General Arthritis Treatment
Arthritis is a joint inflammation which should be treated with various treatments available. There is no single treatment for treating arthritis instead there are various treatments available to relieve from pain and inflammation and improves the functioning of the joints. Some treatments provide short-term relief and some provide long-term relief. The treatments for short-termrelief are:-
- Joint protection – Splints and a brace can be helpful in protecting the joints from injury and allow them to rest.
- Medications – The person having general arthritis can reduce pain and inflammation by taking some pain relievers such as Tylenol, aspirin and some nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen.
- Massage – In this therapy, to increase the blood flow and warmth to the stressed area, the painful joint can be stroked or kneaded.
- Heat and cold – Heat and cold for arthritis depends on the type of arthritis. The person can take a warm bath or shower and heating pad can be placed on the painful joint to relieve from pain. An ice pack can also be placed on the sore area to reduce the swelling and pain. Cold packs should not be used if the person is having poor circulation.
- Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation – This device can be used for directing mild electric pulses to nerve endings so that pain can be relieved. This device blocks the pain messages to the brain and pain perception can be modified.
If the person does not get relief from the short term pain relievers then the person can use long term relievers to get rid of pain. Some of the long termpain relievers are:-
- Corticosteroids – These hormones can be given to the person by mouth and by injection which are very helpful in treating arthritis. The most common corticosteroid, Prednisone can be given to the arthritis patient by mouth to reduce the inflammation.
- Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs - These drugs include ibuprofen and aspirin which can be used for short term and long term relief for reducing pain and inflammation. Sometimes Celebrex can also be given to the arthritis patient.
- Biological response modifiers - These drugs include Remicade and Enbrel which are used to reduce inflammation in the joints which blocks the tumor necrosis factor and the immune system protein.
There are some more drugs such as DMARDs can be given, some exercises can also be performed and one should also try to reduce the excess weight so that pain can be reduced from the joints.
Sometimes surgery is also done to remove the joint or the joint can be replaced in case of severe pain. So, the person should apply the various treatments to get rid of general arthritis.
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