Dr. Smarajit Patnaik, Senior Consultant Joint Preservation, Reconstruction & Joint Replacement Surgeon in Apollo Hospital, Bhubaneswar revealed the shockingly high incidence of osteoarthritis of knees in India, its causes and treatment on the occasion of a ‘Bone & Joint Health Awareness Program’ held in the hospital on 2nd September’ 2014. Dr. Patnaik, who brought high end technology in bone and joint care to the state of Odisha, explained several conservative methods of treating arthritis of knees and emphasized that joint replacement is done as a last resort when all other methods prove to be ineffective.
"The incidence of clinically significant knee osteoarthritis (which involves pain, swelling, limitation of function & deformity in the advanced stage) above the age of 55 years is very high in India- 25 to 30% in women and 15-20% in men," stated Dr. Smarajit Patnaik, Senior Consultant Joint Preservation, Reconstruction & Joint Replacement Surgeon in Apollo Hospital, Bhubaneswar on the occasion of a ‘Bone & Joint Health Awareness Program’ held in the hospital on 2nd September’ 2014. He added, "About 7 crore people in India are suffering from knee related problems. The reasons for such a high incidence of osteoarthritis are obesity, lack of balanced diet & regular exercise, not getting enough exposure to sunlight and increase in smoking that causes increased intake of Nicotine,".
Dr. Patnaik, who has been invited as a guest speaker to various national conferences and postgraduate courses informed people, "Osteoarthritis is more common in women because post-menopausal women have weaker bones as compared to men of their age as a result of a condition called osteoporosis, which literally means porous bones.” He also disclosed that osteoarthritis of knees is more common in India and other Asian countries. "The reasons for this are habits like squatting, sitting on the ground, Indian toilets, and heredity", he said.
The orthopedic surgeon, who has special interest in complex Joint Replacement procedures said, "The typical symptoms of arthritis of knees are pain in and around the joint, swelling, morning stiffness of knees and occasional pain at night. 80% patients of knee osteoarthritis have some degree of limitation of movement and 25% cannot perform their daily activities as a result of which their quality of life decreases."
Dr. Smarajit, who performed the First Bilateral Single Stage Patient Specific Instrumentation Knee Replacement in an octogenarian in Odisha, elaborated a number of methods of treating knee pain. He gave the following valuable suggestions to patients suffering from osteoarthritis of the knees-
1. Use a walking aid to reduce the load on the knees.
2. Exercise regularly and moderately.
3. Toilet seats, low chairs & beds should be raised.
4. Foot wear should be modified as suggested by the doctor.
5. Bracing of knees should be done to off load the inner side of the knee joint, where arthritis is most common.
6. Patients of osteoarthritis should take showers instead of bath as showers prevent bending of knees and squatting. Warm showers give comfort to arthritic knees and decrease the pain and stiffness in the joint.
7. Physiotherapy reduces pain, increases the range of movement of joints and improves muscle strength through different exercises.
8. Medicines like Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDS like Combiflam & Voveran), Cox-2 inhibitors (like Rofecoxib & Celecoxib) and local application of ointments & gels help to relieve pain.
9. Transdermal patches of painkillers, that is, patches of pain-killers applied on the skin can give relief from pain for 24 hours to patients of osteoarthritis. The transdermal patches also have fewer side-effects than pain-killers taken orally.
10. Hyaluronic Acid is a compound whose molecular weight is the same as that of the lubricating synovial fluid present in human joints. Hyaluronic acid is injected into the knee joint for lubricating it and to protect the cartilage. (soft tissue lining the bones)
11. Injection of steroids in the joints to relieve pain and swelling.
In the end Dr. Smarajit Patnaik said,
“Knee replacement is done when knee pain fails to respond to these conservative methods, when there is pain at rest & at night and when there is loss of function.” “This surgery has been widely used for many years with excellent results”, Dr. Patnaik added.
About Dr. Smarajit Patnaik and Department of Orthopedic Surgery in Apollo Hospital, Bhubaneswar The department of Orthopedic surgery in Apollo Hospital, Bhubaneswar is a center of excellence for orthopedic and trauma care in Odisha.
Dr. Smarajit Patnaik has a team of three highly qualified and skilled Consultant Orthopedic surgeons and a Registrar in the department.
The institute, which has been accredited for postgraduate training by the National Board of Examinations, gives excellent orthopedic surgical care to elderly patients as well as young patients, who undergo trauma. Dr. Smarajit Patnaik has special interest in performing complex joint replacement procedures, revision hip and knee replacement surgeries and advanced bearing surface hip replacement surgeries.
Photo Caption
Photo 1:
Dr. Smarajit Patnaik , Lead Consultant, Joint Preservation, Reconstruction & Replacement Surgeon, Apollo Hospitals, Bhubaneswar Photo 2:
Knee Pain Photo 3:
Healthy Knee & Osteoarthritic Knee 
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