As we humans live longer, we’re more prone to wear-and-tear and degenerative issues, and these usually show up in our joints first. By the numbers, more than 92 million Americans have diagnosed arthritis or arthritis-like symptoms, which boil down to joint pain and inflammation.
On a larger scale, a new study reports that by 2050, a whopping 1 billion people around the world will have osteoarthritis.
As musculoskeletal and pain management experts, our team here at Pain Medicine Consultants has a good deal of experience helping patients find relief for their achy joints. So, if you’re struggling with arthritis, read on to learn about some strategies to help you move more freely and comfortably again.
The first thing to understand about arthritis is that it's an umbrella term for a wide range of issues that lead to joint pain and inflammation. In reality, there are more than 100 different types of arthritis that are broken into different categories, including:
For our purposes, we’re going to focus on the more common types of arthritis — OA and other forms of wear-and-tear in your joints, such as post-injury arthritis.
The second most important thing to understand about arthritis, in all its forms, is that there is no cure. That said, there are effective ways to relieve achy joints, such as:
In the early stages of arthritis, you can take nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications that work on both the joint pain and inflammation. We also recommend hot and cold therapies — heat for soothing aching joints and ice for reducing inflammation.
If your joint pain is moderate to severe, we can administer some highly effective joint injections, such as corticosteroid injections and viscosupplementation (hyaluronic acid) injections, which work well for knees.
We also offer regenerative therapies, such as platelet-rich plasma injections, which can help repair damaged joints.
Once we make you more comfortable and you can move around more comfortably, it’s important to keep moving. Not only do we encourage exercise, but targeted physical therapy (PT) can be incredibly effective in halting or slowing the wear-and-tear in your joints.
With PT, the focus is on strengthening the muscles that support your joints and helping you to maintain range of motion.
Aside from moving more, it’s also a very good idea to shed any excess pounds you’re carrying. Your joints are designed for a set amount of weight. When you exceed that, you speed up the degeneration.
In fact, the study we referenced earlier about 1 billion people having OA by 2050 cites obesity as the primary driver of this alarming number.
As you can see, there are plenty of ways in which you can relieve achy joints, and we invite you to come see us so that we can devise the best arthritis treatment plan for your needs and goals.
To get that ball rolling, please contact us at one of our offices in Pleasant Hill, Corte Madera, or Pleasanton, California, to schedule a consultation today.
