Acetaminophen: These relieve pain and fever, but don’t reduce inflammation (for example, Tylenol, Liquiprin, or Datril).
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories or NSAIDs: These relieve pain and fever and do reduce inflammation (for example, aspirin, Advil, Aleve, or Motrin). However, NSAIDs may produce side effects that, when combined with other health conditions like heart disease, kidney disease, or stomach ulcersdon’t make them the safest choice.
Another medication that has been approved to treat chronic pain, including OA pain, doesn’t fall into the above categories. Duloxetine (Cymbalta) is a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI) used primarily to treat depression and anxiety. But it is also used to decrease pain due to arthritis, fibromyalgia, or chronic back pain, as well as nerve pain due to diabetes.
If your joints are swollen, your doctor may prescribe an NSAID. If swelling isn’t a problem, they may give you acetaminophen. And if you have chronic pain, they may prescribe one of many prescription pain relievers, including Duloxetine.
Lubricating your joints with exercise
If you’re in pain, you probably want to stop moving, and it’s certainly advisable for you to rest your joints when you’re feeling achy. But too much sitting around can actually be the worst thing for you in the long run. Exercise is a great way to “oil and feed” the cartilage. Underexercised joints don’t get the lubricating and nourishing benefits of the in-and-out action of the joint fluid, so cartilage can become thin and dry, losing its resilience and capability to cushion the bones.
Include three types of exercises in your overall physical fitness program:
Flexibility exercises: You should do stretching, bending, and twisting exercises every day to increase your range-of-motion and reduce stiffness. Flexibility exercises help keep your joints loose and flexible.
Strengthening exercises: Weight lifting or isometric exercises should be done every other day to build your muscles and help keep your joint-supporting structures stable. These types of exercises help increase your muscle strength.
Endurance (aerobic) exercises: These should be done at least three times a week for at least 20 to 30 minutes each session to increase overall fitness, strengthen your cardiovascular system, and keep your weight under control. Brisk walking (especially up hills), jogging, cycling, dancing, swimming, and so on, all help to increase your fitness and capacity for exercise.
Protecting your joints through good alignment
Applying the techniques of body alignment, proper standing, sitting, walking and running, and correct lifting can go a long way toward sparing your joints from excessive wear and tear and protecting them from future injury. You may also find it helpful to wrap affected joints with elastic supports or take a load off with assistive devices, such as canes or crutches. Other joint-protective techniques include alternating your activities with rest periods, varying your tasks to avoid too much repetitive stress on any one area, and pacing yourself. Don’t try to do too much at once. (See Chapter 13 for more information on joint protection.)
Heating and cooling the pain away
Some people prefer heat, others cold, but use whatever works for you. Hot baths, heating pads, electric blankets, and hot tubs can relax painful muscles, while ice packs can numb the affected area. To avoid damaging tissues, just make sure you don’t use either method for longer than 20 minutes at a time. (See Chapter 10 for more information on physical therapy for pain relief.)
Taking a load off with weight control
If you’re overweight, your hips, knees, and ankles are probably suffering. Not only are they subjected to a force equal to three times your body weight each time you take a step, they can be pummeled by ten times your body weight if you jog or run! So that extra 10 pounds around your middle may translate to an extra 100 pounds slamming away on certain joints at certain times. And that’s only one reason why keeping your weight at an acceptable level is so important. (See Appendix C for more information on diet and weight control.)
Knowing how to help yourself
Strategies for pain management, foods and supplements that may help ease symptoms, positive thinking, prayer, spirituality, massage, relaxation techniques, and alternative healing methods can add to your arsenal in the fight against pain and disability. Don’t ignore their enormous potential to improve the quality of your life. (See Chapters 10, 11, and 15 through 19 for more information on these topics.)
Considering surgery
When you have a painful joint that isn’t going to get better, and the pain is seriously compromising your level of function and the quality of your life, you may want to consider surgery. These days, routine surgeries like arthroscopic surgery, cartilage transplants, and joint replacement surgery can make a huge difference for those who live in pain. (See Chapter 9 for more information on surgery.)
KEEPING OA AT BAY: MARK’S STORY
Mark, a 35-year-old television executive, had been a hotshot college quarterback in his younger days. But after winding up at the bottom of one too many half-ton pileups, his knees were shot.
“I was a sitting duck for those guys,” Mark says ruefully. “They just couldn’t wait to pounce on me, no matter what the play. After two years of getting hit over and over again, my body just couldn’t take it anymore. I was permanently sidelined.”
Sidelined from football, perhaps, but not other sports. Over the next several years he took up jogging, karate, fencing, and weight lifting. “I tried to do something every day,” Mark said. “But it wasn’t just because I wanted to keep in shape. I would get itchy if I didn’t get a certain amount of exercise on a daily