Where to turn for knee care near Tempe

What to change on Tempe walks

Flat ground may feel easier than the downhill side of Hayden Butte. Try a shorter stretch of Rio Salado and turn back before soreness becomes sharp.

Tempe heat may lead to long breaks from walking, followed by too much activity at once. Return in small amounts and check your knee that evening and the next morning.

Where to go for the nearest clinic

At 1100 S. Dobson Rd., Suite 210, Chandler, AZ 85286, QC Kinetix offers regenerative treatments, its name for blood-based knee procedures. For PRP, or platelet-rich plasma, staff spin a blood sample until the layers separate, then put the platelet-rich layer into the joint with a needle.

McClintock Road becomes Dobson Road at the Chandler line, so the drive is direct from much of Tempe. From north Tempe, Scottsdale may be as close or closer.

What to ask when you call

Call (602) 837-PAIN and say when the ache began and which activities have changed. Ask which clinic has a visit time that works with your route.

The clinic calls platelet-rich plasma, or PRP, a natural pain treatment; it is prepared by spinning your blood. Ask about risks, cost, and whether exercise or medicine belongs first.

When to go to emergency care

Go to an emergency department after a major injury, or if your foot becomes cold or numb. A hot, swollen knee with fever also needs urgent medical care.

HonorHealth Tempe Medical Center has an emergency department on South Mill Avenue. Skip the clinic appointment when the joint or leg may be in danger.

Sources

1. The 2019 ACR/Arthritis Foundation guideline makes STRONG recommendations for exercise, weight loss in people with overweight or obesity, self-efficacy and self-management programs, tai chi, cane use, tibiofemoral bracing, topical NSAIDs, oral NSAIDs and intra-articular glucocorticoid injections in knee OA; radiofrequency ablation for knee OA is only a conditional recommendation.

   Kolasinski SL, et al. — 2019 American College of Rheumatology/Arthritis Foundation Guideline for the Management of Osteoarthritis of the Hand, Hip, and Knee.. Arthritis & Rheumatology, 2020. DOI: 10.1002/art.41142.

2. High-quality evidence from 44 trials (3,537 participants) shows land-based exercise reduced knee OA pain by an equivalent of 12 points on a 0-100 scale (SMD -0.49) immediately after treatment, with moderate-quality evidence for a ~10-point function gain; the effect attenuated but persisted at 2-6 months (SMD -0.24). No serious adverse events were reported in any included trial.

   Fransen M, McConnell S, Harmer AR, Van der Esch M, Simic M, Bennell KL. — Exercise for osteoarthritis of the knee.. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2015. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD004376.pub3.