Maybe your knee pain is worse when you wake up in the morning or just start moving, or maybe at the end of the day, your knees are in dire need of relief. Whatever your experience with knee pain, we know you want effective relief now
Knee injury specialist, Dr. Hossein Haji Taghi, here at his office located in Vanak Square, provides an expert diagnosis of many conditions and injuries that can cause knee pain. He creates personalized treatment plans to reduce your pain quickly and treat underlying conditions for long-term relief
One of the available treatment methods is hyaluronic acid injection, but is it useful for all types of knee pain?
About hyaluronic acid
Hyaluronic acid gel is a gel-like substance that exists naturally in the body. This substance is part of the synovial lining that covers the joints. Hyaluronic acid is also found naturally in your skin and eyes, which helps your body retain moisture and stay hydrated. Knee therapy gel has been used for more than 20 years with a high success rate and low probability of side effects. Some other common brand names for gel injections include:
- Synvisc
- Supartz
- Orthovisc
- Euflexxa
- Bionect
- ProVisc
- Healon GV
- GenVisc 850
- Hyalgan
Hyaluronic acid and your knees
In your knees and other joints, hyaluronic acid provides a cushioning and lubricating environment. Your bones are protected and can move smoothly against each other when you bend your knee. This treatment may also reduce inflammation and protect the joint cartilage from further wear and tear. However, conditions like osteoarthritis destroy your cartilage and synovial lining, leading to inflammation and pain
In short, the effects and benefits of injecting gel into the knee include the following:
- Knee pain relief
- Improve mobility
- Restoring normal physical activity level
- Reducing the progression of arthritis
- Postponing invasive knee surgery
Does it fix everything?
Unfortunately not. Hyaluronic acid injection does not cure all painful knee diseases. However, injections can be very effective for osteoarthritis. Hyaluronic acid injection fills the knee cap, which can provide pain relief for up to six months
However, it is not effective in treating other painful knee conditions, such as torn ligaments, tendonitis, or sprains. In fact, hyaluronic acid injections restore the lining of your joints, but they do not repair your tissue
Which people are allowed to use gel injections inside the knee joint?
The use of injecting gel into the knee joint has no age limit. There are often groups in between that have no effect on reducing knee inflammation. Sometimes, the users of prescription drugs do not want to continue the drug regimen due to their side effects (heart, kidney and digestive problems). Also, people unable to perform surgery are good candidates for injecting hyaluronic acid into their knee joint. Of course, orthopedic specialists do not recommend this procedure for the following groups:
- pregnant women
- Lactating women
- children and teenagers
- People allergic to injectable compounds
- People with infections in the knee area
How will the injection of hyaluronic acid gel be done?
Hyaluronic acid gel is injected into the knee joint and generally the gel will be injected directly into the joint capsule
The injection of this gel only takes a few minutes and usually does not require special preparation. You should talk to your doctor about your medical history and provide the necessary information about the medications you are taking before starting the treatment of injecting gel into the knee
Hyaluronic acid gel injection should be performed by a specialist doctor who can correctly inject the gel into the capsule of the knee joint. The process of injecting hyaluronic acid gel into the knee joint includes the following:
- Lie on your back on a table with your knees straight or sit up straight and bend your knees
- The doctor uses alcohol or betadine to disinfect the knee
- Then he asks the patient to relax his leg muscles so that the doctor can inject the gel correctly, this will make the injection process less painful
- If there is too much fluid in the joint, the doctor will drain the excess fluid with the help of a special needle
- The doctor uses a sterile needle to inject in the desired area. The injection site will be cleaned and then a bandage will be placed on it. The doctor will ask you to straighten and bend your knee several times during the injection of the gel so that the hyaluronic acid gel spreads inside your knee joint
Here, Dr. Haji Taghi begins with a thorough consultation and examination to identify the cause of your knee pain. He examines the cause of the pain to prescribe the most effective treatment. If you have arthritis and the doctor determines that hyaluronic acid injection will relieve your pain, he can perform hyaluronic acid injection during a short visit
What to expect after hyaluronic acid injection?
Everyone’s body responds differently to hyaluronic acid injections. The knee pain may be relieved immediately, or it may take several weeks for the knee pain and inflammation to subside. But eventually you can move more easily and without pain
Most patients have pain relief for 4 to 6 months. You can have hyaluronic acid injections every six months or so. Many patients respond to these injections and with this method they can delay or even avoid knee replacement surgery
It is important to note that if you have had a traumatic knee injury in the past, it can increase your risk of developing early osteoarthritis. Joint replacement lasts 10 to 15 years. With the current average life expectancy of more than 72 years, if you can delay knee replacement, you can avoid additional knee replacement surgeries in the future
Care after injection into the knee joint
After injecting the gel into the knee joint, it is necessary to observe the following points:
- Rest for 12-24 hours in order to reduce pain and prevent the gel from coming out of the knee joint
- Regular participation in physiotherapy sessions in order to strengthen the muscles of the treatment area
- Doing light sports activities
- Avoid strenuous activities
- Not showering for 24 hours
Complications of injecting gel into the knee joint
While the benefits can be significant, it’s important to understand the risks of any treatment you pursue. Knee gel injections may cause a few possible side effects, but they are very minor compared to regular use of prescription medications or corticosteroid injections. This includes:
- Bleeding
- Severe pain
- Disease flare-up
- Allergy to the injectable substance
If you have knee pain that interferes with your life and you want to know if hyaluronic acid injection can help or not, contact us at Dr. Hossein Haji Taghi’s office
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