Arthritis is a joint disorder inducing inflammation, pain in joints and affecting the limited functionality of a person. It can occur in both adults and children. It is said that there are nearly 100+ types of arthritis identified. Arthritis can be caused due to an injury, abnormal metabolism, hereditary of osteoarthritis, bacterial or viral infections, repetitive activity, excess weight, and extreme work with joints or an immune system dysfunction.

According to reports, arthritis affects nearly 180 million of Indian Population. Treatments, operations, medications and many other options are available to get a relief from arthritis condition. People are concerned with long-term after-effects of pills and want to explore the alternative therapies. Know more about the alternative therapies in this article.

TOPICAL MEDICATIONS

Topical medications are ointments, creams, gels, sprays and patches containing active contents that are absorbed through your skin. Both over-the-counter (OTC) products and doctor-prescribed medications are accessible to treat the arthritic pain. OTC products contain sodium channel blockers like capsaicin, lidocaine, counterirritants, or salicylates to block the pain. These contents have individual properties like blocking pain signals, distracting the attention from the pain, acts as anaesthetics or anti-inflammatory agents. Prescribed products involve NSAIDs or lidocaine to reduce the swelling of arthritis and alleviate the sensational pain in the knee joints. OTC products provide local pain relief and NSAIDs are absorbed into the skin to the bloodstream.

Topical Medications are widely used by arthritis patients around the world to ease the suffering of inflammation, diabetic pain or neuropathic pain.

STEROID INJECTIONS

Some general examples of steroid injections are cortisone, hydrocortisone, methylprednisolone, triamcinolone and are to be given only by the medical professionals. A mild dose of steroid can give a pain relief to patients suffering from arthritis, besides reducing the inflammation and stiffness of joints.

Steroid injections have both benefits and risks involved post-injection. They cannot be used without a prescription and cannot be recommended to everyone. Steroid allows the doctor to treat pain by injecting it in the inflated or painful area and when given in ideal capacity under doctor’s supervision can also save the failure of a body organ. Oral steroids don’t have the surety of reaching it to the most-affected body part and also have high risks of side-effects.

RIGHT SHOES

When you make a healthy choice for everything you consume or use on your body, then why not for feet? Shoes let you be on your feet comforted and impact your mobility. Wrong shoes for patients with arthritic pain can cause further more damage to knees and joints. As we walk on our feet, the pressure from the ground passes from the soles of the foot into the affected area which can rise the pain.

Shoes with high heels are bad for everyone’s feet. Recommended heel height by experts for the shoes is two-inches and even totally flat shoes are not better. Good shoes are the ones which create less pressure on the cartilage and allow the foot to take its normal position. Shoes with arch support work well as they don’t allow the foot to flatten completely and shoes with a pointer or narrow fitting from the toes can create painful pressure on toes. Choose the best comfort level inside the shoes.

PHYSICAL THERAPY

Physical therapy or exercise has always been an effective treatment for reducing pain and strengthening the body muscles. For diseases like Osteoarthritis, Rheumatoid arthritis or chronic knee pain, exercises have always worked well if done appropriately. Doctor’s or physiotherapist’s consultation is necessary before starting any physical exercise, to do it in the right way and with right postures. Also, overdoing any exercise will not cure the pain overnight, but may increase the risks injury to knee joints. Physical therapy taken in an unapproved way can increase the pain, stress level rather than decreasing it. Physical therapy has additional benefits like the improved functionality of affected body parts, boosted energy and balanced mood swings. Do it right to feel fine.

HEAT AND COLD THERAPY

For years, heat and cold therapy are used for gaining relaxation and ease the painful condition. Both the therapies have healing power for arthritis pain. Heat therapy uses heat pads, heat patches, warm water bath, hot-water heat bag, hot wax as tools for getting a heat therapy. Heat allows efficient blood flow in the painful area; allows stiffened muscles to relax and release pain. Cold therapy tools like ice packs and cold compressions help in reducing inflammation while numbing the pain and lower the pain caused by injuries, muscle sprains, strains, stressful ligaments, et cetera. 15 minutes of each therapy can have great benefits, but for arthritis pain, heat therapy is advised extensively by specialists.

HYALURONIC ACID INJECTION

Hyaluronic acid is a fluid naturally present in the cartilage. To encourage it, Hyaluronic acid injection is used. It treats knee pain incited in Osteoarthritis condition. Hyaluronic acid works as a substance that provides necessary nutrient to the cartilage. It hydrates the aged skin, acts as a shock absorber in the joints and prevents the degeneration of cartilage. The cure after taking the Hyaluronic acid varies from person to person and is less effective for arthritis reached the highest level, but it has lesser side-effects over-all.

PERIPHERAL NERVE STIMULATOR

The peripheral nervous system carries the information from the brain to the limbs, also, carrying back the sensory messages back to the brain. When peripheral nerves don’t work properly the communication between the brain and nerves that help in mobility is disturbed. Peripheral nerve stimulation is a neuropathic modality where electrical impulses are directly delivered from a battery-operated device to the painful peripheral nerves through electrodes attached to the skin. This machine is a low-risk method to control the pain.

TRANSCUTANEOUS ELECTRICAL NERVE STIMULATOR (TENS)

A TENS machine is a small, battery-operated device using low-voltage electrical current. Electrodes are placed on the area of pain to deliver the electrical impulses inside the skin that travels along the nerve fibres. TENS machine helps in releasing the pain-relieving substances named endorphins, which are identified as natural pain-killing hormones and blocks the pain messages reaching the brain while reducing it.

ACUPUNCTURE

Acupuncture is the oldest therapy in the world which travelled from ancient China. This therapy is prevailed along with its belief.Acupuncture allows the insertion of needles on the painful trigger points and breaks the painful cycle of damaged tissues.

It is said that an essential body energy named ‘qi’ travels in the body through meridian channels. Meridians provide nourishment to tissues and any damage occurred in tissues disturb the energy flow of ‘Qi’. Inserted acupuncture needles help the energy flow directly and smoothly. Today, acupuncture involves the use of fingers, palms, knuckles, et cetera along with the traditional method of treating pain.

LASER THERAPY

Laser therapy is a non-invasive treatment for Osteoarthritis and Rheumatoid arthritis. Laser therapy increases blood flow, relaxes stiff joints and relieves pain involved in arthritis. The Laser reduces pain, increases b-Endorphins, the pain-relieving hormones and blocks the depolarization of Group C nerve fibres. Cold laser therapy is performed with the help of hand-held device on your knee and light passes through the skin to the tissues that improves blood circulation, boosts the regeneration of affected tissues and lessens the inflammation. The patient can feel a mild tingling sensation during the treatment and it can take more than one treatment cycle to get relief essentially.

The intensity, time-period, age, criticality of pain decide the modality of treatment to be applied. Different patients with various conditions need a suitable treatment and that can be decided by medical professionals more successfully!