What's next for my painful ostioarthritis knees, beyond, "aleive"? i'm in pain, only 52yrs. young! 115 lbs, female, now stay at home. enjoy light home exercise to keep tone only & no knee stress. not on my feet a lot. dr. says, it's because of "over use"

There : There is no cure for osteoarthritis, so treatments are aimed at relieving pain and maintaining joint mobility. -for acute injury, follow the "rice" treatment which stands for rest, ice, compression, and elevation -using a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) such as alieve (naproxen), or Motrin (ibuprofen) is one of the more effective things you can do since it treats pain and inflammation in the joint. -you can also use tylenol (acetaminophen) for pain control, but it will not help with inflammation -consider working with a physical therapist who can teach you exercises to strengthen the muscles around the joint which can help prevent future injury -consider working with an occupational therapist who can evaluate your day-to-day life and see where you might be stressing the injured joint and how to avoid it. -consider a knee brace if your pain is worsening instead of improving, call your doctor. If your pain becomes more chronic, you should see an orthopedic doctor to discuss more long-term options such as steroid injections or lubrication injections into the joint or surgery.

Manage OA: Progression of OA can be generally minimized by losing weight, performing light weight training and low impact cardiovascular exercise (elliptical, exercise bike, swimming). Glucosamine and chondroitin supplementation can help to rebuild lost cartilage as well. If none of this works, you might be a candidate for some operative procedure.