“Can hot oil massage help in managing my mother's knee pain better?”

Thank you for this question I appreciate the question and from what I read you indicate that your mother has very severe knee arthritis, most likely osteoarthritis Osteoarthritis is a condition where the cartilage breaks down and over a long period of time there can be the development of joint deformity and or severe pain and or difficulty walking We indicate that treatment for osteoarthritis is symptom based, meaning that we unfortunately do not have a way to stop the arthritis Traditional recommendations include acetaminophen, physical therapy, topical diclofenac which can be rubbed into the knee regions 3 times daily, steroid injections, and possibly water called intra-articular hyaluronic acid injections Anything applied locally to a painful region may be of benefit, whether hot or cold Hot oil massage is a treatment that does not have any clear-cut scientific evidence From my standpoint, massage may be helpful to the muscles above the knee as these muscles are very important to getting up and down, especially in someone with knee arthritis I hope this helps and I wish your mother well Dr O