Shoulder, Elbow & Knee Joint Pain Causes, Relief & Treatment

Joint Pain Treatment in Central New Jersey

Joint pain is a common complaint associated with discomfort and soreness in knees, hips, elbows and shoulders. Apart from pain, you might also experience swelling, stiffness and limited range of motion in the affected joint. Without treatment, joint pain will often get worse over time, resulting in even more pain and immobility. Fortunately, plenty of treatment options are now available to help people suffering from joint pain, including a wide variety of minimally invasive surgeries and advanced non-surgical procedures.

This joint pain can originate from any part of a joint, including the ligaments, cartilage or bone, and may occur alongside swelling, stiffness and limited range of motion. Without treatment, joint pain will often get worse over time, resulting in even more pain and immobility.

Types of Joint Pain

Joint pain can occur anywhere in the body where two or more bones form a mobile connection. Some examples include the knee, shoulder, hip and elbow. Additionally, joint pain can manifest differently for each person, occurring alongside the loss of motion, redness, swelling, stiffness or weakness at the joint. The location of the joint pain and the associated symptoms will often determine the type of treatment pursued by a specialis

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Joint Pain

Why Does Joint Pain Occur?

Joint pain can occur due to a variety of conditions, including:

Arthritis
Poor alignment
Injury
Inflammation
Overuse
Lack of use

Other common and less common diseases that may cause joint pain are:

Sprains and strains
Bone infection (Osteomyelitis)
Bursitis
Cold and flu
Chronic fatigue syndrome
Gout
Fibromyalgia

How Is Joint Pain Diagnosed?

Step 1: Initial Examination and Medical History Review

Diagnosing joint pain due to arthritis starts with a physical examination and review of the patient’s medical history. Our doctors will ask when your symptoms started and how they have changed over time. They will also ask about your family’s medical history.

Step 2: Joint Examination

After reviewing your medical data, our doctors will examine your painful joints and look for signs of osteoarthritis or other conditions that may be causing your pain.

Step 3: Imaging and Laboratory Tests

Your doctor will then order additional imaging and possibly laboratory tests. Several tests can help your doctors confirm a diagnosis or rule out other conditions that could be causing your symptoms. If osteoarthritis is considered, the doctor will order X-rays to determine how much of the joint is damaged and how the joint is changing over time. An X-ray can show loss of cartilage, bone damage and bone spurs. Additionally, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can give your doctor more information about damaged cartilage, ligaments and tendons that may be contributing to your pain.

Step 4: Personalized Treatment Plan

The medical professionals at Spine INA are thorough in their diagnosis, and we also acknowledge that each patient is unique. Whether you have hip joint pain when sitting or are struggling with a tennis elbow, we’ll develop a unique treatment plan to address your pain.

Schedule a Diagnosis with Spine Institute Of America:

Call Us: (609) 371-9100

How Is Joint Pain Treated?

Because the causes of joint pain vary, numerous approaches exist to alleviate elbow and shoulder joint pain or pain in other joints. In most cases, treatment options begin with physical therapy, medication and splinting, and progress to surgery if the pain persists.

Surgical treatments may include an endoscopic cleaning and repair of the joint, which often helps ease joint pain due to age or minor injuries. However, severe joint pain may require joint replacements or fusions, which may reduce or even alleviate pain permanently while enhancing mobility.

Nonsurgical Treatment at Spine INA

At the Spine INA, we offer several conservative to least invasive treatment options for joint pain. Our doctors routinely see patients that suffer from joint pain and will advise you are the best options that will ease or eliminate your painful joints. Our goal when seeing patients is to identify the cause of the pain and relieve it so that you can avoid surgery and return to an active lifestyle.

At Spine INA, we first seek to treat joint pain with conservative methods before opting for surgery. We offer various nonsurgical treatment options, including:

Joint Injections

Joint injections can alleviate debilitating joint pain, allowing patients to move around more freely and participate in physical therapy with ease. These pain management injections are suitable for various joints.

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Stem Cell Therapy

This outpatient procedure relies on the body’s healing ability to decrease chronic pain. Because stem cells can change into cartilage or bone, medical practitioners use stem cell therapy to treat the root cause of joint pain.

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Neuromodulation

When the dorsal root ganglion (DRG) nerve cell cluster becomes damaged, it can cause pain in the arms and legs. DRG stimulation, a type of neuromodulation, can intercept the body’s pain signals before they reach the brain. This treatment method can address hip and knee joint pain due to failed joint replacements, foot pain and other conditions.

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Platelet Rich Plasma Injections

This treatment uses parts of your own blood to stimulate healing and relieve pain. Platelet rich plasma (PRP) injections treat various conditions, including joint osteoarthritis and chronic tendon injuries like golfer’s and tennis elbow.

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Genicular Nerve Block

If you’re struggling with knee pain, your doctor can alleviate pain by injecting medications around the genicular nerves to interfere with the pain signals your knee joint sends to your brain. A genicular nerve block injection temporarily relieves chronic knee pain and pain from injuries.

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Viscosupplementation

Viscosupplementation is an osteoarthritis treatment in which a health care professional injects hydraulic acid into the arthritic joint (usually the knee). This treatment can help reduce swelling and pain in your knee.

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Non-Operative Treatment Options

Heat and cold compress on the affected areas
Pain Medication – anti-inflammatory medications, or short-term prescription strength narcotic painkillers.
Physical Therapy – stretching and strengthening exercises or massaging the affected areas.

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Viscosupplementation Of The Knee Joint

OrthoVisc – Hyaluronan is similar to synovial fluid, a substance that occurs naturally in the joints. Like Synovial fluid acts as a lubricant and shock absorber, Orthovisc is injected into the knee joints for treatment of pain from osteoarthritis.
Synvisc-One – is an injection that supplements the fluid in your knee to help lubricate and cushion the joint, and can provide up to six months of pain relief for osteoarthritis of the knee.

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Interventional Treatment Options

Genicular Nerve Block: An injection of a local anesthetic to block the nerves that transmits pain from the knee.
DRG Stimulator: Each nerve in spinal cord communicates through the dorsal root ganglion in a way that allows sensory messages from a defined area of the body like the knee. Applying stimulation to the DRG can permit focused therapy to a specific focal area like the knee. LEARN MORE (connect to DRG page)

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Regenerative Medicine

Over the past few years, the regenerative medicine field has grown immensely. Your blood contains healing agents such as growth factors, platelet-rich plasma (PRP), amniotic fluid and stem cells that act to repair and replace damaged tissue. Learn more about regenerative medicine.

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