Your knees are usually able to handle the duties of acting as tough weight-bearing joints that give you the mobility you need for everyday tasks. But if you play sports that require twisting, sharp cutting or frequent jumping, you’re at risk for knee injuries. And if you do injure your knee, it knocks you off your feet and limits your quality of life. The pain alone should drive you to search for injury doctors near me. At Pain Management NYC in Midtown Manhattan, you get the best care and the fastest recovery.
Knee pain is a common complaint in the United States. A knee injury may be the result of a fracture, sprain, dislocation, cartilage degradation or damage to a ligament. The knee joint connects the thigh bone and the shin bone with the help of tendons, ligaments and cartilage. Knee injuries can occur anytime in your life, and can take many forms. For example:
- Weakness or instability in your knees — when you feel your knees buckle under your weight — increases the risk of a fall.
- You may hear popping or crunching sounds when bending your knees, which may mean your cartilage has been worn away.
- If the damage to your knees is severe, you may develop a condition known as locked knees, the inability to straighten your knees without pain.
Before starting any treatment for a swollen knee, your pain doctor has to determine what you did to your knee. Your injury doctor in NYC has to examine your knee injury before suggesting a knee injury treatment. The color, tenderness, flexibility and pain level all tell a top pain management doctor at injury pain clinic NYC what the injury is and what needs to be done to remedy your condition.
Causes for Common Knee Injuries
You can injure your knees if you’re overweight, as the excess weight increases stress on your knee joints. Also, if your leg muscles are stiff or weak, they may increase your knee pain because you have to rely on your knees more. Hip pain or foot pain may cause you to unconsciously change the way you walk, which also puts more stress on your knees.
Other types of knee injuries include:
- An injury to one of the four major ligaments that stabilize your knee is common among athletes who play sports such as basketball or soccer.
- A sprain is muscular, but a fracture may be due to osteoporosis, which weakens your bones.
- A meniscus tear can occur from twisting your knee while putting your entire weight on it.
- Knee bursitis causes inflammation in the sac-filled bursae that surround your bones to and prevent chaffing.
- Patellar tendinitis is a condition common in runners, skiers, cyclists and athletes who jump a lot, such as basketball players.
Arthritis and Your Knees
Arthritis is the leading cause of disability in the U.S., with osteoarthritis affecting 31 million Americans. Your pain management doctors in NYC have to check your knee injuries thoroughly to rule out arthritis in the knee. If that’s the root cause of your injury, it has to be treated or it will get worse, which can lead to more serious injuries.
The forms of knee arthritis that weaken your knee enough to lead to an injury include:
Diagnosing Your Knee Pain
Your top knee pain specialists in NYC asks you to pinpoint the pain in the knee, when it started, what makes it worse and what makes it feel better. He also asks about any medical conditions you currently have — like sciatica or diabetes — that can cause diabetic neuropathy, which can threaten your toes and your entire leg if not addressed.
After your consultation, the best pain management doctor in New York may have you do simple exercises to assess your injury and how flexible your knee is, even if it’s swollen. The exam also points to a correct diagnosis. You may also have to undergo certain medical tests like x-rays, an MRI, a CT scan or an ultrasound to rule out other conditions, such as:
Knee Injury Treatments
Minor knee injuries need rest and perhaps ice, if you’re treating a swollen knee. More severe knee injuries, however, affect your mobility and your quality of life. The best Midtown pain specialists suggest more advanced knee injury treatment, including:
- Knee corticosteroid injections for temporary relief
- Hip injections or foot injections, if appropriate
- Nerve block injections to deaden your pain
- Radiofrequency ablation for nerve pain
Don’t suffer with knee pain. Get the best pain management in Manhattan. Contact Pain Management NYC today.
Leon Reyfman, MD, is a top-rated, best-in-class interventional pain management doctor. He is a nationally recognized pain relief specialist and is among the top pain care doctors in New York City and the country. He is an award-winning expert and contributor to prominent media outlets.
Dr. Leon Reyfman has been recognized for his thoughtful, thorough, modern approach to treating chronic pain. He has been named a “top pain management doctor in New York” and one of “America’s Top Doctors™” for advanced sports injury treatments. Among other accolades, he was voted by peers as a “Castle Connolly Top Doctors™” and “New York Super Doctors™”. Dr. Leon Reyfman was a part of the medical team at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.