Visit to the rheumatologist

You want to get a second opinion about your patient's condition, so you need to consult with a rheumatologist to ensure you offer appropriate care. 

Arthritis symptoms can be managed with the care of a general physician, but when the disease advances and the treatment options available from your doctor are no longer effective, you may need specialist care.

The rheumatologist can perform different imaging tests to your doctor if required. These include CT scans, MRI scans, x-rays, and ultrasounds which can help provide an accurate diagnosis.

Lab testing: samples of urine, joint fluid, or blood may be collected to perform further analysis. A blood test can help to reveal inflammation and infections. They may also test for specific genetic markers that increase your chances of developing osteoarthritis.

Apart from everything, you need to help your patient with her pain. So you give her both options for non-pharmacological interventions as well as pharmacological interventions and you discuss with her how to combine the two according to her pain levels and depending how disruptive is her knee pain becoming for her daily activities. This is very important for you, to ensure she understands how to use all available resources to self-manage her daily pain.