Molly:

Yep, the leg presses are like "sit down" squats.  Just make sure you do little pushes when you do them (i.e. don't bend your knees too much).  Treadmill can be good because it is low impact.  Just make sure you don't put any incline on it and don't do it too fast.  Cartilage has no blood supply.  The way it gets nutrients is by absorbing them from the joint fluid (synovial fluid).  Think of cartilage as being sponge like.  When you walk (like on a treadmill) low impact, that actually probably helps it.  But if you do it too fast it is too high impact, and if you do an incline, that can cause too much stress on the ligaments of the knee.

Good luck

btw... one of best quadriceps strenthening exercises which gives no stress to the knees are straight leg lifts.  Lay down, put your hands under your buttocks palms facing down and have one knee bent with that foot flat on the floor (prevents back strain).  Keep head back and neck relaxed.  Raise opposite leg with knee straight until elevated.  Move it up and down slowly until you feel a "burn" in the thigh muscle.  Do the same number of repetitions on the other leg.  Repeat 3 times each leg.  Do this 4-5 days a week.  If you do this religiously, 3 months later you should start to know significant leg strengthening and lessening knee pain.

Molly:  You should be doing quadriceps strengthening exercises regularly, these are some of the most important ones to do.  OA (osteoarthritis) of the knee causes quadriceps dsyfunction which adds to the pain and instability of knee OA pain.  Ask your doc to refer you to a good PT to be taught how so you can do them on your own.  Don't do the knee extensions and hamstring curls on machines in the gym, they can be harmful.  Leg presses on a machine are good as long as you don't bend your knees to much when you do them.

Generally, low impact aerobic exercises to include elliptical, stationary bike, recumbent bike, and water exercises are all good choices to mix it up.

Good luck to you!

Dawn:  Firstly, there isn't anything called rheumatoid spondylitis (except back in the old days, like before 1960).  I suspect that he meant that you either had rheumatoid arthritis (for which Plaquenil is an accepted treatment for mild cases), or ankylosing spondylitis (for which Plaquenil doesn't work so well in most cases.)

Plaquenil is by far one of the safest medicines used for arthritis.  It is much safer than medicines such as sulfasalazine, Motrin, ibuprofen, naproxen, etc..  It "calms down" the immune system without actually suppressing it.

The eye problem scare is definitely blown out of proportion.  It stems from the days when much higher doses were used and it could deposit in the back of the eye causing blurred vision, but it was reversible with stopping the medicines.  Now, much lower doses are used and it is rare to get an eye problem.  It is mainly seen in those who have been on it for 9 years or more, and even not very common in that group at all.  As long as you see your ophthalmologist once a year, they'd notice something anytime you would.  You can also download an "Amsler grid" off the internet and use it monthly as double insurance.  It picks up any type of retina problem.

Otherwise, the vast majority of side effects are mild and dose dependent.  Stomach upset is the most common... goes away on a lower dose.

Take it, it is much safer than anything else your doc may use.  The bigger question is... will it be enough to control your arthritis?  It can take up to a year to work.

Good luck!

Hi there,

I actually had the set of three shots about 10 years ago for sciatica.  It probably bought me about 9 months, but I ended up having surgery which worked out fine for me.

Last year I had some bad neck issues and have had 3 sets of 3 shots for my neck.  The last set has not helped, so I am seeing an ortho surgeon in July.

I had the synvisc shots in my knee.  Those really hurt.  Did you have alot of pain with them?  They bought me some time but I had arthoscopy about 3 years ago.  It has helped, but it seems that both my back, knees and neck are all kicking back in.

Alice

Hi Briar Rose.....before my gastic bypass surgery in 12/2004, I too popped nsaids like they were M&M's. I was in constant pain.....and never felt any relief.  I weighed 330 lbs and had no cartlidge in my left knee.  I talked to a knee surgeon and my gastric bypass surgeon.....and decided on having the gastric bypass surgery first.  I did lots of reading and realized that the lighter I was....the less pressure I would have on my knees....which then would equal less pain.  One year after my surgery, I was down to 200 pounds and had my knee replacement. 

The lighter you become, the less stress on your knees and then the less pain you will have.  This August I had spinal fusion....and in a few weeks, I am having a minor surgery on my right knee.  

You can still take Celebrex with the gastric bypass.....but as you lose the weight, you will need in less and less. 

I recently discovered that I had a vitamin D deficiency which has probably caused some of my bone issues.

I too was hesitant on taking the pain narcotics that the surgeons prescribe. Knee replacement is very painful....more so than anything I had ever gone thru. For that month I was recovering....I was grateful to have the pain meds.  

You owe it to yourself to be healthy and able to move about.  Life is so much better when you can live it to its fullest.  Please dont let fear hold you back from being the healthiest you can be. 

Rose