When you are young and otherwise healthy, you will want to look at all your options for treating persistent joint pain in your hips or knees. Before resorting to joint replacement surgery, your orthopedic doctor will talk to you about appropriate treatment options for what is causing your pain. In order to help you experience lasting pain relief, your doctor will need to locate the source of the pain. An accurate diagnosis of what is causing your joint pain will go a long way in helping support an effective treatment plan. Common causes of chronic joint pain include health conditions like arthritis or an injury to the area. Joint replacement surgery offers great benefits for older adults with advanced stages of arthritis or who suffered a traumatic injury. When your pain becomes so severe that it impacts your daily routines and prevents you from completing everyday activities, talk to your doctor about your options, including possible alternatives to joint replacement.
What Is Joint Replacement?
Joint replacement refers to a surgical procedure where a surgeon removes the damaged joint and replaces it with a prosthetic joint, typically made of metal, plastic, or ceramic. The specifics of the type of prosthesis your surgeon will use depends on the type of joint replacement, such as for the hip or knee. Joint replacement surgery can also be used for the shoulder or wrist joints. In many cases, your surgeon will perform what is called a total joint replacement, meaning they replace your entire joint with a prosthesis. The new prosthetic joint will function just like a natural joint and move similarly but without the damage that was causing your pain and discomfort. A joint refers to the place where two or more bones come together in the body. There are different types of joints, and the body has over 300 joints that help you perform various movements. The knee is a hinge joint, which means its main range of motion consists of bending and straightening. The shoulder and hip joints are ball and socket joints, which allow for a greater range of motion.
When Is Joint Replacement Recommended?
Several health conditions can lead to severe joint pain and disability that may prompt you to consider joint replacement. Typically, your doctor will recommend you try conservative or nonsurgical approaches to treatment for your joint pain before resorting to joint replacement surgery. When treatments like medication, activity modification, and physical therapy do not lessen your pain or relieve your disability, then your doctor may refer you to an orthopedic surgeon for a second opinion on whether a joint replacement would be recommended. A surgeon will typically recommend joint replacement when your pain does not get better after trying non-surgical treatments like physical therapy, bracing, or using assistive devices. Talk to your doctor if you develop joint stiffness and reduced mobility that make everyday activities impossible. Swelling and inflammation in your joints can restrict movement and increase your pain. Common conditions that can lead to joint pain and the need for joint replacement surgery include osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, fractures, and joint abnormalities.
7 Alternatives to Joint Replacement
Before you get joint replacement surgery, consider all your options for alternative ways to manage and relieve your joint pain and other symptoms. Check out these seven alternatives to joint replacement.
Enjoy Low-Impact Exercises
Low-impact exercises can offer great health benefits and help strengthen your joints so they can function better. Swimming is a great low-impact exercise that is easy on the joints. The buoyancy of the water also takes some weight and pressure off your joints while you get a workout. Swimming and other low-impact exercises can help you strengthen the muscles that support your joints so they become more stable. Low impact exercises can also help slow damage to your joints and reduce your pain. Other low-impact exercises may include walking, yoga, and tai chi. When you engage in low-impact exercises, you will also target your core, which helps you hold your body upright and distribute your weight more evenly across your hips, legs, and knees. The more you get moving, the better you will be able to improve your overall fitness levels and strengthen your body.
Practice a Healthy Diet
Consider how your diet may impact your bones and joints. A healthy diet rich in anti-inflammatory foods can help reduce inflammation in the joints and keep you well-hydrated. A healthy diet to offer joint pain relief may include eating more fruits, vegetables, nuts, and lean meats. Avoiding processed foods will help limit your sugar and fat intake, too. Remember that part of a healthy diet includes what you drink, too. Stay hydrated with water and fruit juices with naturally occurring sugars, which can also help flush toxins out of your system. Your doctor may also recommend nutritional supplements with ingredients like those found in cartilage to help prevent cartilage deterioration in your joints.
Consider Weight Loss
Excess body weight can put additional stress and pressure on your joints, especially load-bearing joints like your hips and knees. Additional weight can also cause joint structures to wear away more quickly. Talk to your doctor or nutritionist about options for weight loss and how it might alleviate your joint pain. Even losing ten pounds could help improve your joint mobility in the long term. Excess weight may also increase inflammation in your body, which can aggravate your joints and restrict certain movements and activities. If you have struggled with losing weight in the past, you can also talk to your doctor about options for medical weight management to help you achieve your goals.
Stop Smoking
When you smoke cigarettes, tobacco and other stimulants can actually restrict circulation to your extremities. A lack of blood flow to these areas means that your joints may not receive the proper oxygen levels and nutrients they need to function properly. Smoking can also slow down your body’s natural healing mechanisms and even reduce your body’s natural signs and responses to pain. If you experience chronic joint pain, talk to your doctor about how quitting smoking might help you. Your doctor may recommend smoking cessation medications or other ways to help you stop smoking.
Apply Warm & Cold Compresses
Heat and cold therapy offer variations on pain relief to help ease your discomfort. You can try heat and cold therapy from home by applying an ice pack or heating pad to the affected joints. A cold compress or ice pack will help reduce inflammation and swelling in the area. Cold temperatures also offer a temporary numbing sensation, though you should be careful to avoid applying an ice pack or cold compress directly to the skin. Make sure there is a barrier, like a cloth or a towel, to avoid aggravating your skin. A warm compress, heating pad, or a warm bath can all help in alleviating your joint pain and discomfort. Applying heat to an aggravated joint will help relax nearby muscles and promote oxygen and nutrient-rich blood flow to the area. When you have joint pain, your muscles around the joint may tense up and become stiff. This can further restrict your mobility and actually make your pain and discomfort worse. Heat helps your muscles relax and release tension.
Try Injection Therapy
When over-the-counter pain relievers do not offer enough relief from your joint pain, your doctor may recommend various types of in-office injections. One type of injection would be a steroid injection, like cortisone, which your orthopedic doctor can administer. A cortisone shot or other type of steroid will typically provide you with longer-lasting pain relief than oral medications. Injection therapy can also help control inflammation in the area. Other types of injections may provide the joint with more lubrication and help your joints better absorb shock while improving mobility. Injections for knee or hip pain may provide you with temporary relief that lasts for a few months at a time, which can help you stay on your feet and postpone surgery a little longer while you explore all your options.
Start Physical Therapy
A physical therapist can develop a personalized treatment plan to help reduce your joint pain and improve your overall strength and mobility. Physical therapy allows you to take an active role in your recovery as you learn how to manage your pain with hands-on approaches. A physical therapist will walk you through stretches and exercises to help strengthen the muscles that support your damaged joint so they can offer greater stability. Physical therapists are movement experts, which means they can also help you identify ways to improve your mobility. Stretches and exercises can help realign your joints, improve muscle strength, and increase your range of motion. A physical therapist will also help you improve your flexibility and balance so you can avoid further joint damage and decrease your risk of falls. Your physical therapist will be there to guide you through various exercises and activities to make sure you use proper form and get the most out of physical therapy.
Arthroscopic Surgery vs. Total Joint Replacement
You may hear about total joint replacement surgery and arthroscopic surgery, so what is the difference? Arthroscopic surgery is a common way to perform joint replacement surgery. An arthroscopic surgery, also known as an arthroplasty, involves the surgeon making small incisions around the joint where they insert small instruments and a camera inside the joint to perform the procedure. Arthroplasty is considered a minimally invasive technique compared to traditional joint replacement. This technique uses fewer incision sites, and the special tools designed for arthroscopic surgery allow your surgeon to complete the joint replacement without needing to cut through larger areas of skin and muscle to get to your joint. Talk to your orthopedic surgeon about whether you would be a candidate for arthroscopic surgery. Arthroscopic surgery for joint replacement will help you move around and participate in activities you used to enjoy without all the pain and discomfort. You will also have a smaller scar with arthroscopic surgery.
In some cases, your doctor may recommend a traditional joint replacement surgery. This procedure may involve a longer recovery period because the incision site for the surgery will also require additional healing time. Your surgeon may also need a better visual of the affected joint, and minimally invasive surgery only offers a limited view. Your surgeon will still replace the damaged joint with a prosthetic joint, so bones and joints in the area will be replaced with artificial components. A traditional joint replacement surgery will typically leave you with a larger scar, and you may experience more pain after surgery than you would with a minimally invasive option like arthroplasty for joint replacement. However, most people who undergo joint replacement surgery experience substantial relief from joint pain and other symptoms afterward.
Preventing Joint Pain
There may not be one specific way to prevent you from dealing with joint pain at some point in your life, but there are things you can do to help reduce your risks. As you age, you can manage some of your risk factors for developing a health condition like arthritis that can lead to joint pain and stiffness. Maintain a healthy body weight and engage in regular activity to keep your joints well supported. Always remember to stretch before physical activities and avoid exercises that may cause you pain. Consider lifestyle changes like quitting smoking and avoiding foods high in sugars and fats. Work with your orthopedic doctor or physical therapist to develop a routine for preventative care to help reduce the risk or slow the progression of arthritis.
Visit AICA Orthopedics in Lithia Springs to learn about all your options for managing and relieving joint pain. Our team of doctors includes orthopedic surgeons, chiropractors, neurologists, and physical therapists who work together to create a personalized treatment plan to address your specific symptoms and health conditions. We will talk to you about all your options for alternatives to joint replacement and help you understand the risks and rewards for each.