Cures for Arthritis Knee Pain

Knee arthritis, which can be a potentially disabling condition in severe forms, results from the breakdown and degradation of the articular cartilage lining the knee joint. As knee arthritis progresses, pain levels generally increase, and knee function generally decreases. There are treatment options designed to manage, and sometimes cure, knee arthritis pain.

Pain Medication

• There are a number of pain medications available to treat arthritic knee joint pain. These medications range from basic over-the-counter pain formulations such as acetaminophen-based pain relievers to more powerful prescription medications such as opiate/narcotic-based formulations. In mild to moderate cases of knee arthritis, pain medication management usually provides significant and sometimes complete pain relief. More severe cases of knee arthritis that produce severe levels of pain are generally less receptive to pain medication management and generally require more invasive treatment types such as knee replacement surgery.

Joint Injections

• Knee joint injections are often times used to treat severe cases of knee arthritis that fail to adequately respond to more conservative forms of treatment. A knee joint injection normally consists of injecting a small amount of corticosteroid (usually cortisone) directly into the knee joint, where the medication helps to reduce swelling and irritation of the knee joint capsule, which, in turn, helps to reduce knee pain and, in a large number of cases, eliminate knee pain altogether. Knee joint injections, however, rarely provide long-lasting knee pain relief; repeat injections are normally required.

Knee Osteotomy

• Sometimes a painful, arthritic knee joint can be reconstructed rather than replaced, which can, oftentimes, greatly reduce or totally eliminate arthritic knee pain. A knee osteotomy, which involves removing a wedge or wedges of bone from around a knee joint, allows a knee to be reconstructed and fixed into a more anatomically correct position, helping to equalize stress loading across the knee joint. In cases of severe knee arthritis, a knee osteotomy can rotate areas of healthier, less-degraded knee joint cartilage into the main weight-bearing area of the knee joint, which helps to improve function and reduce, and in some cases eliminate, arthritic knee pain.

Massage

• Massaging a painful, arthritic knee joint can help to reduce, and in mild cases eliminate, knee pain and improve knee joint function. It is very common for an arthritic knee joint to develop tightening and spasm of the muscles and soft tissues surrounding the joint, which tends to increase knee joint pain and restrict movement. Massage helps to increase blood flow to these muscles and soft tissues, which helps to decrease muscle tightness and reduce (and sometimes eliminate) knee pain.

Joint Replacement

• In cases of severe knee arthritis, total knee joint replacements can be performed, which are surgeries designed to reconstruct damaged knees using artificial implant materials. Knee replacement surgery is very effective at restoring knee joint mobility and function and eliminating knee joint pain. Total knee joint replacement is the only form of treatment that completely removes the arthritic process from a knee joint.