under too much strain.
A: Knee surgery for arthritis is considered a last resort, usually when the joint needs to be removed or realigned. While effective, these procedures cannot stop knee arthritis entirely. Gramercy Pain Center will consider non-invasive, non-surgical procedures first before resorting to such measures, especially if your knee arthritis has been caught early.
A: Chronic conditions like arthritis are always covered by employer and marketplace healthcare plans, though you may need to check with your provider for the exact details. Likewise, you should also check with your regulations if you’ve acquired knee arthritis due to your work and may need compensation as a result.
Knee arthritis can be a lifetime concern, but with early enough intervention and skilled medical oversight it can be a condition that you can live with. As experts in pain management and pain relief, Gramercy Pain Center can help you experience long-term and effective knee arthritis treatment. Contact us now or schedule an appointment online to know how we can help improve your lifestyle.
