Physical therapy eases pain and helps you regain the full use of your knee. During one-on-one sessions, a therapist may:

• Teach you exercises and stretches to improve your joint’s strength and range of motion
• Use hands-on techniques to relieve tension and loosen a stiff knee
• Recommend changes to your activities or daily routine to prevent another injury

Injections deliver medicine straight to the site of your injury. That means you can receive higher doses than you could take by mouth, and the medicine targets only the injured area of your body. Your doctor may use imaging technology to precisely guide the injection to the right spot, making treatment more effective. Ask about the right type of injection for your situation:

• Cortisone (steroid) – Reduces inflammation
• Hyaluronic acid (viscosupplementation) – Uses gel to lubricate an arthritic knee
• Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) – Uses natural substances from your own body to speed up healing

If the soft cushioning between the bones in your knee is damaged, a procedure called cartilage restoration can help restore the use of your joint and relieve pain. Ask an orthopedic surgeon about one of these treatments:

• Autologous chondrocyte implantation – Takes cells from healthy cartilage in your body and sends them to a lab to grow new cartilage, which the surgeon later places in your knee
• Osteochondral allografting – Uses healthy donor cartilage and bone to replace both your worn-away cartilage and a damaged area of knee bone

You may qualify for cartilage restoration if you’re younger than 40.

Both procedures start with arthroscopy to:

• Show detailed information about your injury
• Remove any loose, painful fragments of bone or tissue
• Gather cartilage cells from a healthy joint, if needed

If you receive cartilage and bone from a donor in the next stage of treatment, you won’t need to take anti-rejection drugs. Your body will almost always accept the donated tissue.

ACL reconstruction is often the best surgical treatment for a knee ligament tear. It replaces the torn ligament with a graft made of a tendon, usually from your kneecap. Afterward, physical therapy helps you strengthen your joint and ensure long-term mobility.

If you have a meniscus injury, you may benefit from one of these procedures:

• Torn meniscus repair – Stitches torn tissue back together and reduces the risk of knee osteoarthritis
• Torn meniscus removal (partial meniscectomy) – Lets you walk with less pain soon after surgery
• Meniscus transplant – Gives you healthy cartilage from a donor to replace your tissue that’s too damaged to repair

If you’re ready to explore knee replacement surgery (arthroplasty), you’ll find support from an experienced team that’s treated thousands of your neighbors in central and northern Illinois. You’ll receive care from skilled surgeons, orthopedic nurses, physical therapists and other experts as you prepare for surgery. Learn more about joint replacement at OSF HealthCare.