JOINT PAIN

SPINE TECHNOLOGY AND REHABILITATION

Joint pain stems from any area of inflammation in the cartilage, bone, ligaments, and tendons that make up the joints in your body. Joseph Fortin, DO, is an interventional pain management specialist at his practice, Spine Technology and Rehabilitation, in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Dr. Fortin provides treatments that are minimally invasive but deliver maximum pain-relief and mobilization benefits for patients suffering from chronic joint pain. Call the office to schedule a consultation or use the online scheduler to get expert relief from joint pain.

What’s causing my joint pain?

he most common underlying cause of chronic joint pain is osteoarthritis, a degenerative condition that affects 27 million people in the United States. Osteoarthritis is common in knees, and it occurs when the cartilage breaks down, making your bones rub together. It can happen to people of all ages, but osteoarthritis is usually the result of years of wear and tear from a sport or just overuse.

If you have osteoarthritis, you often have pain and inflammation in your knees, hips, lower back, or neck. Sometimes this degenerative condition affects your fingers and toes, too.

Other causes of joint pain include:

  • Rheumatoid
  • arthritis
  • Lupus
  • Gout
  • Lyme disease
  • Fibromyalgia
  • Hypothyroidism

Joint pain may also be a sign of tendinitis or bursitis — conditions that affect the tendons surrounding a joint.

What are the risk factors for developing joint pain?

A few risk factors that contribute to joint pain include your weight, age, and lifestyle. If you have been overweight for most of your life, as you get older, you’ll feel that extra pressure on your joints — especially your knees — where osteoarthritis commonly begins. If you are obese, you are at risk of developing joint pain in your knees, hips, and ankles.

As you get older, the cartilage that surrounds your joints becomes less flexible and has less capacity to repair itself than when you were younger. If you’ve suffered previous injuries to your wrist, knee, or elbow, by the time you reach your 40s and 50s, you could experience joint pain from arthritis.

Regenerative therapies are often beneficial in the healing of painful, arthritic joints.

What treatments ease joint pain?

Dr. Fortin offers many innovative treatments to relieve your joint pain. He develops personalized treatment plans based on your diagnosis, the severity of your symptoms, and your current health needs.

Your treatment plan can include:

  • Anti-inflammatory medication
  • Activity modification
  • Lifestyle wellness program
  • Physical therapy
  • Steroid injections
  • Hyaluronic injections
  • Image-guided nerve blocks

Dr. Fortin also offers regenerative medicine as a treatment for joint pain.

Regenerative therapies, including stem cell injections, platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections, and prolotherapy, promote healing in arthritic, degenerative joint cartilage and could help prevent further degeneration.

If you suffer from joint pain, Dr. Fortin and the team at Spine Technology and Rehabilitation offer various treatments. They find the best combination of therapies that work for you long term.

To schedule a consultation for joint pain, call the office or use the convenient online scheduler.