A Shot in the Knee
I think taking that bandaid off is going to hurt worse than the injection…
I know. I’ve missed the past two weeks. First I was on a little vacation in Vegas. I was still going to attempt to make a post, but that didn’t happen. Then, last week I was in the middle of St. Patrick’s Day shows with my band Banna, and wiped out from a bout of laryngitis. My whole focus was getting my throat better and I frankly forgot to post.
A couple of quick observations before I get to today’s topic: 1) I closed my rings every day in Vegas because it is a city built around walking, and we walked all over the place.
2) performing with Banna is another good way to close my rings. Even though I stay in the same three-foot radius on stage, my Watch counted me as traveling I think at least 5 miles per show.
Today I had the first of three TriVisc injections in my knee to help with the meniscus tear. I’ll get one a week the next two weeks. “TriVisc is from a class of products known as hyaluronic acid, sodium hyaluronate, or hyaluronan (HA), which is also referred to as viscosupplementation therapy. It’s used in a nonsurgical procedure that helps supplement the viscous properties of the fluid in your knee joint. TriVisc is approved for patients who have not adequately responded or have failed to find sufficient relief from simple analgesics, exercise or physical therapy.”
It is essentially a gel that is injected into the knee to provide extra cushioning.
The benefits can last up to a year in some patients, and usually at least three months. I’m looking forward to seeing how long it works for me. And it is fine to get repeated treatments, so again I hope this is something that will keep me away from surgery.
The procedure was fast, but I do have a thing about needles. My vasovagal response is strong, so I dug up some trade articles on ESPN and read them while the doctor stuck the needle in. There was a tiny sting, and then a little pressure. But not bad at all. Much less pain than the vaccines I’ve had recently.
I have to admit I was worried about how it would feel, and now I can say I’m quite relaxed about the next two injections. That is a big relief for sure.
Right now knee feels a little “full”, but that’s about it. And amazingly, the nagging pain I’ve been living with for months is already gone. I’m supposed to take it easy on it for 48 hours, but then can do low-impact exercise activities. Som yoga, elliptical, walking. I was advised to stay away from running and jumping though.
The weekend after my last injection I have a tournament, and I can’t wait to see how the knee responds. It will be a good test for the procedure right off the bat. I will revisit this topic then and report back on how it went.
