Joint Pain Relief: An Overview
Your knees, shoulders, and elbows are all large joints. Your
hands and feet contain many tiny joints. Our joints are used for
almost every movement we make. Half of adults over age 65 - or
more than 20 million Americans, endure recurrent or chronic
joint pain, stiffness, and sometimes swelling. Joint pain can be
so severe that ordinary daily activities of sufferers, such as
eating a bowl of cereal or washing one’s hair, become difficult
or even impossible.
For many years, treatment options for joint pain relief were
limited to two types of medications: acetaminophen (Tylenol) or
nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Both are
effective treatments for mild joint pain, and the latter reduces
joint inflammation too.
Recent medical studies show that sufferers themselves can
greatly improve their condition through exercise. Exercise
builds strength and flexibility, and toning the muscles that
surround the joint helps to stabilize it. Exercise can reduce
stiffness, increase blood flow, and aid in weight loss, which
takes the stress off of joints. Patients should determine a safe
level of exercise with their doctor, and together develop a
routine individually tailored to provide the optimum benefit to
the sufferer.
Heating pads, ice packs and topical creams, rubs, and sprays
provide short-term joint pain relief. For persistent, chronic
joint pain, injections of the steroid glucocorticoid can provide
relief for about three weeks, and injections of hyaluronic acid,
a substance naturally present in joints, can last up to a year.
Surgery may be necessary for patients with debilitating joint
pain. Surgeons may elect to realign the joint or completely
replace the damaged joint with an artificial one. Total joint
replacement can bring dramatic joint pain relief for many
patients.
Natural supplements such as glucosamine (derived from
crustaceans’ shells) and chodroitin (a part of connective tissue
from cow tracheas) may help alleviate joint pain as well.
Alternative treatments like supplements and acupuncture have
become increasingly popular in recent years, so much so that the
National Institute of Health is currently conducting research on
both to determine the effect they have on joint pain relief.
Results of this research may validate supporters’ claims or even
alter the prescribed course of treatment.
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