Page 52 - February 2021

An article from a Chicago Lodge 7 Magazine sponsor
5 ways to treat knee pain, no surgery needed
Many of my patients suffer from knee pain. A lot of times, I will have patients come to my office hav- ing just seen their orthopedic surgeon, who has told them that they need a knee replacement. They will then come to me asking me about
what alternative options may be available
to them.
DR. BALJINDER BATHLA
Here are the five alternative options to help control your knee pain that I discuss with my patients:
Physical therapy
Health and Wellness
The first thing we will usually talk about is some- thing that they may have already done, which is physical ther- apy. A lot of times physical therapy is overlooked or is not given enough credit, and we may try it again. We might add a nonste- roidal anti-inflammatory to help with the therapy.
Cortisone injections
The second thing we will usually talk about is cortisone injec- tions. Cortisone injections work really well, but the problem is they only last about three to four months. You really don’t want
to repeat them, because repetitive injections into the joint will cause accelerated degeneration of the joint. In the short term, they may work well for you, but in the long term, they are quite problematic.
Viscosupplementation
The next thing we will talk about is viscosupplementation, where we take a gel-like substance and inject it into the knee. This will do a few things. It will act as a shock absorber to the knee, it will act as a lubricant to the knee and it will act as a hydraulic fluid to the knee. Generally, patients do well with this. This will last about six months.
Geniculate nerve radiofrequency ablation
The next step is usually geniculate nerve radiofrequency ab- lation. This is when we numb and burn the nerves around the knee. It will last almost eight to twelve months. It will increase the patient’s function and decrease the pain; overall, patients are very happy with it.
Platelet-rich plasma
Finally, the last thing we usually talk about is PRP, or platelet-rich plasma. This usually falls under the realm of re- generative medicine, which is a big buzzword in medicine these days. The reason I like PRP is because there is a large body of literature behind it and much of it is encouraging. As long as we very carefully select the patients, they can do quite well.
Dr. Baljinder Bathla is a pain management specialist who is dual boarded in both physical medicine and rehabilitation and pain management. He holds board eligibility in acupuncture as well. For more information about his practice at Chicago Sports & Spine, visit www.chicagosportsspine.com or call 312-623-7246. At Chicago Sports & Spine, we see and treat patients with a va- riety of stages of knee pain. We specialize in creating a treatment plan that will help patients regain a normal lifestyle. We invite you to schedule a consultation with our board-certified pain management doctor to learn more about treatments and proce- dures Chicago Sports & Spine offers.
52 CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ FEBRUARY 2021