Knee Injury Doctor in North Potomac, MD

Our knee injury doctor in North Potomac, MD, from the Pain Arthritis Relief Center knows that the best thing you can do is seek treatment when you have injured your knee. Knee injuries can be caused by many things, such as a fall, sports activity, or workplace accidents. Fast and effective treatments for knee injuries are available. When it comes to your knee, you may hope that icing it will fix it. While icing can help in combination with other remedies, it is always best to seek the help of a medical professional who can do an X-ray of your injury and see how bad the damage is.

You want to know what exactly is wrong with your knee and the best way to treat it. This can help ensure you get the precise treatment you need. Your knee is crucial to your everyday life because it allows you to walk, balance, stand, do your chores, and do your favorite hobbies. You must fix your knee injury so that you can get on the road to recovery faster. Want to see how we can help with your knee injury? Call today. 

What will a knee doctor do when I come in?

You may think that the only thing we offer our patients is a cracked back and cracked joints. However, we can provide you with the treatment that will help your knee recover from its injury. Patients often assume that chiropractors only treat people with neck or spine problems. Still, they can treat a variety of conditions that affect the bones, joints, and ligaments. Knee injuries are some of the most common issues. Some of the following techniques we use are:

• Adjusting Your Spine. When your back is misaligned, this can put more pressure on your knee joints, making your injury worse. This can prolong the time it takes to recover from your knee injury. Your knee injury doctor may want to adjust your spine to re-establish proper alignment. To do a spinal manipulation or adjustment, a chiropractor uses their hands or an assistive chiropractic instrument to align your spine. 
• Correcting Your Posture. Similar to spinal adjustments, incorrect posture puts added pressure on the rest of your body. Common habits such as sitting the wrong way, slouching while you walk, or craning your neck while looking down on your phone can result in poor posture. Your knee doctor may look at your posture to determine if any changes need to be made. Making changes to your posture might take a while to get used to, but if you make mindful adjustments, you will notice improvements. 
• Using Laser Therapy. When you have injured your knee, low-level laser therapy may be right for you. The benefit of laser therapy is that it is not invasive like surgery, as the lasers don’t break through your skin. A chiropractor uses targeted lasers to induce changes in your cells to promote recovery. This can help reduce inflammation in the injured knee and speed up the healing process by increasing blood flow. 
• Adjusting Your Knee. Your knee doctor may adjust your knee to help get it back into proper alignment. They will correct your knee’s alignment to reduce soreness and discomfort. When this happens, it helps relieve additional stress on your joints and promotes healing. Knee adjustments also help reduce the likelihood of recurring knee pain and future injuries.

When is a Knee Doctor Necessary?

If you’ve injured your knee, you might feel reluctant to see a knee injury doctor right away. Some knee injuries can heal in a few days or weeks with ice or extended rest. You may not think much of your knee injury, and you might believe that it is minor enough and will go away on its own. There are some knee injuries; however, they may require the attention of an experienced knee doctor. Many people choose to wait and see what happens; thus, potentially missing important treatment opportunities that could save time, money, and pain in the future!

That said, it is certainly possible for some knee injuries to heal on their own. However, when the knee is injured, overworked, or abused, various mobility problems can result, causing acute or chronic pain. If your knee injury has been bothering you for some time, the best thing to do would be to schedule a visit with a knee doctor that you can trust to provide an effective treatment that works.

Do’s and Don’t of Knee Injuries

You’ve injured your knee, and you don’t know what steps you should take. You’ll want to see a knee injury doctor, but may not be able to get an immediate appointment. Here are some do’s and don’ts to tide you over until you’re able to see your doctor.

Do Use RICE

Rice is an acronym used by a knee injury doctor in North Potomac MD, at the Pain & Arthritis Relief Center to tell you how to treat your knee injury.

• R – rest. Stay off your feet for the first day or two after your injury to avoid additional pain and swelling.
• I – ice. Use ice packs on your knee for 15 minutes, three or four times a day to help control the swelling and pain.
• C – compression. Wrap your knee in an elastic bandage to help reduce swelling. Don’t wrap it too tightly; you’ll know it’s too tight if you experience tingling or numbness in your lower leg, foot, or toes.
• E – elevation. Prop your knee up on pillows when you’re sitting or lying down. You ideally want your knee above the level of your heart. 

Do Try a Brace

There are multiple varieties of knee braces out there, from simple sleeves to complex braces with patellar support and supportive hinges. Ask your knee injury doctor in North Potomac MD, at the Pain & Arthritis Relief Center which type would be best for you.

Do Exercise

You don’t want your knee to stiffen or lock up on you, so it’s important to exercise it. Make sure you choose a low-impact exercise like swimming, biking, yoga, pilates, elliptical or tai chi. Your knee injury doctor in North Potomac MD, at the Pain & Arthritis Relief Center can give you a list of exercises that are safe for you.

Don’t Rest Too Much

You want to rest your knee for the first 48 hours after injuring it. After that, though, you could wind up resting too much. If you don’t move your knee and the muscles around it, you could experience stiffness, muscle weakness and more pain. 

Don’t Jar Your Knees

Do your best to avoid jarring your knees when you’re walking around or exercising. Definitely avoid things like jogging, kickboxing or jumping. Jarring your knees could exacerbate your injury and cause more pain and swelling. 

Don’t Be Shy About Using a Cane, Crutch or Walker

A cane, crutch or walker can take some of the pressure off your knee as you walk. They also help you avoid falls that could cause further injuries. Your knee injury doctor in North Potomac MD, can instruct you how to properly use a cane, crutch or walker.

Signs that Indicate a Need to See a Knee Injury Doctor

Knee pain can be mild to moderate or extremely debilitating. It might be treated with rest, ice, compression, or elevation (The RICE Treatment Approach) and eventually will heal. Other people will find their knee pain so excruciating that they cannot perform day-to-day activities. If you notice knee pain that is constant, recurring, or so painful that it is disrupting your daily life, you may have more than a minor knee problem. If this is the case for you, seeing a Maryland knee injury doctor in North Potomac is highly recommended. In addition to this, signs that warrant the need to schedule an appointment at the Pain Arthritis Relief Center include:

• Excessive swelling that has lasted beyond 48 hours
• Throbbing pain deep within the knee joint
• Complete or partial loss of motion
• Knee instability
• Inability to place full weight on the knee
• Clicking or popping sounds in the knee
• Tingling sensations around the knee

When a child or elderly person is the one suffering from this pain, it is advisable to consult their primary care physician or go to the emergency room. Because their joints are more delicate, any knee injury they experience needs more urgent attention. If not treated right away, a minor injury can lead to conditions that might be more difficult to treat. If you are unsure about what you should do, we will invite you to call The Pain Arthritis Relief Center for advice.

If you’ve been diagnosed with a condition or problem of the knee, it may be helpful to see a knee injury doctor. Rather than wait to see if your injury will heal on its own, it is recommended to seek medical attention earlier than later. A delay could only lengthen your total recovery time. Our clinic has successfully treated patients with:

• Tendonitis
• ACL injury
• Knee dislocation
• Broken kneecap
• Tendon tear
• + More

Knee Treatment is Not Always Invasive

Many people assume they will need surgery to fix their knee; this is not always true. Surgery is typically the very last treatment option. If you have a knee injury, you want to explore other possibilities than immediately resorting to surgery. When you talk with your knee injury doctor, they might recommend some or all of the following treatments:

• Viscosupplementation injections 
• Fluoroscope injections
• Lubrication injections
• Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications
• Physical therapy
• PRP treatment
• Stem cell treatment
• Chiropractic care
• Ice, heat, and compression
• A knee brace

Which Patients Qualify for Spinal Cord Stimulation Therapy?

Everyone experiences pain at some point, but chronic pain significantly reduces their ability to enjoy daily activities and social relationships for many people. Spinal cord stimulation therapy may provide relief for anyone who has tried many treatments to reduce chronic pain without success. Some patients are better candidates than others for this state-of-the-art therapy.

What is Spinal Cord Stimulation Therapy?

This therapy can effectively reduce severe, chronic pain for patients who exhaust other treatment options, including surgery. Spinal cord stimulation therapy may relieve pain associated with various conditions, including:

• Chronic back or neck pain
• Inflammation or scarring of the spinal nerves’ protective layers from Arachnoiditis
• Burning sensations in the legs from peripheral neuropathy
• Pain and swelling due to Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
• Heart and chest pain from angina

A doctor implants a device beneath the skin to carry gentle pulses of electricity into the spine through a lead wire’s electrodes. Patients can adjust the electrical vibrations with a remote control unit.

When Can Patients Consider Spinal Cord Stimulation Therapy?

This protocol is usually a last resort after at least four common pain management treatments are unsuccessful, including:

• Drugs therapy with gabapentin or pregabalin to address nerve pain
• Injection therapy, including epidurals
• Physical therapy
• Pain management psychotherapy

Patients who qualify for SCS treatment must also undergo a trial to determine if they will respond well to the treatment. The trial involves wearing a belt to hold the stimulator parts in place without permanent implantation. A 50% reduction in pain intensity represents a successful trial response.

Who Does Not Qualify?

Unfortunately, some people with chronic pain do not qualify for SCS treatment. For instance, patients with bleeding disorders or cardiac pacemakers can have an adverse response to a spine stimulator. SCS implants can prevent healing for patients who have systemic infections or infections near the spine. Anyone with an addiction to drugs, alcohol or smoking, may not achieve the full benefits of this treatment due to the physiological changes these addictions cause.

In such cases, addiction treatment may resolve the pain. Similarly, psychiatric and psychological therapies may be a more appropriate therapeutic choice for patients suffering from chronic depression or other mental health conditions with pain as a symptom.

Spinal cord stimulation therapy is a potential option for intractable pain that does not respond to other treatments. Speak with your doctor to learn if you qualify for this pain relief option.

Recovering After a Knee Injury From Sports

When you have been experiencing knee pain after playing sports, a doctor may have diagnosed you with “runner’s knee.” The first thought many people have is, “Hey, I don’t even run!” Runner’s knee can happen for many reasons and isn’t necessarily related to the act of running. If you have had knee pain and are unsure about what could be causing it, do not hesitate to reach out to your local knee injury doctor. You may be experiencing this kind of pain because of overuse, or you may have previously injured your knee, and it did not heal properly. If you would like to learn more about the process of diagnosing and treating your knee pain, give our office a call.

What can cause this type of knee pain?

There are several things that can bring on knee pain:

• Overuse injury. This is one of the most common reasons that a person may be experiencing knee pain. When you use your knees in the same way constantly, they begin to wear down, and you may find that doing the same movement causes that pain. Squatting and jumping or running and biking can sometimes be hard on your knees. 
• You became injured. Instead of suffering from knee pain because of overuse, you may have been playing a sport and fell on your knee wrong or gotten hit or kicked in the knee. When this happens, an injury could have a hard time recovering if you do not take the opportunity to rest and ice it.
• You have feet problems. You may not realize that problems with your feet actually cause your knee pain! If you notice that you roll your foot in when you walk or that you have always had flat feet, this could contribute to your knee pain. 

How can I get the pain to go away? 

We know that the easiest thing may be to grab a bottle of medication. This will only help reduce your pain to a certain extent and may not be what you need when it comes to long-term pain management and treatment. Instead, when you speak with a knee injury doctor, they may be able to recommend more natural and homeopathic means for helping to get your knee pain to go away. They will give you a thorough exam, determine what is causing the pain, and set you up with treatment options that help the source of the pain, not just the symptoms. 

Call Pain & Arthritis Relief Center Today

The cause of any knee issue can vary. It is essential to choose a doctor who is ready to take the time to create a custom treatment plan that is suited to your own needs. It would help if you went to a skilled doctor who has experience helping patients recover from their knee injuries using treatments that have yielded long-lasting results. At the Pain Arthritis Relief Center, we will sit with you to discuss your history, symptoms, and goals. We want to get a complete understanding of your knee injury to use the treatment options that will be most effective. We are happy to answer any questions you have and help you understand what is best for you. 

We know that after a knee injury, you want to heal as quickly as possible, and we believe that natural remedies can not only encourage your body to heal on its own but make it heal quicker. Pain relief and recovery are possible. If you would like to learn more about how we can help after you have suffered from a knee injury, call a knee injury doctor in North Potomac, Maryland, from the Pain & Arthritis Relief Center now.

7 Questions To Ask About Knee Surgery

1. What Type of Knee Surgery Should I Have?

Your knee injury doctor in North Potomac MD will recommend surgical options based on your age, the amount of damage to your knee, the surgeon’s expertise and your overall health. There are several options available:

• Total knee replacement
• Knee osteotomy surgery
• Partial knee replacement
• Knee arthroscopy
• Cartilage restoration and repair

2. What Are the Potential Complications?

Knee surgery complications are not common but do sometimes occur. Possible complications include blood clots, damage to the knee or surrounding tissue and infection. Ask your surgeon at Pain Arthritis Relief Center about complication rates for the surgery you are considering. Usually, the more experience a surgeon has with a particular surgery, the fewer complications occur. Additionally, health care facilities that perform these surgeries many times tend to have fewer complications.

3. What Should I Expect After the Surgery?

It can be helpful to go over what to expect after your surgery with a knee injury doctor in North Potomac MD. How long will you have pain? Are you likely to have full function of your knee? When can you expect to return to work and other activities?

4. What Should I Do To Prepare for the Surgery?

Your surgeon at Pain Arthritis Relief Center may suggest steps you can take to prepare for your surgery. Examples may include doing exercises to strengthen the muscles around your knee, losing weight or stopping smoking. 

5. How Long Will It Take To Recover?

Recovery times vary depending on what type of surgery you are having. Ask your doctor about the equipment you may need for your recovery period, such as crutches or a walker, and whether you will need help from a friend, family member or home health worker.

6. How Much Pain Will I Have?

Understanding what type of pain is considered normal will help you know when you should contact your doctor. You will likely receive pain medications to control your pain and swelling. The specific medications and how long you will need to take them depend on the surgery you are having and your overall health.

7. Will I Need Physical Therapy?

Most patients who have knee surgery need physical therapy to recover. Your surgical team can explain how long they expect you will require therapy. You may be able to do some portion of your physical therapy at home, either on your own or with the assistance of a therapist.

How to Get Ready For Your First Knee Injury Appointment

You may be seeing a knee injury doctor in North Potomac MD for any number of reasons — a sports injury, a fall or even overuse that lead to difficulty walking. Whatever the case may be, it’s important to be well-prepared before your first medical visit. There are several important steps you can take to help your doctor more effectively address your situation and help you recover. If you’re not sure how to prepare for your appointment with the Pain & Arthritis Relief Center, here are a few ways you can get ready.

Make a List

Your knee injury doctor in Potomac MD is going to have a lot of questions about your injury and health history when you arrive, so one of the best ways to prepare is to have a list of answers. You may not be able to anticipate everything your doctor needs to know, but you can absolutely cover some of the basics, such as:

• When your injury occurred, or when you began experincing symptoms
• How often you experience symptoms
• How severe your symptoms are
• What physical movements make your symptoms better or worse
• Any medications you’re currently taking
• Any pre-existing conditions that might be affecting your knees
• If you’ve missed work or school due to your injury

Fill Out Preliminary Paperwork

Nearly every medical office requires first-time patients to fill out paperwork describing their medical history, personal information and more before their first appointment. If possible, take some time to fill this paperwork out before you arrive at the office; most medical facilities offer online access to paperwork, but you can also call or visit and ask about filling out your documents ahead of time. Likewise, make sure you’ve gathered your medical records and current prescriptions to bring to your doctor; having all of this information ready can save your doctor much needed time and give them an advantage in helping you recover.

Priotize Your Concerns

Every visit to a knee injury doctor in North Potomac MD is going to be different, so take time to prioritize what you most want the medical team to focus on. Are you dealing with especially severe pain in one particular area? Does your injury make it difficult to walk or move in a certain way? Think about all the ways your injury affects your life, and try to narrow down what impacts you the most. If your doctor know what you’re most concerned about, they can better tailor your treatment to fit your exact needs. 

By spending a bit of time preparing for your appointment, you and your medical team can get ahead of the curve and significantly reduce your recovery time. When you visit your doctor, be completely transparent about your medical history, answer any questions they have for you and be clear about the severity of your pain. Before you book your appointment, don’t settle for just any knee injury doctor in North Potomac MD — the Pain & Arthritis Relief Center is here to make your road to recovery fast and easy.

Treating Your Knee Pain

Our knee injury doctor in North Potomac, MD, treats patients living with knee injuries, whether from an injury or underlying health condition. Knee pain can be brought on in various ways; while some problems may steadily worsen over time, others can result from an accident or injury. Working with our team from the Pain & Arthritis Relief Center will be imperative to diagnosing knee pain and learning techniques that will assist in managing your condition. If you suspect a knee problem, the time to act is now. Swift action can mitigate the risk of a more severe problem later on, not to mention; it can help you reduce pain and regain control of your health and wellness. 

Reasons for Knee Pain

For someone experiencing knee pain, it can, at times, be challenging to make sense of what may be causing the problem. Knee pain can slowly develop over time or happen suddenly, such as when an accident occurs. To further complicate things, knee pain can result from overuse or an inactive lifestyle. The knee is a large joint in the body that is highly complex. Here are some reasons a person may be suffering from knee pain:

• Arthritis
• Osteoarthritis
• Injury from Heavy Physical Activity or Lack thereof
• Torn Meniscus
• Tendonitis
• Aging
• Repetitive Stress Injuries
• +More

Knee injury doctors from our North Potomac, Maryland practice have witnessed firsthand the impact knee issues can cause. Seeking medical attention will be the first step towards receiving the necessary care. 

Diagnosing Knee Pain

Receiving a diagnosis for knee pain is critical to ensuring that you receive the treatments you need. Typically this process begins with an appointment with your doctor or- at an emergency room following an accident. At times, your doctor may even refer you to a specialist. Our team is equipped with the skills and experience you need to diagnose and treat your condition. When diagnosing a knee problem, doctors will understand your knee condition by discussing your medical history. In situations where patients sustained an accident, treatment may be obvious but, in others, there may be an underlying condition associated with your knee problem. 

Why Taking Immediate Action is Key

If you are experiencing knee pain, taking steps to seek medical treatment immediately will be critical. Failing to see a doctor will cause more significant damage, some of which could be irreparable if left untreated. Lack of treatment can cause lasting changes to the way a person lives their life. Dragging your feet in seeking medical attention could result in:

• Limited range of motion
• Difficult moving around
• Surgical Procedures

Additionally, there can be other unexpected outcomes, such as weight gain due to inactivity, an impact on mental health, lost wages due to missed time away from work, and more. 

While knee pain can be profoundly impactful, seeking care from a provider, receiving treatment, and following through with treatment recommendations plays a crucial role in achieving a full recovery. Take control of your knee pain by reaching out to our team from the Pain & Arthritis Relief Center; our knee injury doctor from North Potomac, MD, is standing by and ready to help.