If you’re suffering from chronic knee pain, the treatments can sometimes be as agonizing as the condition itself. Rather than endure a complex surgery and weeks of recovery, you continue to live with the daily ache, stiffness and swelling. But as your condition deteriorates, so does your quality of life.

It’s time to stand up to knee pain and get back on your feet without surgery! By swapping a scalpel for a needle, Interventional Pain Consultants (IPC) takes your treatment out of the operating room so you can return to your favorite activities sooner. With three non-surgical procedures available and personalized physical therapy to maximize your results, IPC helps you hold off knee surgery – if you need it at all!

Your Injection Therapy Options

 

Viscosupplementation

Cartilage, the natural cushioning that prevents your joints from rubbing together, is coated with a hyaluronic acid-rich fluid that serves as a lubricant and shock absorber. As you grow older, your body brings its hyaluronic acid production line to a halt, leading to osteoarthritis and causing wear and tear on your joints.

Viscosupplementation can help reduce inflammation and pain by restoring levels of hyaluronic acid around the knee to help the body repair damaged cartilage from the inside. Prior to your procedure, your care team will clean the injection site, apply an anesthetic, and if needed, withdraw excess fluids that cause swelling. Once your knee is prepped, your provider will inject gel-like hyaluronic acid directly into your joint. In most cases, you’ll need a series of three to six injections to feel significant pain relief.

Viscosupplementation is covered by insurance or Medicare and is ideal for patients suffering from:

• Severe osteoarthritis
• Mild to moderate degeneration of the knee
• Conditions that do not respond to steroid treatments

prp (Platelet Rich Plasma) Therapy

One of the best remedies for chronic knee pain is flowing right now through your veins. PRP treatment uses your own blood to regenerate cells and kick-start the healing process. Just as your body produces a scab to give the skin cells underneath a cut the chance to heal, PRP allows the body to repair itself naturally.

PRP treatment involves drawing a small amount of blood from your arm. The blood is then placed in a centrifuge to extract the platelet rich plasma, which contains super concentrated growth factors. After your knee is cleaned and numbed, your provider will inject the platelets into the joint space guided by an X-ray or ultrasound to treat the damaged tissues. Most patients experience relief after just one or two sessions and report less pain and stiffness up to six months after the procedure.

PRP is beneficial for:

• Younger patients with sports injuries
• Acute injuries
• Chronic osteoarthritis
• Conditions that do not respond to steroid treatments

PRP treatment has proven to be incredibly successful, but is still considered experimental by insurance companies. Therefore, it’s only offered as a self-pay procedure at our IPC clinic in Maryville.

Genicular nerve ablation

For a patient who has a failed knee replacement, is suffering residual pain after a replacement, or is unable to have a replacement due to medical issues, genicular nerve ablation can provide long-term relief when other treatments fail.

Genicular nerve ablation uses radiofrequency energy to heat up or disrupt the genicular or articular nerves, which transmit pain signals from the joint to the brain. To determine if you’re a good candidate for the procedure, your doctor will perform a diagnostic nerve block. Depending on the relief you experience, your provider may then schedule a nerve ablation for longer-lasting pain control.

During your procedure, the provider numbs the skin with a local anesthetic, and under x-ray guidance, directs a needle to the target nerve. The needle heats up, or ablates, the nerve, inhibiting its ability to send pain signals to the brain. Disrupting these pathways can provide long-term relief for up to two years, and because there’s no need for steroids, cortisone or other medications, it’s a safe alternative for patients with comorbidities like diabetes or high blood pressure.

General nerve ablation effectively treats:

• Severe osteoarthritis
• Patients with pain after knee replacement
• Degenerative joint disease
• Patients with chronic knee pain who are not surgical candidates

Physical Therapy to maximize your outcomes, minimize your pain

While all of these non-surgical treatments are incredibly effective, physical therapy is required after your procedure to fast track and maintain your relief, improve your range of motion, and the case of PRP, prevent your knee joint from locking up. With physical therapy services on-site at our Maryville facility, ICP providers and therapists work side-by-side to ensure a coordinated care plan at every step in your treatment.

To learn more about our options to treat your knee condition, contact ICP in Maryville, Ill. today to schedule your consultation and picture your life with less pain.