Our Treatment Options

ORTHOVISC

ORTHOVISC® High Molecular Weight Hyaluronan is a FDA approved treatment made from ultra-pure hyaluronan, a naturally occurring lubricant found in healthy knee joints. ORTHOVISC® Hyaluronan is a non-avian sourced hyaluronic acid injection therapy which has up to six months of clinically proven efficacy with 3 or 4 injections.

Euflexxa

Hyaluronic acid (HA) is a substance already in the fluid of your knee. It helps lubricate the joint. When you have osteoarthritis (OA), the HA in your joint becomes thinner and less effective. EUFLEXXA is a hyaluronic acid that's injected directly into the knee by your healthcare provider. It replenishes some of the HA in your knee, helping with the lubrication and shock absorption you need within the knee joint.

GenVisc

GenVisc 850 is a product that is injected into your knees to treat knee pain from joint inflammation and stiffness due to a disease known as osteoarthritis (OA).

GenVisc 850 is from a class of products known as hyaluronic acid, sodium hyaluronate, or hyaluronan (HA), which is also referred to as viscosupplementation therapy. It’s used in a nonsurgical procedure that helps supplement the viscous properties of the fluid in your knee joint. GenVisc 850 is approved for patients who have not adequately responded or have failed to find sufficient relief from simple analgesics, exercise or physical therapy.

Hyalgan

HYALGAN® is a solution that contains a natural substance called hyaluronate. Hyaluronate is normally found in the fluid that lubricates and cushions your knee joint. HYALGAN® is injected into your knee to relieve pain due to osteoarthritis.

HYALGAN® is a treatment option for people who do not get adequate pain relief from simple painkillers (like Tylenol® or Advil®) or from exercise and physical therapy. HYALGAN® injections can be used in addition to prescription pain relievers.

More About Viscosupplementation

Viscosupplementation is a medical procedure during which lubricating fluid is injected into a joint. Also called hyaluronic acid injections or hyaluronan injections, viscosupplementation is most commonly used to treat symptoms of knee osteoarthritis.

Hyaluronic acid is a key component of the joint fluid in healthy joints, but is found in lower concentrations in osteoarthritic joints.

By adding hyaluronic acid to the existing joint fluid of an osteoarthritic knee, the goal is to:

• Facilitate better knee movement

• Reduce pain

• Perhaps slow osteoarthritis progression

Typical candidates for viscosupplementation are people with knee osteoarthritis who have failed to improve with other non-surgical treatments.

Following the injections, it is generally recommended that patients engage in a rehabilitation program that includes gentle, progressive knee exercise. The goals of rehabilitation are to improve range of motion and develop muscle strength to support the knee.

How Viscosupplementation Works

During viscosupplementation a small amount of hyaluronic acid, often just 2 ml, is injected directly into a joint capsule.

A healthy knee joint has up to 4 ml of joint fluid within the joint capsule. Hyaluronic acid is a key component of the joint fluid. It gives the joint fluid its viscous, slippery quality which does the following:

• Enables the bones' cartilage-covered surfaces • to glide against each other, thereby reducing joint friction

• Adds cushion to protect joints during impact (e.g. weight-bearing activity)

Joints affected by osteoarthritis typically have a lower concentration of hyaluronic acid in their joint fluid than healthy joints, and therefore less protection against joint friction and impact. Experts believe this further accelerates the joint degeneration process, setting in place a vicious cycle.

As its name implies, viscosupplementation artificially supplements the joint fluid's natural viscosity. By injecting a man-made hyaluronan into the knee, doctors hope to temporarily lubricate the knee joint, thereby decreasing pain improving function and perhaps even slowing the degeneration process.

Hyaluronic Acid Injections for the Hip and Other Joints

The United States FDA has approved viscosupplementation for treating knee arthritis only, but treating hip osteoarthritis or other joints with viscosupplementation is permitted. Some doctors have found some patients respond to viscosupplementation for the hip, shoulder, and ankle but there is relatively little published research regarding its efficacy.

Using viscosupplementation for a joint other than the knee is considered an "off label" use of the injectable fluid. Insurance companies may consider the procedure "experimental" and not cover the cost, so patients should check with their insurance companies if considering viscosupplementation .