Joint pain can be caused by an injury like a trip-and-fall or sports injury or from diseases like arthritis. Navin Mallavaram, MD, and his team at The Spine & Pain Center of California provide expert joint pain treatments that use injectable medications to relieve your discomfort and promote healthy new tissue growth. One type of injection contains anesthetic and steroids, while another type uses therapies. Both are available at The Spine & Pain Center of California offices in Pleasanton and Fremont, California. Call today or use the online form to book an appointment.
Joint pain is usually due either to an injury or to arthritis. Of the 100 or so types of arthritis, the ones you’re most likely to get are:
Osteoarthritis is the wear-and-tear form of the disease that develops as your joints deteriorate with age. The cartilage that stops your bones from catching on each other in your joints wears down over time. Without proper protection, friction builds up and inflammation develops.
The result is chronic joint pain that gets worse. Your joints, especially your hands, hips, and knees, get stiffer and weaker. They can begin to twist out of shape.
Rheumatoid arthritis is more likely to affect you when you’re younger. It’s an autoimmune disorder, meaning it’s your own immune system that’s damaging your joints. Your immune system protects you from harmful invading microorganisms. If you have rheumatoid arthritis, your immune system is overactive and starts destroying the cells in your joint linings.
Arthritis can also affect the facet joints in your spine, causing back pain.
Nonarthritic joint pain is often due to injuries affecting the soft tissues. Sprained ligaments and strained tendons are common joint injuries. They frequently affect active people and those who play sports. Tennis elbow and golfer’s elbow are common forms of elbow tendinitis.
Medial collateral ligament (MCL) and anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries are common causes of knee pain, as are meniscal tears.
You could dislocate a joint. This is most likely to happen to your shoulder, which has a very wide range of movement. That’s useful, but it also means the top of the humerus (upper arm bone) can pop out of the glenoid (socket) in your shoulder blade.
Bursitis is another common cause of joint pain. The bursae are little sacs of fluid in your joints that act as cushions. If they suffer irritation from overuse, it causes inflammation and swelling.
Dr. Mallavaram and his team at The Spine & Pain Center of California achieve excellent results in treating joint pain with injectable therapies. Joint injections are made up of an anesthetic for short-term pain relief and a corticosteroid anti-inflammatory. These injections can also treat facet joint arthritis in your spine.
Dr. Mallavaram also uses techniques, including platelet-rich plasma (PRP), to treat joint pain. These treatments stimulate new, healthy growth in soft tissues.
For more information, call The Spine & Pain Center of California today or book an appointment online.
