Knee SURGERY ALTERNATIVE TREATMENT

Imagine a door that opens and closes with the help of a hinge. Similarly, the knee joint is considered as a flexible hinge that aids in mobility. You can normally move your leg in front-to-back and side-to-side motion. In case of improper joint movement due to worn-out shoes or trauma, acute knee injuries may occur. Similarly, the knee is also considered as the weight-bearing joint. It is the knee joint that balances a person’s weight. In the case of obesity, excess pressure falls on the knee joint, which may lead to cartilage damage, degeneration, or wear and tear.

Varied knee problems that cause knee joint pain and the associated symptoms like stiffness, tenderness, restricted range of motion, swelling, cracking noise include:

• Knee bursitis (Bursa inflammation)
• Tendonitis (Tendon inflammation)
• Osteoarthritis (degenerative knee joint disease)
• Torn meniscus (cartilage wear and tear)
• Knee ligament tear (ACL/PCL injury)
• Knee bone spur
• Fracture/sprained knee
• Iliotibial band (ITB) syndrome – Knee pain due to worn-out or poorly fitting shoes
• Hamstring injury (Tear of the tendons or muscles at the back of the thigh)
• Other sports-related injuries such as athlete injury, football or soccer injury

Pain and associated symptoms become worse during the rainy season, in the mornings, and after prolonged sitting.

Knee pain treatment refers to the medical interventions and strategies used to alleviate pain and discomfort in the knee joint. It involves various approaches aimed at addressing the underlying cause of knee pain, managing symptoms, and improving the overall function of the knee

Treatment for knee pain includes both surgical and non-surgical procedures which aim to improve the strength and function of joints by controlling the symptoms and avoid further joint damage.

Initial treatment includes home remedies that focus on limiting the activities that may aggravate the symptoms. Hence, physicians recommend R.I.C.E. Formula (Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation) as a home treatment.

• Rest: Wear knee pads for extra cushion effect and avoid putting any extra pressure by leaning on the knees. This activity modification step can help reduce pain and inflammation.
• Ice therapy: Apply ice therapy on the injured knees 2-3 times for 10-20 minutes per day to reduce symptoms. But remember not to apply ice directly on the skin. Place a cloth between the ice and the affected area to stay away from getting an ice-burn.
• Compression: Wear an elastic compression bandage around the affected part to alleviate the swelling.
• Elevation: Place the affected knee above the height of your heart to reduce inflammation

Activity modification such as reducing activities like knee bending and climbing stairs may helpin preventing the condition from getting worse. Physicians may recommend physical therapy, muscle strengthening exercises, or using assistive devices like canes, once you are relieved from knee pain.

Medications such as analgesics aim to reduce the pain, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) helps in reducing pain and inflammation. But its consumption for a long time leads to potential side effects including heart, gastrointestinal, and kidney problems [3].

Administration of corticosteroid injections into the knee provides short-term relief for only 1-3 weeks by reducing inflammation, but they have systemic and local adverse side effects.

Surgical methods include joint distraction, knee arthroscopy, knee osteotomy, knee bone spur surgery, meniscus surgery, and partial or total joint replacement. Your physician may recommend these options if non-surgical methods do not yield any improvement. But joint replacement surgery is only considered as the last resort since it requires a prolonged duration of rehabilitation post-surgery to regain flexibility and strength.

Looking for a knee surgery alternative treatment in UK/Ireland? Opt for regenerative cell therapy!

Your body can heal by itself. That is the motto of regenerative cell therapy. Let us see how the body heals.

If you cut your finger, it bleeds. It then forms a scab like structure. Ultimately, it is the healing cell beneath the scab that seals the injury and stop the bleeding. Similarly, your body can also examine the signs of damage and repair them using its healing cells.

Regenerative cell therapy is a non-surgical procedure that provides long-lasting relief from the symptoms with minimal downtime and enhances recovery within a short period. It has no side effects since the injection involves your blood. So, there is no chance of rejection or cross-transmission of disease.

A study published in NPJ Regenerative Medicine revealed that regenerative cell therapy may provide better pain relief compared to NSAIDs drugs and corticosteroid injections [1].

Recent research shows that provides more long-term relief from joint pain and enhances the quality of life in a shorter duration compared to corticosteroid injections. People may think that PRP injection is just like a cortisone shot. But it is not so. Long-term administration of cortisone injections will suppress the body’s natural healing mechanism and leads to knee replacement surgery in the future. But PRP therapy repairs the injured tissue by naturally promoting your body’s healing function. Hence, you need not have to undergo surgery in your later stage [2].

Surgery may promote knee degeneration which leads to undergoing the same surgery once again in the future. Additionally, the incidence of pain after the surgery is high around 20%, in addition to anaesthesia and surgery associated risks. With the advent of PRP therapy, surgery can be easily avoided [4].

So, what are you waiting for? Turn back the clock and start leading an active pain-free life by opting for knee surgery alternative treatment in UK – regenerative cell therapy!