ioveraº Cold Therapy

Orthopedic Associates is committed to preventing or avoiding the need for opioids whenever possible. Board-certified experts Katie E. House, F.N.P.-C., and Ryan T. Pitts, M.D., offer iovera°, a form of cryoanalgesia and alternative way to decrease your pain after surgery or as an option for patients who are unable to have surgery.  

iovera° is a targeted cold therapy treatment that provides immediate, long-lasting knee pain relief without medication. It uses your body’s natural response to cold to block pain signals before and after surgery.

How Does It Work?

Katie House, F.N.P.-C., has undergone specialized training to use a small device and ultrasound guidance to generate a targeted cold zone in the treatment area. This will be cold enough to temporarily stop the nerve signal without damaging surrounding tissue. Once the nerve is blocked using this technique, it will provide pain relief until the nerve regenerates, which is typically 2 to 4 months.

Cold therapy ioveraº treatment is a minimally invasive outpatient procedure, so you will be able to go home right after your treatment.

Benefits of ioveraº

For knee replacement patients, undergoing iovera° treatment can offer the following benefits:

  • Decreases or eliminates the need for opioid prescriptions after surgery
  • Leads to a faster recovery and faster return of knee function
  • Significantly decreases postsurgical pain

Who Is ioveraº For?

ioveraº treatment is ideal for patients who want to:

  • Decrease pain around the time of knee replacement
  • Block nerves from sending pain signals
  • Speed up recovery

The ioveraº treatment is NOT for patients with any of the following conditions:

  • Pain related to the central nervous system
  • Cryoglobulinemia, where blood thickens due to cold exposure
  • Paroxysmal cold hemoglobinuria, which involves blood in the urine with cold exposure
  • Cold urticaria, or a condition that leads to a skin rash due to cold exposure
  • Raynaud’s disease, which is characterized by narrowed blood vessels in the feet and/or hands with cold exposure
  • Open or infected wound(s) in or around the site of treatment

To learn more about freezing out your knee pain, please call (314) 569-0616 or request an appointment online.