Joint Preservation Trumps Joint Replacement
It’s common for both athletes and amateur fitness enthusiasts to assume they need surgery if they are experiencing persistent knee pain. However, the best orthopedic doctors in Orange County agree that the primary focus should be on joint preservation far before considering surgical joint replacement. What’s the best approach for improving joint health before heading right into the operating room?
The Importance of Healthy Joints
Knees experience unique strain during athletics and even normal daily activities due to the fact that they’re in constant motion while bearing weight. The body is specifically designed to minimize the impact that these movements cause, through a combination of lubrication from the synovial fluid within the joint and the slippery cartilage that cushions the ends of the bones as they rub against each other. A healthy, uninjured knee will hinge back and forth smoothly, without catching or pain.
Once a joint begins to degrade, however, either due to an injury or health condition such as arthritis, joint movement changes. If the cartilage becomes rougher, the amount of friction increases between bones as they move. Swollen or stretched tendons and ligaments create a subtle shift in joint movement that affect the way bones rub against each other. Both of these changes cause pain and inflammation in the knee. Over time, range of motion may become limited either due to physical changes in the joint or because it’s simply become too painful to move in the same way, and the joint will continue to degrade without correction.
How Joint Preservation Helps
Knee surgery is a common approach to painful joint movement, especially among sports medicine surgeons working under pressure to get patients fixed up as quickly as possible. Yet, invasive techniques like surgery mean a lengthy healing process that just adds up to more time out of the game. Instead, strengthening and preserving the joint helps the knee actually become healthy again, without surgery.
True joint preservation is a cooperative approach that requires both patient and doctor to work closely together in order to restore and maintain knee health. A joint preservation regimen will also frequently include maintaining an exercise regimen to strengthen the muscles surrounding the knee in order to offer more support to the weakened joint. This philosophy will help not only to significantly decrease knee pain, but also to prolong the life of the joint by strengthening and protecting the knee cartilage.
One nonsurgical option for joint preservation is platelet-rich plasma therapy, or PRP. During this process, blood from the patient’s body is processed and purified to concentrate the healing platelets within the plasma. This serum is injected directly into the affected area of the knee to actively promote healing.
Viscosupplementation is another noninvasive option, which involves lubricating the joint with an injection of hyaluronic acid. This added fluid helps supplement the existing synovial fluid, and is commonly used to reduce the pain associated with arthritic knees.
Regaining Your Health
With the right combination of nonsurgical treatments,regular exercise and active participation, the knee joint can regain strength and range of motion, without painful inflammation and friction. The success of joint preservation therapies depends upon the dedication of the patient, the skill of the physician and the effectiveness of the treatment plan, but typically offers a more full-spectrum approach toward healing compared to surgery alone.
