knee

Epidural use for knee replacement surgery is a common practice. Epidural use for knee replacement surgery can avoid the use and risks associated with a general anesthetic. Unfortunately epidural use for knee replacement surgery still exposes the patient to the risks of a regional anesthetic including but not limited to infection, spinal headache, nerve damage … Continued

Chondroplasty with microfracture knee surgery is a common surgical procedure for patients with loss of cartilage in the knee joint.  Chondroplasty  involves smoothing of  the roughened articulate cartilage with the intent of decreasing the friction inside the join. Microfracture involves making a grid like pattern of fractures in the cartilage and subchondral bone with the intent of stimulating … Continued

Cartilage arthroscopic knee surgery is utilized in patients with knee pain who have a reduction in the cartilage on the femoral condyle or tibial plateau.  Reduction of cartilage in the knee joint can arise from many sources including osteoarthritis, trauma, degeneration or surgical removal of the meniscus and excessive wear due to biomechanical imbalances.   Cartilage … Continued

  Muscel weakness after knee surgery is a serious complication that is often not mentioned to patients who elect to proceed with surgery. Muscel weakness after knee surgery can arise from a number of factors including damage to a nerve, inappropriate positioning and severe pain which impedes rehabilitation. There are many risks associated with knee … Continued

The patella tendon connects the knee cap ( patella) to the shin bone (tibia). It serves to stabilize the knee and allows the quadriceps muscle group to straighten the leg. The patella tendon is prone to rupturing in individuals with a history of patella tendon injury such as jumper’s knee or osteoarthritis. Injuries of this … Continued

Have you been told that your knee x-ray shows narrowing of the joint space and therefore your should have arthroscopic knee surgery?  Before you schedule for knee arthroscopic surgery or arthritis knee surgery consider the following facts. A study in the New England Journal of Medicine recently demonstrated that knee arthroscopy in patients with osteoarthritis … Continued

As a pain physician I am committed to identifying the source in a given patient so that the appropriate treatment can be provided.  We have learned that degenerative discs identified on  MRI of the lumbar spine are NOT  by default the origin of a patient’s back pain .  Degenerative lumbar discs are part of the aging … Continued

Cartilage  is a dense connective tissue found in the knee  where it provides a protective surface.  It is composed of cells called chondrocytes.  Unlike other tissues,  articular cartilage does not contain blood vessels and therefore has poor regenerative qualities.  Injury to the articular cartilage of the knee can be the result of trauma, meniscal knee surgery where a … Continued