Exercise is one of the most important treatments for people with osteoarthritis, whatever your age or level of fitness. Your physical activity should include a combination of exercises to strengthen your muscles and exercises to improve your general fitness.
If osteoarthritis causes you pain and stiffness, you may think exercise will make your symptoms worse. However, regular exercise that keeps you active, builds up muscle and strengthens the joints usually helps to improve symptoms.
Exercise is also good for losing weight, improving your posture and relieving stress, all of which will ease symptoms. Your GP, or possibly a physiotherapist, will discuss the benefits you can expect from a exercise programme and can give you an exercise plan to follow at home.
It's important to follow this plan because there's a risk that doing too much exercise too quickly, or doing the wrong sort of exercise, may damage your joints. Find out more more about health and fitness including simple ways to exercise at home.
Being overweight or obese often makes osteoarthritis worse, as it places extra strain on some of your joints. To find out if you are overweight or obese, use the healthy weight calculator. If you're overweight or obese, try to lose weight by doing more physical activity and eating a healthier diet. Discuss any new exercise plan with your GP or physiotherapist before you start.
They can help you plan a suitable exercise programme for you. Your GP and practice nurse can also advise about how to lose weight slowly and safely.
Find out more about losing weight. Your doctor will talk to you about medicines to relieve pain from osteoarthritis. Sometimes a combination of therapies, such as painkillers, exercise and assistive devices or surgery, may be needed to help control your pain. The type of painkiller a GP may recommend for you will depend on the severity of your pain and other conditions or health problems you have.
The main medications used are below. If you have pain caused by osteoarthritis, a GP may suggest taking paracetamol to begin with. You can buy this at supermarkets or pharmacies. It's best to take it regularly rather than waiting until your pain becomes unbearable.
When taking paracetamol, always use the dose a GP recommends and do not exceed the maximum dose stated on the pack. Find out more about paracetamol. If paracetamol does not effectively control the pain of osteoarthritis, a GP may prescribe a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug NSAID.
They can be particularly effective if you have osteoarthritis in your knees or hands. As well as helping to ease pain, they can also help reduce any swelling in your joints. Your doctor will discuss with you the type of NSAID you should take and the benefits and risks associated with it.
They may not be suitable for people with certain conditions, such as asthma , a stomach ulcer or angina , or if you have had a heart attack or stroke. NSAIDs can break down the lining in your stomach that protects it against stomach acid. PPIs reduce the amount of acid produced by the stomach, reducing the risk of damage to your stomach lining. Also, the long-term benefits of these alternative sometimes called complementary or integrative medicine treatments are unproven but are under study.
Drug therapy: Forms of drug therapy include topical, oral by mouth and injections shots. You apply topical drugs directly on the skin over the affected joints. These medicines include capsaicin cream, lidocaine and diclofenac gel. Oral pain relievers such as acetaminophen are common first treatments.
In , the government FDA approved the use of duloxetine Cymbalta for chronic long-term musculoskeletal pain including from OA. This oral drug is not new. It also is in use for other health concerns, such as mood disorders, nerve pain and fibromyalgia. Joint injections with corticosteroids sometimes called cortisone shots or with a form of lubricant called hyaluronic acid can give months of pain relief from OA.
This lubricant is given in the knee, and these shots may help delay the need for a knee replacement by a few years in some patients. Surgery: Surgical treatment becomes an option for severe cases. This includes when the joint has serious damage, or when medical treatment fails to relieve pain and you have major loss of function. Surgery may involve arthroscopy, repair of the joint done through small incisions cuts.
If the joint damage cannot be repaired, you may need a joint replacement. Supplements: Many over-the-counter nutrition supplements have been used for osteoarthritis treatment. Most lack good research data to support their effectiveness and safety. Among the most widely used are calcium, vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acids.
To ensure safety and avoid drug interactions, consult your doctor or pharmacist before using any of these supplements. An MRI isn't commonly needed to diagnose osteoarthritis but can help provide more information in complex cases. Knee osteotomy Open pop-up dialog box Close. Knee osteotomy For some people, arthritis damages one side of the knee more than the other side.
Artificial hip Open pop-up dialog box Close. Artificial hip Hip prostheses are designed to mimic the ball-and-socket action of your hip joint. Knee comparisons Open pop-up dialog box Close. Knee comparisons One of the most common reasons for knee replacement surgery is severe pain from joint damage caused by wear and tear arthritis osteoarthritis. More Information Arthritis creams Opioids and arthritis Cortisone shots Elbow replacement surgery Hip replacement Knee replacement Shoulder replacement surgery Show more related information.
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