Treatment Options for Arthritis

When you’re limited by or disabled by arthritis, it’s easy to lose hope in treatment. 

At Pain Specialty Group, board-certified pain management specialists Manuel G. Sanchez, MD, and Anh L. Ngo, MD, MBA, understand how debilitating arthritis can be, especially in its advanced stages.

Learn more about the different types of arthritis and how you can finally find relief from pain and other chronic symptoms.

The most common types of arthritis

Arthritis is a common and painful joint condition that can affect any of the joints in your body, especially your hips, spine, and knees.

While there are over 100 types of arthritis, two of the most common include:

Rheumatoid arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory condition that develops due to an underlying autoimmune disorder. The condition causes your immune system to mistakenly attack the healthy lining of your joints, leading to persistent inflammation, limited mobility, and chronic pain.

Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis is an age-related type of arthritis that develops when the cartilage that protects your bones begins breaking down and wearing away. Without this protective cartilage, the joint bones rub together, causing friction that irritates the nearby nerves and causes ongoing inflammation.

Both conditions can worsen over time, limiting the movements in your joints and becoming more painful. If you can no longer stay physically active due to the effects of arthritis, you should schedule a consultation with our experts at Pain Specialty Group.

Finding solutions for early arthritis

Your treatment plan for arthritis is based on a lot of factors. During an evaluation, Dr. Ngo and Dr. Sanchez take time to understand your personal and family medical history, your usual activities, and the nature of your job. They also evaluate the range of motion in your affected joints and the severity of your pain.

In the early stages of arthritis, you may find relief from pain through daily at-home exercises or physical therapy. You can learn ways to stretch and strengthen the muscles that support your joints and increase your joint flexibility.

Over-the-counter pain relievers and anti-inflammatories can keep you comfortable and help you engage in necessary therapeutic exercises.

It’s also important that you follow a good diet to make it easier to maintain a healthy weight. Being obese puts unnecessary pressure on your joints and can contribute to arthritis-related pain.

Treatment options for advanced arthritis

Arthritis is a progressive condition that worsens over time. While there’s no cure for it, with the right treatment, you can find relief from chronic pain and stay in control of your symptoms.

If you’re no longer able to find relief from arthritis pain with medications, Dr. Ngo and Dr. Sanchez can customize a treatment plan that uses innovative treatments like steroid injections to reduce inflammation or peripheral nerve blocks that numb irritated nerves surrounding the joint.

You may also benefit from regenerative medicine therapy that uses injections of stem cells to create healthy new tissue. Stem cells have the unique ability to regenerate into any type of cell, including bone, muscle, and nerve tissue. This healthy tissue replaces damaged tissue in the joint to provide you with long-term pain relief and enhanced joint function. 

Get relief from painful arthritis symptoms

If you struggle with the chronic pain or disability of arthritis, schedule a consultation with us at Pain Specialty Group today by calling our office or by requesting an appointment online. 

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