Arthritis Treatment: What Are the Options?

Arthritis is an umbrella term that includes a variety of different inflammatory joint diseases. This includes rheumatoid arthritis, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, and osteoarthritis, to name a few. Arthritis pain can range from being so mild that it is hardly noticeable to so severe that it is basically debilitating.

Arthritis Treatment

If you are one of the millions of arthritis sufferers around the world, then one of the biggest issues you are going to want to be educated on is arthritis treatment. These days there are many options when it comes to arthritis treatment, although all forms of treatment generally have the same goals.

This includes relieving pain and inflammation, minimizing the risks of therapy, providing education to patients and their families, preventing work disability and enhancing the overall quality of life and functional independence.

Medication

One of the most commonly suggested forms of arthritis treatment is based on the use of prescription medication. Analgesics are very popular, and these are drugs that work to relieve pain. This includes Advil, Motrin, Darvon, Tylenol with codeine, Percocet, Roxicodone, and Aleve.

Biological Response Modifiers are also often used in arthritis treatment, and these are substances that work by modifying the body's response to infection and disease. There are many side effects that are often associated with these drugs however and this includes everything from weakness, loss of appetite and vertigo to fatigue, diarrhea and vomiting.

Diet and Exercise

If you are looking for quick and effective arthritis treatment, one of the first and most important things that you can do is make some serious lifestyle changes. You will want to make sure that your diet is full of fresh fruits and vegetables and that you are drinking enough water, at least six to eight glasses a day.

Exercise is imperative here as well, and even if you are busy and can only find time to get out for a half hour run here and there, you are still going to be benefitting. Exercise is important for the treatment of any health condition, but with one like arthritis even more so. To keep your joints and bones from becoming even further swollen and inflamed you want to keep them moving and active.

Living with arthritis can at times be incredibly difficult and sometimes even seemingly impossible. The pain can get to be overwhelming and it is easy to get frustrated after trying several different methods to no avail. Just make sure that you keep a positive attitude and stay optimistic, in order to avoid becoming depressed and making your condition even worse.