Research is always ongoing into new and better medications for arthritis which is a very good thing. But where is all this leading us?
Of course we need effective pain medication for arthritis to enable sufferers to live normal lives. But are all these expensive medications controlling the disease or simply masking the symptoms?
Here’s a “quick and dirty” lowdown on what’s currently available both “over the counter” (OTC) and on prescription only.
For mild cases of arthritis -
Some milder cases of arthritis never make it into the doctor’s surgery. Indeed the sufferer might not even be aware that they are suffering from arthritis at all. They may be feeling a few “aches and pains” which they put down to old age or even the cold damp weather.
That may be all well and good, but even OTC medications can be dangerous if taken over a long period of time. The concept of “more is better” can also happen if the pain gradually becomes worse. This can lead to serious side effects.
OTC medications include aspirin and ibuprofen. These medications can cause intestinal bleeding and kidney damage in large doses. Aspirin also destroys vitamin C in the body leading to lower immunity.
For More Advanced Arthritis-
By this stage most people have consulted their doctor. Prescription medication at this stage normally consists of the Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAIDS. These do target the pain and inflammation of arthritis symptoms but have a range of side effects including stomach upset, abdominal pain, and ulcers.
People with high blood pressure, those with kidney problems and especially people who have heart problems are especially at risk with NSAIDS.
Enter the COX-2 inhibitors. These have been designed for people whose stomach problems cannot tolerate the above. Unfortunately the risks remain for chest pain, heart attack and stroke victims.
For Advanced Arthritis-
For those suffering extreme pain and swelling the medical profession brings out the heavy artillery - Corticosteroids. These drugs contain man made cortisone and can be injected directly into the affected joints or taken orally.
Long term use of these can produce sleep problems, weight gain, osteoporosis and loss of immunity. Also available to those for whom nothing else seems to work are Biologic Response Modifiers (Biologics). Biologics are derived from live sources, plants and animals and are not manufactured chemically. They are mainly used for sufferers of Rheumatoid Arthritis and are given intravenously or by injection. They can’t be taken in tablet form.
Biologics suppress the immune system which leaves people prone to infections. They are also very expensive and can’t be stored without freezing.
Also available mainly to Rheumatoid Arthritis sufferers are Disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDS) These work by stopping the immune system from attacking the joints. DMARDS may take up to three months to reduce symptoms but they do help to stop joint damage even though they can’t repair any previous damage.
Although these drugs are a boon to many, they work mainly at masking the symptoms of arthritis and can’t reverse the damage already caused. Most people thinks this is impossible, it isn‘t!
Natural treatments for arthritis do exist and can significantly stop some cases of arthritis, relieve pain and inflammation and in some cases, reverse joint damage.
Definitely worth a try!
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Assessing Arthritis
A faster, more precise way to measure joint problems may lead to improvements in arthritis treatment. Right now, most doctors rely on the way arthritis patients' joints look and feel during an exam to assess how effective their treatment is. But a new high-tech device gives them a better idea of what's going on under the surface.
Rheumatoid arthritis patients can have swollen, warm, or red joints and a very limited range of motion. Doctors say there aren't many ways to measure the inflammation.
But now researchers are testing a high-tech way to assess patients. A thermal camera measures the pattern of the skin's temperature. Patients with arthritis have higher temperatures or "more red" around the joints. A second camera takes a 3d snapshot of to get a better look at the joint. Even the smallest changes are easily noted.
Thanks to physical therapy and medication, doctors can offer a more precise way to measure joint problems that may lead to improvements in arthritis treatment.
Doctors say the cameras are also effective for assessing adult rheumatoid arthritis patients and may be useful for tracking other diseases like skin cancer and diabetes. Researchers say eventually, both cameras will be combined within one device, making it more convenient for regular use in a doctor's office.
Rheumatoid arthritis patients can have swollen, warm, or red joints and a very limited range of motion. Doctors say there aren't many ways to measure the inflammation.
But now researchers are testing a high-tech way to assess patients. A thermal camera measures the pattern of the skin's temperature. Patients with arthritis have higher temperatures or "more red" around the joints. A second camera takes a 3d snapshot of to get a better look at the joint. Even the smallest changes are easily noted.
Thanks to physical therapy and medication, doctors can offer a more precise way to measure joint problems that may lead to improvements in arthritis treatment.
Doctors say the cameras are also effective for assessing adult rheumatoid arthritis patients and may be useful for tracking other diseases like skin cancer and diabetes. Researchers say eventually, both cameras will be combined within one device, making it more convenient for regular use in a doctor's office.
Rheumatoid arthritis drug link to atherosclerosis
A leading rheumatoid arthritis (RA) drug could promote atherosclerosis in patients, suggests research from the Netherlands.
The study showed RA patients taking the tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha blocker infliximab had an increased atherogenic index and higher level of total cholesterol a year after treatment was initiated.
TNF-alpha blockers may add to the increased cardiovascular risk RA patients are known to have. Cardiovascular disease is more common in RA patients than the general population.
Under NICE guidance, RA patients are offered infliximab or the TNF-alpha blocker etanercept in combination with methotrexate if they have failed to respond to two other disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs including methotrexate.
For the study, plasma lipoprotein concentrations were assessed in 55 RA patients and 55 controls, showing no differences between the groups' lipid profiles.
RA patients had a disease activity score above 3.2 and were starting therapy with infliximab.
At one year, 31 RA patients were reassessed for lipid profile. HDL cholesterol levels were similar to those at baseline and the atherogenic index was 4 per cent higher than baseline. Total cholesterol had increased from 5.55 mmol/l to 6.01 mmol/l.
The study showed RA patients taking the tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha blocker infliximab had an increased atherogenic index and higher level of total cholesterol a year after treatment was initiated.
TNF-alpha blockers may add to the increased cardiovascular risk RA patients are known to have. Cardiovascular disease is more common in RA patients than the general population.
Under NICE guidance, RA patients are offered infliximab or the TNF-alpha blocker etanercept in combination with methotrexate if they have failed to respond to two other disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs including methotrexate.
For the study, plasma lipoprotein concentrations were assessed in 55 RA patients and 55 controls, showing no differences between the groups' lipid profiles.
RA patients had a disease activity score above 3.2 and were starting therapy with infliximab.
At one year, 31 RA patients were reassessed for lipid profile. HDL cholesterol levels were similar to those at baseline and the atherogenic index was 4 per cent higher than baseline. Total cholesterol had increased from 5.55 mmol/l to 6.01 mmol/l.
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
Studies show chondroitin does nothing for arthritis pain
In another blow to those who swear by chondroitin for arthritis pain, an analysis of 20 studies found no evidence that the popular supplement prevents or reduces joint pain.
"We do not have evidence to suggest that chondroitin has a clinically relevant effect on patients' pain," says author Peter Juni, head of clinical epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of Bern in Switzerland.
Chondroitin is believed to help draw fluid into the cartilage, making it more flexible.
The paper comes a little more than a year after a major 16-site, $14 million National Institutes of Health study found no clear proof that the popular supplement combo glucosamine and chondroitin reduces joint pain.
The U.S. consumer market for glucosamine and chondroitin pills, almost always sold in combination, was $810 million in 2005, says Katja Rauhala, research manager with the Nutrition Business Journal.
The study was published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The researchers analyzed chondroitin studies dating to 1970. The 20 clinical trials they studied included 3,846 patients. But early studies tended to involve small numbers of patients and were poorly designed, without proper documentation and analysis, Juni says.
For that reason, the researchers excluded all but three studies from their analysis. Those three were large, recent and well designed and together cover 40 percent of all the patients in the 20 trials.
After examining those studies, the Swiss researchers concluded that there is no evidence that chondroitin is unsafe, but also none to suggest that it helps diminish joint pain.
As to why so many patients swear by chondroitin as a treatment, Juni suggests that osteoarthritis — the degenerative joint disease seen especially in older people — is a condition that does not progress invariably toward more severe symptoms.
"You tend to have severe symptoms, and then you get better again," he says. "And if you happen to start chondroitin at the moment of severe disease and then it gets better, you might be convinced that it's the drug, but it's actually the body (healing)."
In an accompanying editorial in the journal, David Felson, an osteoarthritis expert at Boston University, says that despite the findings, some patients are convinced that chondroitin helps, and he believes there's no "harm in encouraging them to continue taking it as long as they perceive a benefit."
Frequent knee pain affects about 25 percent of adults, half of whom are estimated to have arthritis, Felson says.
One thing the study did not rule out is the possibility that chondroitin may lessen pain in patients with less severe arthritis. The most credible studies tended to include patients with more severe arthritis, Juni says.
Andrew Shao, vice president of scientific and regulatory affairs with the Council for Responsible Nutrition, a supplement industry group, says he doesn't think the analysis was fair in the criteria it used to exclude numerous studies that found chondroitin beneficial.
"Consumers speak with their wallets," Shao says. "This is not some kind of fad. Consumers are finding benefit from the drug."
"We do not have evidence to suggest that chondroitin has a clinically relevant effect on patients' pain," says author Peter Juni, head of clinical epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of Bern in Switzerland.
Chondroitin is believed to help draw fluid into the cartilage, making it more flexible.
The paper comes a little more than a year after a major 16-site, $14 million National Institutes of Health study found no clear proof that the popular supplement combo glucosamine and chondroitin reduces joint pain.
The U.S. consumer market for glucosamine and chondroitin pills, almost always sold in combination, was $810 million in 2005, says Katja Rauhala, research manager with the Nutrition Business Journal.
The study was published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The researchers analyzed chondroitin studies dating to 1970. The 20 clinical trials they studied included 3,846 patients. But early studies tended to involve small numbers of patients and were poorly designed, without proper documentation and analysis, Juni says.
For that reason, the researchers excluded all but three studies from their analysis. Those three were large, recent and well designed and together cover 40 percent of all the patients in the 20 trials.
After examining those studies, the Swiss researchers concluded that there is no evidence that chondroitin is unsafe, but also none to suggest that it helps diminish joint pain.
As to why so many patients swear by chondroitin as a treatment, Juni suggests that osteoarthritis — the degenerative joint disease seen especially in older people — is a condition that does not progress invariably toward more severe symptoms.
"You tend to have severe symptoms, and then you get better again," he says. "And if you happen to start chondroitin at the moment of severe disease and then it gets better, you might be convinced that it's the drug, but it's actually the body (healing)."
In an accompanying editorial in the journal, David Felson, an osteoarthritis expert at Boston University, says that despite the findings, some patients are convinced that chondroitin helps, and he believes there's no "harm in encouraging them to continue taking it as long as they perceive a benefit."
Frequent knee pain affects about 25 percent of adults, half of whom are estimated to have arthritis, Felson says.
One thing the study did not rule out is the possibility that chondroitin may lessen pain in patients with less severe arthritis. The most credible studies tended to include patients with more severe arthritis, Juni says.
Andrew Shao, vice president of scientific and regulatory affairs with the Council for Responsible Nutrition, a supplement industry group, says he doesn't think the analysis was fair in the criteria it used to exclude numerous studies that found chondroitin beneficial.
"Consumers speak with their wallets," Shao says. "This is not some kind of fad. Consumers are finding benefit from the drug."
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
Arthritis sufferer in jobs campaign
A WELSH woman with rheumatoid arthritis is backing a campaign to help fellow sufferers get back to work after a survey found that a third of them lose their jobs because of the disease.
Figures from the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society NRAS show that 29% of sufferers were forced to give up work early.
And 86% of them had experienced or expected barriers to prevent them from staying in work from their employers.
Claire Tattersall, from Pembroke, first developed rheumatoid arthritis at the age of 14. Her symptoms were not recognised by her GP until she was in her mid-20s and she eventually had to give up work.
She feels the delay in diagnosis and consequently in treatment affected her ability to work and led to her losing her home. She said, “Getting drugs earlier would have helped keep my home, which was repossessed, as I would have been able to work and pay my mortgage.”
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The Working With Rheumatoid Arthritis Taskforce today launches its manifesto containing five recommendations to government to help many of the 600,000 people who suffer from this disease to stay in work.
Paul Emery, taskforce chairman and Professor of Rheumatology at the University of Leeds, said, “We are calling today on the Government to ensure that funding, access and support is made available for the newer treatments, in line with NICE guidance.”
Figures from the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society NRAS show that 29% of sufferers were forced to give up work early.
And 86% of them had experienced or expected barriers to prevent them from staying in work from their employers.
Claire Tattersall, from Pembroke, first developed rheumatoid arthritis at the age of 14. Her symptoms were not recognised by her GP until she was in her mid-20s and she eventually had to give up work.
She feels the delay in diagnosis and consequently in treatment affected her ability to work and led to her losing her home. She said, “Getting drugs earlier would have helped keep my home, which was repossessed, as I would have been able to work and pay my mortgage.”
Story continues Continue story
ADVERTISEMENT
The Working With Rheumatoid Arthritis Taskforce today launches its manifesto containing five recommendations to government to help many of the 600,000 people who suffer from this disease to stay in work.
Paul Emery, taskforce chairman and Professor of Rheumatology at the University of Leeds, said, “We are calling today on the Government to ensure that funding, access and support is made available for the newer treatments, in line with NICE guidance.”
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