What You Can Do If You Have Arthritis Pain

What You Can Do If You Have Arthritis Pain
If you were to ask the average person what it means to have
rheumatoid arthritis or RA, they would probably think first
of deformed joints and pain. Modern therapies have greatly
reduced the amount of joint damage for the vast majority of
patients, but pain is still an issue. Some medications take
considerable time to work and pain control is important
early on as well as during flares.

Of course, the best treatment for pain is eliminating the
cause of it. In the case of RA, this means controlling the
disease and the underlying inflammation. Doing this reduces
pain and reduces damage that leads to chronic pain. For
about 90% of RA patients, good control of RA symptoms means
good pain relief as well. However, that still leaves the
newly diagnosed and the unfortunate 10% in need of
analgesics and other pain control measures.

Acute pain is usually treated with traditional analgesics
including opiates like those found in codeine, hydrocodone
and morphine to name a few. Less severe pain may be treated
with over the counter medications and also by the use of
NSAIDs or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. These are
the drugs like ibuprofen, naproxen, diclofenac, piroxicam,
Celebrex and the like. These have the advantage of treating
the inflammation itself as well as relieving pain and may
be used as part of the protocol of treatment. They have the
disadvantage of irritation of the digestive system and even
blood loss or ulcers as a result.

Ordinary acetaminophen can be used for mild pain in RA and
other conditions. While it is easier on the stomach, it
does not treat inflammation itself. It might be chosen, for
example, in a pregnant patient for whom other drugs might
be inappropriate.

Steroidal drugs also can ease pain by controlling
inflammation. Prednisone and other steroids can be given by
mouth and are sometimes injected directly into an affected
joint to treat inflammation directly. Such injections may
also have a local anesthetic included and provide extra
pain relief. Local anesthetics are also used to inject
"trigger points" in select patients but are more common in
other rheumatic illnesses such as fibromyalgia.

Since RA pain may become chronic, complementary and
alternative therapies may also be added. Physical therapy
and occupational therapy can help a patient to be more
comfortable and may use assistive devices such as TENS
units to control pain without drugs. Some physicians employ
herbal remedies and nutritional supplements such as fish
oils to help control pain. Others may refer patients for
chiropractic treatments or acupuncture.

When pain is a large part of an RA patient's case, a visit
to a pain specialist is usually set up to get the best pain
control with the best quality of life. Pain is a relative
for some RA patients but it can be managed with the right
combination of therapies for virtually everyone.

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There are many online articles about arthritis symptoms and
treatments at http://www.arthritiscures.us
Learn more about Rheumatoid Arthritis:
http://arthritiscures.us/rheumatoid-arthritis/rheumatoid-art

hritis.htm
Learn more about Natural Arthritis Pain Relief:
http://arthritiscures.us/natural-arthritis-pain-relief/natur

al-arthritis-pain-relief.htm