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For a disease that affects 46 million adults in the US — nearly one in five people — arthritis is remarkably misunderstood. Many people believe it’s a crippling and inevitable part of growing old. But things are changing. Treatments are better, and plenty of people age well without much arthritis. People also tend to think of arthritis as a single disease. In fact, there are more than 100 different types of arthritis. And although they all affects joints, their causes and treatments can vary considerably.
If you have arthritis, you can take steps to protect your joints, reduce discomfort, and improve mobility — all of which are detailed in this report. Because describing your symptoms is so important for a correct diagnosis, this report discusses the variety of symptoms that may occur and which are typical of particular kinds of arthritis. In addition, you will find detailed information about diagnosis and treatment of the two most common types of arthritis, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, along with a brief look at several other types, including gout, pseudogout, and infectious arthritis. This report also includes information on established medical therapies as well as complementary treatments such as acupuncture, chiropractic, and massage. Because living with arthritis requires more than finding a drug treatment, a special section provides advice about how to care for yourself through exercise, diet, and useful gadgets. Millions of people must live with arthritis. This report will suggests ways to live well.
Prepared by the editors of Harvard Health Publications in collaboration with Robert Shmerling, M.D. ,Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Clinical Chief, Division of Rheumatology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston. 49 pages. (2009).
Living with arthritis can be disruptive and disconcerting. The pain and stiffness can make it difficult to perform the daily tasks that most people take for granted. Even things like putting on socks or cooking dinner can be exhausting. Therefore, if you have arthritis, it is important to take especially good care of yourself—to relieve pain, improve function, and cope with difficult emotions. In fact, the American College of Rheumatology recommends not only medication but also nondrug treatments for people with osteoarthritis of the hip and knee. These methods include weight loss, physical therapy, and complementary therapies, such as acupuncture and massage.
It makes sense that eating healthful foods, shedding pounds if you are overweight, strengthening your muscles, and learning to move your joints safely are helpful regardless of which form of arthritis you have and which joints are affected. Furthermore, paying attention to diet, weight, and exercise is important for preventing heart disease, which has been linked to rheumatoid arthritis and lupus. Physical and occupational therapy are already widely accepted by doctors. Meanwhile, complementary therapies, such as acupuncture, massage, and chiropractic, are emerging as promising treatments for osteoarthritis In addition, if you find particular chores or activities difficult, a growing array of assistive devices and tools have been designed to help. Following are some do-it-yourself strategies and therapies that can make coping with arthritis a little easier.
Heat therapy
In the 19th and early 20th centuries, wealthy Europeans embraced hydrotherapy (warm baths) and sought cures at exotic spas for real and imagined ailments. Most resorts claimed that the health benefits were from minerals in the water. The therapeutic value actually lay mostly in the water’s temperature. Heat raises the pain threshold and relaxes muscles. Hydrotherapy remains a standard part of the physical therapist’s practice, and its techniques can be used at home. A bathtub equipped with water jets or a hot tub can closely duplicate the warm-water massage of whirlpool baths used by professionals. Of course, over-sized tubs are expensive luxuries. For most people, the bathtub works nearly as well. Soaking for 15 to 20 minutes in a warm bath exposes the body to warmth and allows the weight-bearing muscles to relax. A warm shower can relieve the morning stiffness of ankylosing spondylitis and may help lessen the stiffness caused by other kinds of arthritis. People can upgrade their showers with an adjustable shower-head massagers that’s inexpensive and east to install. It should deliver a stead fine spray or a pulsing stream, usually with a few options in between. Therapists also recommend taking a warm shower or bath before exercising to relax joints and muscles. Dress warmly after a shower or bath to prolong the benefit.
A heating pad is another good idea, but keep in mind that moist heat penetrates more deeply. Although you can purchase hot packs and moist/dry heating pads, a homemade hot pack works just as well. Heat a damp folded towel in a microwave oven (usually for about 20 to 60 seconds, depending on the oven and the towel’s thickness) or in an oven set at 300 degrees (for again, this depends on the oven and towel thickness). To prevent burns, always test the heated towel on the inside of your arm before applying to a joint: it should feel comfortably warm, not hot. To be extra safe, wrap the heated, moist towel in a thin, dry one before placing it on the skin.
Sometimes therapists recommend a paraffin bath. You dip your hands or feet into wax melted in an electric appliance that maintains a safe temperature. After the wax hardens, the therapist wraps the treated area in a plastic sheet and blanket to retain the heat. Treatments generally take about 20 minutes, after which the wax is peeled off. Paraffin bath kits are also available for home use, but to avoid burning yourself, talk with your physical therapist for recommendations and cautions before purchasing one.
