I suggest taking the pain medication as needed for the pain in your knee. Norcos are specifically designed to serve for purposes like knee inflamation in the joints, and also for other pains in the body which are chronic. Taking aleve and other tylenol over the counter meds will damage your liver, and probably don t supply nearly half the relief as a small amount of vicodin would. If your doctor says you can t have surgery because of your age, this is rather bias and is a form of descrimination. If you are facing long term chronic pain for the rest of your life, and surgery is on the market; you should take surgery without a doubt. Ask for a second opinion from a specialist who has experience in the region of the body you are experiencing problems with. Bones and cartilage are a good area to start as far as what type of specialist you should seek advice from. You don t have to settle for one opinion, you can ask for a second opinion on any remark your primary care physician makes about a condition you may have or any pain you are experiencing. They should supply you with a referal to a specific type of doctor who can help you, or who can offer you more indepth insight if your doctor couldn t already do that. The truth is, any good doctor would research before making a hasty decision about surgery for a patient. If your dr. doesn t give your chart some thought and suggest letting him or her sleep on it, then chances are you are just a number that they have to care for in order to get paid by insurance or you. Feel free to seek a patient-advocate if you feel that your doctor is treating you with little respect to your person rather than your chart number. Good luck!