Injury and Overuse

Your knees can take a beating, but as strong as they are, it’s relatively easy to injure them, either through an accident or through overuse. A knee injury usually causes immediate pain, while knee abuse occurs over years, leading to pain that may sneak up on you. Whenever you have knee pain, call the Astra Knee Pain Center, where minimally invasive treatments like genicular artery embolization get you back on your feet in no time.

How Does a Knee Injury Occur?

A knee injury results when you damage the joint, ligaments or cartilage. It can happen in an accident, like when you twist your knee playing sports or miss a step going down stairs. You may also injure your knee from knee abuse, which is the cumulative damage from repetitive stress over time.

In either case, you end up with knee pain, potentially restricting your activities. Untreated, a knee injury may contribute to a chronic condition like patellofemoral syndrome, also known as runner’s knee. If you have knee pain, get the best diagnosis and treatment at the Astra Knee Pain Center.

If you’ve injured your knee or you suffer from overuse, seek out Dr. George Bolotin. His team at the Astra Knee Pain Center offers innovative, non-surgical treatments like genicular artery embolization (GAE). Dr. Bolotin diagnoses and treats knee pain, no matter what the cause.

What Are the Most Common Types of Knee Injury?

Blunt force trauma is the most common type of knee injury. Most often, athletes suffer these knee injuries while playing sports, but urban environments can also stress your knees.

Knee injuries include:

• Ligament tears, such as an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear, from sudden change in direction or an impact to your outer knee
• Meniscus tears from twisting your knee while carrying a heavy weight
• Patellar dislocations, caused by landing from a great height
• Knee fractures, from a blow or fall

You need a proper diagnosis and prompt treatment to avoid developing chronic knee pain. Don’t ignore knee pain after an injury or accident. The symptoms of a knee injury become persistent and worsen over time.

It’s time to seek medical attention when:

• Your knee swells and stiffens.
• You have difficulty standing for a long period.
• You hear clicking or popping sounds in your knee.
• Your pain worsens during activity, but disappears after resting.
• You feel a sensation of bone on bone grinding.
• You experience unexpected knee joint instability or locking up.

How Does Knee Abuse Lead to Chronic Pain?

Knee abuse is caused by repetitive stress in activities that you likely don’t consider harmful. But over time, these activities result in micro-trauma, inflammation and tissue damage, leading to chronic knee pain that limits your mobility.

Activities that contribute to knee overuse include:

• Climbing lengthy stairs repeatedly
• Walking long distances on hard surfaces
• Running or jogging
• Standing for lengthy periods
• Carrying heavy loads

The slow progression of knee abuse often makes it difficult to pinpoint the cause of your pain. Without proper intervention, your body doesn’t heal properly.

The damage develops into more complicated knee pain conditions, including:

• Runner’s knee
• Knee bursitis or inflammation of the knee’s fluid sacs
• Chondromalacia patella, a softening of the cartilage tissue
• Tendonitis, inflammation of the tendons
• Iliotibial band syndrome, which also affects the thigh muscles

A correct diagnosis and early intervention at the Astra Knee Pain Center addresses knee pain. Dr. Bolotin advises you how to avoid these conditions in the future through precautions and lifestyle adjustments, where appropriate.

Why Is GAE the Preferred Treatment for Knee Pain in the Brooklyn?

Genicular artery embolization is a minimally invasive treatment to eliminate or reduce knee pain. The procedure involves guiding a catheter to the artery supplying blood to the inflamed knee and injecting microscopic particles to reduce the blood flow.

It’s an effective alternative to total knee replacement, with significant advantages, such as:

• Minimally invasive.The procedure needs just a pinhole incision, unlike open surgery.
• Local anesthesia.Instead of getting general anesthesia, you only need to have your knee anesthetized.
• Faster recovery.You go home the same day and can resume light activities within a week.
• Reduced risks.This procedure reduces the risks of infection and other risks, especially when it’s done by an expert knee injury physician in NYC.

These advantages make GAE the preferred treatment for knee pain. While GAE isn’t a cure-all for every type of knee pain, it’s a quick, painless way to resolve your pain if you qualify. Contact the Astra Knee Pain Center for the best knee pain doctor in Brooklyn and in the Bronx to determine if you’re a candidate for this innovative treatment.

Don’t let knee pain limit your lifestyle, and don’t ignore the pain if it persists. Knee damage from injury or abuse doesn’t get better on its own. Without treatment, you risk more complicated and chronic conditions. The knee pain specialists in Brooklyn and in the Bronx at the Astra Knee Pain Center specialize in effective, non-surgical treatments.

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