According to the recently published guidelines from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), glucosamine and chondroitin should not be prescribed for the treatment of knee osteoarthritis.

Glucosamine and chondroitin are nutritional supplements that are sold over-the-counter in pharmacies, grocery stores, and health food stores. The supplements have been thought to help stimulate cartilage healing and repair in patients with osteoarthritis.

The recommendations from the AAOS cite six randomized clinical trials that have investigated the use of these nutritional supplements, either alone or combined, that found no significant clinical benefit when compared to placebo. While no harmful effects of these nutritional supplements were noted, the AAOS advises that these supplements not be used in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis.

Sources:

Richmond, JC "AAOS adopts clinical practice guidelines on OA Knee" American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, 2009.

Trigger finger is a common problem that causes pain and snapping of the tendons in the fingers.

The name trigger finger is from the symptom of triggering or snapping. This occurs when relaxing a fist, the affected trigger finger remains flexed. When enough force has been gathered, the trigger finger will suddenly extend, like pulling a trigger.

The most common treatment of trigger finger is with injection of cortisone. If the problem does not resolve, a surgery to release the tendon may be necessary.

Related: What is a trigger finger? | How many injections of cortisone can I have?

A rotating knee replacement implant is designed to replicate normal knee motion. Some surgeons believe the rotating knee replacements may last longer than a traditional knee replacement. Whether or not the rotating knee replacements are actually better is still being investigated. Here you can learn more about rotating knee replacements...

Related: Knee Replacement | Knee Arthritis

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Pain is frequently associated with orthopedic problems, and proper treatment of the painful symptoms is one of your priorities. However, controlling pain is not always a simple process. Many patients are easily discouraged when their treatment efforts to control pain fail. So what options do you have.

The first thing to do is to understand pain is a complicated problem, and treating it effectively can take some time and effort. There are a number of options for medications that can be used to help treat pain. With your doctor, you can try to establish a regime to effectively treat your pain.