It Is Always Worth Having Your Knee Pain Treated
Many sufferers of knee pain may brush off the condition, usually claiming it is their old age causing it. However, knee pain may become debilitating and leave you in constant agony. Your best bet is always to book an appointment with an Era Health professional and get yourself checked out. It could be a niggling problem that will clear up, and it could be the onset of a condition that leaves you immobile.
How is knee pain diagnosed?
Your doctor will start with questions about your medical and family history, and will also enquire as to any way you may have injured yourself, such as via playing sports or trauma. Your knee may undergo a physical examination to gauge the extent of your complaint and its impact on you, your walking and your comfort.
Will diagnosis involve a scan?
Further tests may then be carried out via an X-ray if a fracture or some form of trauma is suspected. Or, you may need an MRI scan if the bone, cartilage, tendons or surrounding tissues are suspected of being damaged.
An MRI scan simply uses magnets to get a layered view of the inside of your knee and surrounding areas. It often gives clues as to what damage has occurred and is often an effective way of diagnosing your knee pain.
Will I need a knee arthroscopy?
This is not known until you have consulted an Era Health doctor or podiatrist so that the extent of your pain, discomfort and injury has been determined. A knee arthroscopy is a small surgical procedure that is used to investigate your knee pain. Small slits are made in your skin, and an arthroscope is used to take a look at the problem.
It is relatively painless, except for the discomfort you may feel, as one assumes the knee is already painful at this point. The knee is packed full of nerves, and there are times when a very small complaint will not show up on an X-ray or MRI scan, which is why a knee arthroscopy procedure may take place.
How will my knee pain be treated?
Often a combination of medication and physiotherapy is all that is needed. There are times when your condition may be incurable, at which point the Era Health specialists will help you manage your condition, your pain and you comfort. On rare occasions, you may be referred for surgery, but this is often only the case when dealing with a serious trauma case.
