Lots of people live with constant knee pain.

what do we do with it?

And the same is true for hips, shoulders and other joints.

Lots of people are suffering, and too few people know today that there are ways to stop this suffering.

Dr. Eyal Amar was a guest on the "Expert Clinic" podcast to explain what treatments are available today, who they are suitable for and why you must stop doing squats

Iris Cole

26/11/2021

Friday, 26 November 2021, 07:12 Updated: 07:44

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Joint pain is a common problem - some suffer from sports injuries, others due to age-related injuries, and sometimes this is a result of responsible health problems.

Fortunately, today there are innovative treatments that make it possible to repair the damage of the joints without complex surgeries.

Dr. Eyal Amar, a senior physician in the minimally invasive orthopedics unit at Ichilov Hospital, was a guest on the "Specialist Clinic" podcast to explain how the new treatments work and who they are suitable for.

"All kinds of people of all ages come to us," Dr. Amar explained. It happened - and we are trying to address these people, "Dr. Amar explained.

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To the full article

When a person comes to an orthopedist, Dr. Amar explains, the first thing to do is a conversation. "One must try to characterize the complaint, what happened, where it happened, how it happened.

The mechanism is very important to me - we differentiate between people who are in pain from the basketball game they played yesterday, and people who suddenly realize that they have been in pain for some time.

I try to characterize the pain, and the limitation it gives the patient. "After the conversation, there is a physical examination, with the doctor physically examining exactly what actions excite pain, and only at the end - photographs and an MRI.

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"Nothing works alone, you have to talk, check and see the simulations, and after all that I understand what I think a person has and what treatments I can offer," explains Dr. Amar, "and they are divided into two - surgery or non-surgery." And within the non-surgical options, there are the innovative injections that many seek to get.

Like machine oil for joints

In the field of joint injections today there are three main possibilities: steroids, hyaluronic acid and PRP.

There are of course more treatments, but these are the 3 main and proven ones.

"Hyaluronic acid is something old-fashioned, we've known it for a while," Dr. Amar explained, "Hyaluronic acid is a substance that is found inside our joints naturally.

It's a fluid that gives a smooth motion, like machine oil, like a shielding fluid, but unfortunately with age both the quality and quantity of this fluid decreases. " Stimulates the body to continue producing the same substance that has apparently already faded.

So it also increases its production in the longer term, and it also lowers inflammation. "It is important to clarify that the effect of hyaluronic acid is temporary - between six months and 9 months.

Sensitive organ.

Knees (Photo: Giphy)

And what about steroids? "It's our workhorse, it's been around for a long time, proven, a lot of doctors inject it, it's the most common injection we give," explains Dr. Amar. The problem: it does not cure. Steroids only know how to reduce inflammation in the body, and reduce the pain. So who is it good for? "Some people do not want surgical treatment," explains Dr. Amar, because of fear of side effects or other concerns, And they can be offered relief, sometimes it's a bridge to the surgery, and sometimes it helps people who see no reason to have surgery, but they do suffer from pain.

PRP is actually an extract of our blood.

"We take our blood from the arm, put it in a centrifuge, and take a thin layer that contains a high concentration of platelets," explains Dr. Amar. "The platelets contain a lot of growth and healing factors.

"If I have a high concentration of platelets, it also results in a high concentration of proteins, which in turn encourages healing factors in the body." However, this injection also does not cause healing of cartilage.

To watch the full interview:

Iris Cole interviews Dr. Eyal Amar on advanced solutions for joint pain (Walla system)

And what are the disadvantages of these treatments?

Dr. Amar explained that steroids have side effects, for example they may upset the balance of diabetics or blood pressure patients, they suppress immunity, and also - repeated injections can cause spontaneous tendon rupture and more. PRP injections or hyaluronic acid have fewer side effects, but they Do not give immediate relief, it takes about 8 weeks until you feel relief, and they are also more expensive (not included in the health basket).

Leave the squats

just no.

Woman doing squats (Photo: ShutterStock)

And finally, a tip from a doctor who sees a lot of sore joints.

"Squats - I know all fitness trainers and physiotherapists think this is the best exercise there is, but we think it's a little less good, both for the meniscus and the cartilage of the patella, especially the deep-squat. "60 degrees, there is no reason to reach 90, and certainly not to go lower than that."

He explained that the exercise puts tremendous pressure on the cartilage, and can cause a meniscus tear in the rise from the squat.

"And I'm not talking at all about those who also put a barbell of weights ...", he added.

Dr. Amar said in conclusion that it is very important to "listen to the body - let logic and pain be your guides".

• health

Tags

• Arthritis Pain

• knee pain

• orthopedics

• Hyaluronic acid