Constant Knee Pain: Things To Know About Osteoarthritis

Are you in pain that's hard to cope with each time your knees are bent? There is the possibility that you are suffering from a medical condition called osteoarthritis that can be treated through surgery to relieve the pain. Below, learn about osteoarthritis so you will know if getting surgery is something you want to do.

What Makes Osteoarthritis Cause So Much Knee Pain?

The reason your knees are so painful is because osteoarthritis caused the cartilage between your knee joints to deteriorate. Therefore, each time that you bend your knees, your bones rub one another. The friction created from the bones rubbing together can cause you to experience continuous pain, especially if you have to bend down a lot to lift things at home or at work. Even a simple walk can cause knee pain if a large portion of the cartilage has deteriorated from having osteoarthritis for a long time without treatment. The cartilage can continuously deteriorate until there is none left to cushion joints, and eventually you can end up not being able to walk at all.

What Happens to Get a Proper Diagnosis for Osteoarthritis?

The first thing that must take place before you can be properly diagnosed with osteoarthritis is a knee examination. The specialist will begin by asking you to point out all of the areas that you are experiencing knee pain. He or she will be applying pressure to your knees to help you point out the pain. The only other thing that is needed for the diagnosis is an x-ray. The specialist will get a good look at your joint cartilage through the x-ray to find out if any has deteriorated and to what extent.

What Kind of Surgery Can Treat Osteoarthritis?

The procedure that you need to treat osteoarthritis is called knee replacement surgery, and it is done for the removal of damaged joints. The damaged joints are the result of them rubbing together. To begin, local or general anesthesia will be administered to give you comfort during surgery. The specialist will then have to make an incision in your knee to get to the damaged joints and remove them. After the joints are out, the physician will replace them with artificial ones. Your knee must then be sutured up to complete the procedure. Get in touch with a knee specialist, like those at Pottstown Surgical Associates, to find out if your pain is caused from osteoarthritis!

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