Question
Considering posted comments about injections of hyaluronic acid into the knees for osteoarthritis providing only modest benefit when there is not much cartilage remaining, and as My husband has been advised that surgery is needed but should be postponed until he retires in 5 years and will no longer be performing repetitive work-related actions involving his knees, would you kindly advise what type of treatment you find to offer the most relief? My husband has previously experienced cortisone injections, draining of the fluid, an orthoscopic cleaning of one knee, and prescribed pain medication. Although the pain medication offered relief, he does not wish to use pain medicine because the side effects and addiction issues are too problematic.
Answer
Everyone is different. When osteoarthritis becomes very advanced, most of our treatments are not very effective. Hyaluronic acid injections might be tried since some individuals might respond better than others. Other standards treatments include those that you have already mentioned. If the pain gets so bad that the patient cannot walk more than a block or across the room, then surgery should be pursued regardless of whether the individual has retired or not.
