Knee Pain

Knee pain is a common problem, both for people who suffer acute sports injuries and those who develop chronic conditions like arthritis. If you have knee pain that isn’t improving, visit board-certified orthopedic surgeon Timothy Kavanaugh, MD, and the team at AZ Ortho in Scottsdale, Arizona. They offer non-invasive treatments like iovera°® cryoanalgesia (freezing) technology and advanced surgeries to treat knee pain. Call AZ Ortho or book an appointment online today.

What causes knee pain?

Knees are weight-bearing joints that also need to be flexible to enable you to run, jump, and turn. Because they have to work so hard, knees are a common source of pain.

Acute knee pain is often due to injuries such as ligament sprains, meniscus tears, fractures, and dislocations. Sports injuries like anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears are a common cause of knee pain.

Knees can also suffer from overuse injuries like tendonitis and bursitis that cause long-term inflammation. Chronic knee pain is most often due to arthritis.

How is knee pain treated?

The AZ Ortho team typically uses conservative approaches when treating knee pain. These include physical therapy, medication, and non-invasive treatments like iovera°® cryoanalgesia (freezing) technology.

Joint injections containing corticosteroid medication (a potent anti-inflammatory) can help if other treatments don’t offer sufficient relief.

If you have a severe injury that can’t heal by itself, or your pain fails to improve with initial treatments, you might need surgery.

What types of surgery can treat knee pain?

The AZ Ortho team performs many types of knee surgery and will advise you on the most suitable one for your condition. Options include:

Knee arthroscopy

Arthroscopy is a minimally invasive technique that uses a tiny camera on a flexible pipe (arthroscope). Your surgeon inserts the arthroscope into your knee to make repairs and remove damaged cartilage and bone fragments.

Cartilage restoration

Your surgeon can use various methods to encourage new articular cartilage growth. These include using grafts of healthy cartilage from your body or seeding healthy cartilage cells in a lab before implanting them.

Ligament repair

The AZ Ortho team can repair some soft tissues, but damaged ligaments often require reconstruction. This involves using a tendon graft to reattach the injured ligament.

Knee replacement

Joint replacement surgery might be necessary if the knee suffers an injury that’s too severe to repair. However, in most cases, arthritis is the reason for needing a knee replacement.

The AZ Ortho team removes the damaged parts of your knee and inserts artificial components. You may need a total knee replacement if all the bones are badly damaged or a unicompartmental (partial) knee replacement if one bone is healthy enough to save.

If an existing knee replacement starts causing pain or other problems, the team can perform revision surgery to resolve the issue.

To find a solution for your knee pain, call AZ Ortho or book an appointment online today.