Use Of Low Level Laser Therapy An Effective Form Of Treatment For Patients With Knee Osteoarthritis?

Joint pain, particularly in the knees and shoulders as well as back pain constitute the large majority of patients who present to their doctor's office with a complaint of pain. Many of these patients proceed to have surgery, all too often with less than optimal outcomes. Many of these patients still have the same pain

Acupuncture can be used to treat osteoarthritis. It is based on an idea that there are channels throughout the body called “meridians” and that these allow the transport of an energy known as “Qi.” (NHS. 2012. Acupuncture.) Generally, acupuncture involves the insertion of needles at specific points along the body - these are known as “acupoints.” This insertion is thought to lead to the movement of Qi throughout the body, which causes biomedical changes that result in the “promotion of physical and emotional well-being” through the release of endorphins. (British Acupuncture Council. 2011. Acupuncture and Osteoarthritis.) Inserting needles at specific acupoints to treat osteoarthritis sends a message to the brain that assists in the reduction of “sensitivity to pain and stress.” (British Acupuncture Council. 2011. Acupuncture and Osteoarthritis.) This reduction in pain can allow for a better range of movement, thus function.

Osteoarthritis, the most common type of arthritis, is most prevalent in older patients. Osteoarthritis is a degenerative bone disease due to the gradual loss of cartilage. A primary type of osteoarthritis is hip arthritis where it is caused by joint injury, increasing age, and being overweight (“Hip Osteoarthritis,” n.d.). However, osteoarthritis can also be caused by immature joints, inherited defects in cartilage, and extra stress on a patient’s joints (Hip Osteoarthritis,” n.d.). As a result, hip arthritis becomes a huge detriment in patient’s social, emotional, physical lifestyles. In order to treat hip arthritis, doctors choose from a variety of non-drug treatments, medications, and surgeries. Uniquely, I was inspired to research about the treatments of hip arthritis because my very own brother was pronounced with hip arthritis a few years back. Therefore, his determination to battle this disease encouraged me to investigate about the treatment of hip arthritis.

These results and the success in reducing pain and improving function in their patients, led them to conclude that intra-articular MSC injections are an effective and safe way to treat OA of the knee.

The people in the studies must also be randomly assigned a "treatment" or a "placebo" (Kishita & Laidlaw, 2017, p.126) After these criteria were applied, the number of studies decreased to "15" (Kishita & Laidlaw, 2017, p.127). Information on "participants' age range and mean age, the type of treatment condition, the type of control condition, format of the therapy, the number of sessions, the primary outcome measure,the type of analyses, and means,standard deviations, and sample size for the primary outcome measure in each condition" was recorded for each study (Kishita & Laidlaw, 2017, p.127)

The goals for management are to reduce joint pain and stiffness, maintain and improve joint mobility, improve muscle strength, limit subsequent joint damage and improve quality of life. Conservative treatment may include rest, range-of-motion exercises, use of assistive device to decrease weight-bearing, weight loss and glucosamine. Pharmacological treatment may include analgesics and anti-inflammatory drugs or intra-articular injections of hyaluronic acid (Ng, Heesch & Brown 2012). Alternative therapy includes acupuncture or magnetic bracelets. Surgical treatment includes artificial implants to create new joints, correction of a deformity or misalignment, and improvement of joint movement (McCance, Huether, Brashers, & Rote, 2010). The Osteoarthritis Research Society International (ORSI) has an extensive list of recommendations to manage OA that emphasizes weight reduction in the obese, exercise and educating patients (ORSI,

Based on the progress report dated 05/17/16, the patient presents for reevaluation of her right knee pain. It has been about the same though she states that when she gets acupuncture, it does decrease pain for a period of time and allow her to exercise more. She has been walking 45 to 50 minutes twice a day. She uses

The strength of this recommendation is inconclusive. As practitioners, we should have minimum restraint in following this recommendation and should be on the lookout for new evidence in addition to strongly listening to patient preference. This recommendation is based upon three RCT’s. Two of these studies were of high strength and one was of moderate strength with regard to quality. All three of these studies had moderate applicability. In these studies, pain improvement was not consistently statistical significant (MD = .81, 95% CI -1.76, .14; MD = 2.26, p<.001; MD = -.82, 95% CI -1.247, -.39), and neither was function (MD = 3, 95% CI -1.05, 7.05; MD = 6.54, p=.001). In addition, the authors concluded the clinical significance of these findings were

The aim of the study is to evaluate the clinical efficacy of a soft tissue 980-nm diode laser with SRP versus the effects of SRP alone.

Developing a treatment strategy for the disease is crucial because it effects so many people. The current issue with knee osteoarthritis is the financial cost. The National Institute for Health estimates the national cost between $15.5 to $28.6 billion per year for knee osteoarthritis treatments and procedures. The need for cost effective treatment and care has risen over the years. The article addresses this issue. It suggests the older adults walk not only to improve their cardiorespiratory fitness, but to treat knee osteoarthritis. This form of treatment would reduce the national financial cost of

It can be assured that any type of exercise programme that is performed regularly and is closely monitored can improve pain, physical function and quality of life related to knee osteoarthritis in the short term.

The great traditional healing for joint affliction, equivalent to osteo­arthritis often involves prescribed exercises to maintain the joints flexible, motivate nourishment of the cartilage, and support

01/06/16 Pain management Report described that the patient has a history of chronic low back pain and right lower extremity pain. The patient has a spinal cord stimulator since 01/30/15. The patient visited today for follow-up and medication refill. He reported that his pain has been stable since the last month. His pain is 5/10-scale level with the use of medications and 8/10-scale levels without the use of medication. The patient reported that the medications, activity restriction,

Evidence from this study suggests only the short term effects of LASER. Further studies could include patients randomized by levels of baseline disability and duration of symptoms. Studies which states the long term effect of LLLT should be emphasized. Further, studies should evaluate many factors such as psychosocial aspect and dosiometry that may reflect on treatment response and recovery. The complete substitution of anti inflammatory drugs by LLLT, in patients that are at high risk, should also be targeted in future

Osteoarthritis is the most common joint disorder, and more than half of all Americans who are older than 65 have been diagnosed with osteoarthritis. However, recent US data has revealed knee osteoarthritis does not discriminate age, and there is growing evidence that osteoarthritis affects individuals at a young age. The annual cost of osteoarthritis due to treatment and loss of productivity in the US is estimated to be more than 65 billion dollars.1 With no cure currently available for osteoarthritis, current treatments focus on management of symptoms. The primary goals of therapy include improved joint function, pain relief, and increased joint stability. Although the exact cause of osteoarthritis is unknown, many risk factors have been identified including increased age, female gender, obesity, and trauma.2 Within these risk factors, the etiology of osteoarthritis has been divided into anatomy, body mass, and gender.