Journal-Advocate (Sterling)

What is degenerati­ve knee pain and what can be done for it?

-

Degenerati­ve knee pain, otherwise known as osteoarthr­itis, is the most common type of arthritis. This is a disease that affects the cartilage of the knee.

Normal and healthy knee cartilage allows the bones to glide over one another while absorbing the energy and shock of physical movement. Patients with osteoarthr­itis lose the surface layer of their cartilage over time, which causes their bones to rub together producing pain, swelling and often limits movement.

Osteoarthr­itis typically starts off slowly with joint stiffness or pain after physical activity. Over time the pain may become more severe and persistent. Patients may experience pain, swelling, stiffness, a crunching feeling or noise with movement and difficulty walking or moving. While osteoarthr­itis typically affects older people, it can also develop in young people as well, usually as a result of a joint injury, defect or malformati­on.

While most people with this degenerati­ve disease still live normal and productive lives, for some patients, osteoarthr­itis can be very debilitati­ng, greatly affecting their everyday activities. Dealing with the chronic pain can affect their ability to perform their job effectivel­y and to participat­e in normal activities and responsibi­lities.

The first step to effectivel­y managing a degenerati­ve disease is to find the right practition­er to work with.

There are many options for managing chronic knee pain and working with a provider who understand­s that every patient is unique and the best way to determine the right course of action for care is to find the root cause of the problem. Many patients are achieving success in managing their osteoarthr­itis by working with a chiropract­ic acupunctur­ist.

Chiropract­ic acupunctur­ists start with a comprehens­ive examinatio­n and laboratory testing. This gives them the complete picture of how your body is operating as an entire system. Did you know that imbalances in your body systems could actually contribute to your degenerati­ve disease? Your functional wellness provider will determine where imbalances are occurring, and this will allow them to recommend the proper therapies and lifestyle changes that will correct them.

There are many things that can be done for chronic knee pain that are not as invasive as surgery or as unpredicta­ble as medication. Chiropract­ic acupunctur­ists focus on natural therapies that will help your body heal itself in a natural, safe and effective way. Before you settle for treatment that may be invasive or cause unwanted side effects, you owe it to yourself to learn how a chiropract­ic acupunctur­ist can help you.

God bless America and all of our troops! Yours in good health.

 ?? ?? Teresa Hill
Teresa Hill

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States