Knee Injury

What are the signs of a knee injury?

Knee injury symptoms vary greatly depending on which part of the knee is injured and the severity of the injury. Common signs of knee injuries include:

• Knee pain
• Swelling
• Bruising
• Stiffness or decreased range of motion
• Feeling like your knee may give out or buckle
• Inability to bear weight
• Popping, clicking, locking, or grinding in the knee

Some knee injuries are medical emergencies and require surgery to return your knee to normal function again. However, most cases of knee pain respond well to conservative treatments and rest.

When should I see an orthopedic surgeon for my knee injury?

Dr. Pietropaoli recommends scheduling a consultation and exam if you’re experiencing severe knee pain or dysfunction or have a history of mild to moderate knee pain for several months. 

If you’ve tried conservative therapies like anti-inflammatory medications or physical therapy without success, a consultation is warranted.

Do I need surgery for my knee injury?

Most cases of knee injuries don’t require surgery. Common causes of knee injuries that can benefit from conservative, nonsurgical care include:

• Tendinitis
• Runner’s or jumper’s knee
• Bursitis
• Arthritis
• Ligament sprains
• Muscle strains

If your symptoms are severe or getting worse, Dr. Pietropaoli may recommend arthroscopy or another minimally invasive procedure to address your concerns. Dr. Pietropaoli recommends surgery when conservative measures haven’t given you enough relief to return to sports or your normal daily life.

Conditions that can benefit from surgery include:

• ACL, PCL, MCL and LCL tears
• Quadriceps or patellar tendon tears
• Meniscus tears
• Stress/microfractures
• Cartilage damage
• Severe arthritis

Dr. Pietropaoli aims for “Knee Repair, Not Knee Replacement ™”, whenever possible. He offers a unique type of surgery called the Subchondroplasty® biologic internal fixation procedure for subchondral stress/microfracture bone defects, sometimes called bone marrow lesions (BML).

What is Subchondroplasty?

The Subchondroplasty Procedure is a minimally invasive surgical procedure to treat BML, or injured areas of bony tissue “soft spots” located underneath the cartilage in your knee joint. BML develop due to trauma or as a stress response to wear-and-tear or overuse of the joint.

BMLs don’t often heal on their own, so Dr. Pietropaoli offers Subchondroplasty and other forms of biologic internal fixation to address the chronic pain that can be caused by these lesions. Once he’s located your BML via MRI, Dr. Pietropaoli determines the best approach for the procedure.

Dr. Pietropaoli is the first and exclusive surgeon to perform this surgery in the Central New York area.  He has performed hundreds of these surgeries and travels the country training other surgeons on how to perform this procedure.  With the patient under general anesthesia and feeling no pain, using fluoroscopy to visualize the area, Dr. Pietropaoli inserts a small hollow drill through your skin and into the bone where  the lesion is located. He fills the lesion with a calcium phosphate bone substitute material to fill the BML/”soft spot” to reinforce it, strengthening and allowing a biologic scaffolding for your body to replace it with your own new, stronger bone.  A minimally invasive arthroscopy is also performed at the same time to take care of any problems inside the knee joint itself.

For an in-person or telemedicine consultation for your knee pain or injury, call the office or schedule a visit online.