What is Knee Osteoarthritis?

Osteoarthritis affects approximately 12% of the population (approximately 21 million adults); it is the most common type of knee arthritis. It is a progressive musculoskeletal, degenerative disease that wears away the articular cartilage and underlying bone in your knee joint, triggering chemical reactions within the knee joint that cause destruction. It can be very painful, weakening and eventually deforming.

If you have osteoarthritis of the knee, the cartilage over your knee joint bones gets scraped and worn down, becoming very thin (sometimes resulting in small fragments that float into the joint cavity and cause more aggravation). This makes your knee feel very stiff. As a result, your joint cavity produces extra fluid in the joint which is comprised of destructive proteins and enzymes that cause the cartilage and bones to deteriorate further. This causes your knee to swell up (known as "water on the knee"). The surrounding knee bones react by growing thicker. The bone at the edge of your knee joint eventually grows outward and develops into bony spurs (osteophytes), which affects your femur, tibia and patella. Your knee joint tries to repair itself by creating these bony spurs however they generally just make your knee more painful and difficult to move; leaving thin parts on some areas of the knee and thick parts on other areas. Your joint capsule and ligaments then slowly thicken and shrink, and your leg muscles weaken (atrophy), which in turn creates instability in your knee joint (it gives way when you walk or put weight on it). Osteoarthritis of the knee usually develops slowly over the years.

A study published by the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center reviewed radiographic evidence and estimated that osteoarthritis of the knee affects 25% ­ 30% of people between 45 - 64 years of age, 60% of people older than 65 years of age, and 80% of people older than 75 years of age.

A Black Body Radiant Energy Kit is one of the most helpful tools for a wide varity of painful knee related injuries and conditions. Through the absorption of radiant energy, tissues are safely and gently heated - increasing blood flow within the treated area. Your body's natural response to this increased temperature is to try to maintain a condition of homeostasis - a balanced environment or state of equilibrium throughout the body. To do this, your body responds with a rapid increase in blood flow to the area (this is known as vasodilation), increasing the supply of nutrients to injured cells and flushing out toxins (including lactic acid, commonly found in trigger points) to promote healing. Our Thermotex Knee Pain Relief Device provides effective, non-invasive, non-addictive pain relief with no side effects.

Our Cold Compression Wraps are recommended by countless medical professionals. That's why we sell them, because they are the best. We have noticed over time that our customers are so fond of our cold wraps that they are frequently coming back and ordering a second one. The wraps are becoming very popular with baseball and soccer trainers, and the wraps can be conveniently stored in a cooler for quick application on the field when needed.

Ultrasound therapy is also a helpful tool for pain prevention of knee injuires, and having a portable ultrasound device at home can be a powerful and convenient treatment tool. If you have symptoms or are recovering from a knee related injury, using ultrasound on a regular basis before your activity or throughout the day will help relax your muscles, tendons and tissues, diminish pain and inflammation, soften scar tissue and contribute greatly to the healing of your injury.

If you suffer from pain after certain activities or movements use ultrasound therapy when you complete the activity and then rest. Limit the application of ultrasound to a couple of treatments per day (the manual will recommend treatment frequency depending upon the injury). In between ultrasound treatments, maximize your pain relief and injury recovery by using the Thermotex Personal Therapy System. Proven Performance, Proven Relief - only found at MendMeShop.com. If you have been given a treatment plan by your health professional, make sure you adhere to it to ensure pain free living. In general, people who are committed to their therapies and exercises will have the best medical outcomes.