If Your Knees Are Shot, Shots Might Help
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iStock/Thinkstock(BOSTON) — Your aching knees could use some relief if you’re suffering from arthritis, which becomes more of a problem as people age.
Researchers at Tufts University in Boston looked at data from close to 140 studies to determine what worked best to ease the pain of arthritis in the knees and discovered that both painkillers and injections were better than placebos over a three-month period.
What they didn’t expect to find is that an injection of hyaluronic acid, a lubricating substance found naturally in the joints, was more effective than pill medication in helping patients feel less pain.
However, the Tufts researchers also learned that an inactive substance, basically a placebo, was also effective when injected into the knee.
Although they’re not sure why, the team, led by Dr. Raveendhara Bannuru, believes that just the idea of an injection into the knee joint provides relief in some cases.
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