Chronic Knee or Hip Pain? A Guide to Nonsurgical Treatment Options

Chronic knee or hip pain can make everyday activities difficult. Walking through the grocery store, climbing stairs, getting out of a chair, exercising, or even sleeping comfortably may become challenging when pain and stiffness persist.

Arthritis, previous injuries, and other orthopedic conditions can all contribute to ongoing joint pain. Although severe joint damage sometimes requires surgery, many people can benefit from nonsurgical treatments first.

At Coastal Regenerative Orthopedics & Wellness Center in San Diego, California, Ronald Cohen, MD, and our team evaluate the underlying cause of knee and hip pain to personalize treatment plans to reduce discomfort, improve mobility, and help you stay active.

Start with an accurate diagnosis

Successful treatment starts with understanding why your joint hurts. Knee or hip pain may stem from osteoarthritis, an old injury, overuse, cartilage damage, tendon problems, inflammation, or multiple conditions occurring at the same time.

The location of your pain, when it occurs, what movements aggravate it, and how long you’ve experienced symptoms can all provide important clues.

A comprehensive evaluation helps us identify the structures contributing to your symptoms and determine which treatment options make sense. Treating the source of your pain rather than relying only on temporary symptom relief can lead to better long-term results.

Modify activities without becoming inactive

When your knee or hip hurts, you may instinctively avoid movement. Rest can help after an acute injury or flare-up, but prolonged inactivity may weaken the muscles that support your joints and increase stiffness.

You may need to modify activities that aggravate your symptoms, at least temporarily. Going from high-impact exercise to lower-impact activities, such as swimming, cycling, or walking on level surfaces, may let you stay active without placing as much stress on painful joints.

The right activity level depends on your diagnosis and severity of your symptoms.

Improve strength and mobility with physical therapy

Physical therapy can play an important role in nonsurgical treatment for knee and hip pain. Targeted exercises strengthen the muscles surrounding your joints, improve flexibility, and help your body move more efficiently.

For example, stronger muscles around your hips, thighs, and core can provide added support during walking and other daily activities. A physical therapist can also identify movement patterns that put unnecessary strain on your knees or hips and teach you ways to correct them.

Manage pain and inflammation

Medications may provide short-term relief for some types of joint pain. Depending on your health and diagnosis, we may recommend topical or oral medications that reduce pain or inflammation.

These medications can make it easier to move and participate in rehabilitation, but they don’t repair damaged cartilage, tendons, ligaments, or other joint structures.

Joint injections may provide another option when oral or topical treatments don’t offer enough relief. Corticosteroid injections, for example, can reduce inflammation for certain patients. However, the appropriate type and frequency of injections depend on your individual condition.

Consider regenerative orthopedic treatments

Regenerative orthopedics offers another nonsurgical approach for certain knee and hip conditions. These treatments use biologic materials to support your body’s natural healing response rather than surgically replacing or removing damaged tissue.

One option is platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy. PRP uses concentrated platelets taken from your blood. Platelets contain growth factors involved in tissue repair and healing.

During PRP treatment, we draw a small amount of your blood and process it to concentrate the platelets. Dr. Cohen then injects the solution into the targeted area.

Regenerative treatments may help reduce pain and improve function for some patients with osteoarthritis, joint injuries, and other musculoskeletal conditions. However, they can’t reverse every type of joint damage, and results vary from person to person.

Know when to consider surgery

Nonsurgical care won’t eliminate the need for surgery in every situation. Advanced joint degeneration, severe structural damage, or pain that continues despite appropriate conservative treatment may eventually make surgery the best option.

However, chronic knee or hip pain doesn’t automatically mean you need a joint replacement. Exploring nonsurgical treatment first may help relieve symptoms, maintain mobility, and potentially postpone or avoid surgery.

If chronic knee or hip pain limits your activities, call Coastal Regenerative Orthopedics & Wellness Center or request a consultation online today.