Non-Surgical

In the early stages of arthritis there are a number of nonsurgical options available. The goal of nonsurgical treatment is to relieve your symptoms of pain and swelling. Exercises will help you to restore normal strength and mobility. Some of the nonsurgical options are:

• Lifestyle changes: If you are overweight you may have to go on a supervised exercise and weight loss program to reduce your weight. This will help reduce the stress on your knee. Switching from running or jumping exercises to swimming or cycling, and minimizing activities such as climbing stairs that aggravate the condition can also help minimize your pain.
• Physical therapy: Exercises can strengthen your muscles around the affected joint and increase your range of motion and flexibility.
• Topical treatments: Applications of heat, ice, or rubbing ointments to the sore joint area can help alleviate your pain.
• Medications: Several types of drugs can be used in treating arthritis of the knee. Your physician will develop a program to meet your specific condition. Nonsteroidal anti-inflamatory drugs such as aspirin and ibuprofen help reduce painful inflammation. Acetaminophen (Tylenol) will help reduce pain without stomach upset but are not as effective at reducing painful inflammation.
• Injections of corticosteroids at the site of the joint can reduce inflammation and pain. Hyaluronate therapy consists of a series of injections designed to change the character of the joint fluid.
• Support devices: Using supportive devices such as a cane, wearing energy-absorbing shoes or inserts, or wearing a brace or knee sleeve can be helpful in supporting some of the weight normally directed through the affected joint.

Surgical

There are multiple types of surgical treatments available to treat arthritis.

• Arthroscopic surgery: Using fiber optic technology the surgeon can see inside the joint and clean it of debris or repair torn cartilage. Several very small incisions will be made making this procedure the simplest and least invasive of the four and can typically are done on an outpatient basis. Symptoms of arthritis are generally only temporarily relieved for 6 months to 3 years.
• Osteotomy: This procedure consists of making cuts to the upper leg (femur) or lower leg (tibia) to improve the alignment of your knee joint.
• Joint replacement: A total or partial knee arthroplasty replaces the severely damaged knee joint cartilage with metal and plastic. This procedure is very successful and routinely performed in the US on more than 300,000 patients a year. Typically the outcome is a long-term reduction of arthritic symptoms.
• Cartilage grafting: This procedure is possible for knees with limited or contained cartilage loss from trauma or arthritis.