Arthritic Backs

"The most common injury is caused by osteoarthritis of the spine. Pain is often related to bending, lifting or standing," explains orthopedic surgeon Randolph O'Hara, MD. "Rest and ice are appropriate for the first couple days along with ibuprofen or Naprosyn. As symptoms improve, physical therapy becomes the mainstay treatment. A daily stretching program is crucial."

If patients continue to have significant symptoms, they might undergo epidural steroid injections or microsurgery.

“Microsurgery is where we make a small incision and we clean out bone spurs and arthritic tissue around the nerves in the back. In some cases we put bracing on the inside to provide joints with extra support. The results are phenomenal,” says orthopedic surgeon and spine expert Tiffany Rogers, MD. “Patients can finally stand up, walk and get their life back because their nerves are no longer being pinched.”

Disc Injuries and Compression Fractures

“Most disc injuries respond to the right type of physical therapy and injections,” says orthopedic surgeon and spine expert Tiffany Rogers, MD. “Compression fractures usually heal in eight to twelve weeks. Patients often wear braces and need some pain medication. Sometimes we inflate balloons inside the bone and put in bone cement to stabilize the bone. It’s a relatively new, same-day surgical procedure.”

Ankle Arthritis and Ankle Injuries

“Non-surgical treatments are the first line of treatment,” says orthopedic surgeon and foot specialist Keri Zickuhr, MD. “That often includes some kind of support, like a brace or a walker boot.” Ankle fractures often require surgery. “If fractures are not corrected initially it can actually lead to worse problems later,” explains Dr. Zickuhr. “I do a lot of ankle replacements and deformity reconstruction so people can have their lives back.”

Foot Injuries

Common foot injuries include toe abnormalities such as hammer toes or clawed toes as well as footpad atrophy, arthritis, plantar fasciitis and tendon degeneration.

“If you can lower the inflammation with an anti-inflammatory, then the pain goes down,” explains Keri Zickuhr, MD. “I also recommend physical therapy to work on balance to make sure people are using the muscles and tendons in the most appropriate manner. This helps to strengthen the tendons that are weak and stretch the tendons that are tight. Physical therapy can also decrease inflammation.”

Shoulder Problems

Anti-inflammatory medication, steroid injections and physical therapy may all relieve pain and restore shoulder strength. In some cases, surgery is recommended.

“Rotator cuff surgeries can be done arthroscopically with minimal invasion to the tissue for less tissue trauma and less recovery time,” says orthopedic surgeon and shoulder specialist Stephen Nuccion, MD. “If a shoulder injury is severe, a shoulder replacement using new biomaterials with great longevity allows patients to get their range of motion and strength back. It also allows them to be active in a way that they don’t have to worry about wearing out their prosthesis. In the past, the materials have not had the longevity that they have today.”

Tennis Elbow or Tendonitis

Rest, anti-inflammatories and physical therapy can help ease elbow pain and swelling. New biological treatments also work well. “I often use a biologic treatment called platelet rich plasma (PRP). We remove platelets from a patient’s blood and inject them into the area of injury,” says Stephen Nuccion, MD. “The platelets have growth factors that can decrease pain and inflammation and also help stimulate a healing response. It’s very effective for chronic tendonitis like tennis elbow.”

Hip Problems

Exercise is one of the best things for maintaining range of motion and strengthening the muscles that support the hip to help relieve arthritis pain. Anti-inflammatory medication as well as medications to slow bone loss are also an important part of treatment. When pain persists, hip surgery is necessary. “In 2004, orthopedic surgeon Don Sanders, MD, brought us a new method of hip replacement using an incision in the front of the hip called the anterior approach. There is less tissue disruption so patients have a more rapid recovery,” explains John McNamara, MD, chief medical officer at Torrance Memorial Medical Center.

Knee Problems

Anti-inflammatories, injections and physical therapy are first line treatments for knee problems. When surgery is necessary, advances in biomaterials and minimally invasive treatments have improved recovery time. “We get patients up and walking the day of surgery,” says orthopedic surgeon and knee specialist Stephen Nuccion, MD. “This improves range of motion and restores independence more quickly.”

Advances in Non-Surgical Treatments for Restoring Pain-Free Mobility

Torrance Memorial Medical Center is on the cutting edge of treatment to relieve pain, inflammation and restore your active lifestyle. Our doctors are leaders in their orthopedic specialties and use a variety of new, non-invasive treatments to help their patients heal including:

Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP)

Doctors remove platelets from a person’s blood and inject them into the area of injury. The platelets have growth factors and stimulate a biologic chain of events that can decrease pain and inflammation and also help stimulate a healing response. It’s very effective for muscle injuries as well as chronic tendonitis like tennis elbow or patella (knee) tendonitis. It’s also effective in the treatment of early to moderate arthritis as well as some types of rotator cuff tears and knee meniscus (cartilage) tears.

Growth Factor Injections

Doctors harvest immature cells from the patient or a donated source and inject them into the area of injury to stimulate a healing response in the body. They can work well for small rotator cuff tears or for early arthritis in the shoulder and knee.

Physical Therapy

A customized physical therapy program is clinically proven to strengthen muscles and tendons that support joints. As a result, there is less inflammation, stiffness and pain as well as increased range of motion and flexibility. Harvard Medical School reports that in some cases, such as torn knee cartilage, physical therapy works just as well as surgery.

To contact Torrance Memorial Physician Network orthopedic surgeons Stephen Nuccion, MD; Tiffany Rogers, MD and Keri Zickuhr, MD, call 310-517-1216. To contact orthopedic surgeons Don Sanders, MD and Randolph O'Hara, MD call 310-784-2355.