Courtesy of WJLA, ABC-TV in Washington, D.C. –
Hot sauce spices up your food and now Capsaicin, the thing that gives chili peppers their punch, is knocking out knee pain.At age 71, Ron Johnson said his knee is in better shape than it was in his fifties. “It was constant pain in both knees,” he said.
The spicy new treatment is part of a study using an ultra purified form of Capsaicin.
Dr. Charles Birbera injects it into his patient’s knees to relieve pain.”It allows the entry of calcium which de-sensitizes the nerve for a prolonged period of time,” he said.
Doctors said the nerves become overwhelmed and shut down, numbing the pain anywhere from several weeks to months.
“What we are looking at here is a very targeted therapy,” said Birbera.
Doctors said because Capsaicin pinpoints the pain, patients are reporting few major side effects except the initial burning sensation when first injected.
Patient Johnson believes in the saucy treatment, “If you can take it in your stomach, you certainly can put it in a knee joint.”
The procedure is not FDA approved and doctors are still studying how long the pain stopper lasts.< Link