Knee pain might occur suddenly if you injure one of the structures in your knee or present more slowly if you have a condition like bursitis or arthritis. The fellowship-trained surgeons at Premier Orthopedic Specialists of Tulsa offer expert diagnosis and treatment of knee pain. By using conservative approaches with surgery where needed, they’re able to resolve knee pain and restore joint function. To get the right diagnosis and treatment for your knee pain, call the office in Tulsa, Oklahoma, or book an appointment online today.
Knee pain is a frequent complaint that may be caused by an acute injury, overuse, or disease. Playing sports that involve jumping or turning, and those like football where you’re at risk of contact injuries, are particularly likely to result in knee trauma.
You could also injure your knee in a work or car accident, or simply a trip and fall at home.
Conditions that most frequently result in knee pain include:
The ACL is one of four ligaments in your knee that attach the bones to one another and stabilize your joint. You could also injure the medial collateral (MCL), posterior cruciate (PCL), and lateral collateral (LCL) ligaments.
Chronic knee pain is likely to be due to arthritis, which comes in many forms. Osteoarthritis, a wear-and-tear condition also known as degenerative joint disease, and the autoimmune disorder rheumatoid arthritis are the most common forms in the knees.
Unless you have a severe fracture or other condition that requires urgent surgery, your treatment for knee pain typically begins with conservative treatments. These might include:
In many cases, these treatments are effective in relieving knee pain and restoring function to the joint. However, if there’s extensive cartilage or ligament damage, or arthritis has caused severe deterioration of the joint, you might require surgery.
The surgery you need for knee pain varies depending on what’s causing your condition. Your surgeon at Premier Orthopedic Specialists of Tulsa might perform knee arthroscopy to begin with, which enables them to view the inside of the joint and make certain repairs.
An arthroscope is an instrument that fits into a small incision in your knee. The lighted camera on its end sends back images of the interior of the joint that your surgeon views on a monitor.
They can assess the damage in your knee, clean out any loose debris, and trim cartilage. They can also carry out procedures like reconstruction of the ligaments.
If you have advanced arthritis that isn’t responding to other therapies, or you have a severely damaged joint, your surgeon might recommend knee replacement. They take out the damaged parts of your knee and replace them with artificial components that work just like a normal joint.
To get to the root of your knee pain and find the right treatment, call Premier Orthopedic Specialists of Tulsa today or book an appointment online.
