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Joint Pain

Daniel Nelson, MD

Interventional Pain Medicine & Regenerative Medicine located in Greater Seattle area, Kirkland, WA

Joint pain can make it hard to move and seriously impact your quality of life. Chronic joint pain from arthritis can make life very difficult, but Dr. Daniel Nelson can help. At his practice in Kirkland, in the Greater Seattle area of Washington, Daniel Nelson, MD, and Sarah Goble, PA-C, provide comprehensive treatments for joint pain and arthritis, including cutting-edge regenerative medicine therapies. Call today to find out more or book an appointment online.

Joint Pain Q & A

What causes joint pain?

Joint pain that affects a single joint can be caused by an injury, for example twisting an ankle or tearing a ligament in your knee. However, the most common cause of widespread joint pain is arthritis.

 

Arthritis is an umbrella term, as there are in excess of 100 different forms of the disease. All forms of arthritis cause chronic joint pain and stiffness. The two most common forms of arthritis are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

What is osteoarthritis?

Osteoarthritis is a wear-and-tear form of arthritis. It develops over the years as you use your joints, and the protective cartilage on the ends of your bones wears away. The exposed bones can rub against each other, causing inflammation and leading to pain and stiffness.

Osteoarthritis tends to affect older adults. It can be a problem in any of your joints but is often particularly bad in the hands, knees, and hips.

Please go to our Conditions page to learn more about joint conditions.

What is rheumatoid arthritis?

Rheumatoid arthritis affects the synovial membranes that surround your joints. These membranes help protect your joints, but when you have rheumatoid arthritis, your body attacks the synovial membranes. The reasons why this happens aren’t clear, but there could be a genetic factor.

As the synovial membranes break down, the joints swell and can twist or distort. Rheumatoid arthritis can affect any joints, but almost always causes severe distortion of the hands.

What treatments are there for joint pain?

Initial treatments for joint pain are likely to focus on physical therapies, medication, and complementary treatments like acupuncture. If your joint pain isn’t improving after trying these conservative measures, you might benefit from having joint injections containing steroid medication.

Another potential treatment for joint pain is radiofrequency ablation, which uses radiofrequency energy to damage the nerves causing your joint pain.

Inflammatory forms of arthritis like rheumatoid arthritis can improve with the use of medications called disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs), and biological response modifiers (biologics).

Please go to our Procedures page to learn more about treatments for joint pain.

Can regenerative medicine help with joint pain?

Regenerative medicine can be a very helpful treatment for joint pain. Stem cell therapy and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy help repair damaged tissues and boost your body’s ability to produce new, healthy cells.

PRP and stem cells come from your own blood and tissues, so they’re a very safe form of treatment, as well as being effective. Dr. Nelson extracts stem cells from your bone marrow or fatty tissues, and PRP from your blood. He then injects concentrated solutions of these special cells into your joints.

If you have joint pain that isn’t improving, Dr. Nelson can find the cause and create a treatment plan designed around your specific needs. Call Dr. Daniel Nelson today or book an appointment online.