Reno Pain

Osteoarthritis

Best Osteoarthritis Doctors in Reno, Sparks and Carson City, Nevada.

Osteoarthritis

While it’s common to experience cracking or swollen joints after a hard workout or sitting still for too long, it’s not common to experience these sensations for an extended period of time. Joint pain could point to osteoarthritis. Conservative therapies can help to relieve pain symptoms, but work best when osteoarthritis has been diagnosed in the early stages. If not, pain symptoms can become severe and chronic. The Nevada Advanced Pain Specialists in the Reno, Sparks and Carson City areas offer all treatment options to help patients reduce their feeling of pain and soreness now, as well as avoid additional symptoms in the future. 

What is Osteoarthritis?

Osteoarthritis, also known as OA or degenerative joint disease, is the most common form of arthritis. It happens when the cartilage that lines the joints wears down, causing the bones to rub against each other, causing pain. Bone spurs can also form in the joint spaces, which can lead to pain as well. 

The main reason why the cartilage will break down is because of wear and tear, mainly from years of use and overuse. Cartilage is the tissue that is located at the end of each bone, which acts as both a shock absorber and as a lubricant, helping the joint to glide smoothly. In addition to wearing down from use, an injury or other health condition can lead to the degeneration of the cartilage. 

Thinned cartilage can lead to pain. In later stages of the condition, when cartilage has completely broken down, can lead to even more pain, inflammation and loss of mobility as this causes the bones to rub against each other when used. 

While osteoarthritis can affect any joint in the body, it most commonly develops in the: 
  • Hands
  • Knee
  • Hip
  • Neck (cervical spine)
  • Low back (lumbar spine)

What Causes Osteoarthritis?

There unfortunately isn’t one clear answer as to why osteoarthritis happens. What most researchers agree on is that it develops slowly over years of use. It could also be due to a combination of factors in addition to lifestyle, including genetics, the breakdown of the joint over time, as well as mechanical factors of the body as a whole. 

The most common causes of osteoarthritis include:
  • Age
  • Sports injuries
  • Falls 
  • Car accidents
  • Health conditions that affect the joints
Additionally, risk factors that increase a person’s chance of being diagnosed with osteoarthritis include:
  • Overweight/obesity
  • Gender (women are at a higher risk)
  • Muscle weakness
  • Repetitive and improper use of joints
  • Joint trauma
  • Joint instability
  • Diabetes
  • High cholesterol
  • Autoimmune diseases that affect joints

Most people will experience osteoarthritis on some level in the later part of their life. While most suffer from noticeable pain sensations or symptoms, not everyone experiences symptoms. 

What are the Symptoms of Osteoarthritis?

For those who experience symptoms, the most common symptoms include:

  • Pain 
  • Stiffness
  • Limited mobility
  • Swelling
  • Joint deformity

Pain is most often felt when the joint is being used, or quickly thereafter, and can last for several hours. As the condition worsens, pain can be felt regardless of movement. 

Who is Osteoarthritis Diagnosed?

The best way to determine if osteoarthritis is the cause of your pain is to partner with a trained pain management specialist who can accurately recognize your symptoms and provide you with a diagnosis. In addition to performing a physical exam, your provider will utilize X-rays to check for any changes to the joints, cartilage loss and bone spurs. 

They will play close attention to any audible or visible symptoms during the physical exam, including: 
  • Popping or cracking sounds
  • Joint deformity
  • Limited range of motion
  • Tenderness in the joint
  • Swelling 

If they believe that you have osteoarthritis that has been caused by an underlying health condition, additional tests might be needed. 

How is Osteoarthritis Treated?

Osteoarthritis is a long-term condition that cannot be cured, but that doesn’t mean that symptoms can’t be managed and ideally improved. Treatments can help to manage symptoms as well as slow the disease’s progression. Pain management specialists will most often exhaust all conservative and lifestyle changes before resulting in more invasive options. 

The most common treatments for osteoarthritis include:
  • Exercise: low-impact exercises like walking and swimming can help to relieve stiffness and promote range of motion by keeping the joints lubricated
  • Rest: if your joint pain has been caused by a mild traumatic event, a short period of rest can help to alleviate symptoms. However, rest is not recommended for long periods of time or for later stages of the condition. 
  • Diet: maintaining a healthy weight, or losing weight if you are overweight, can help to reduce the amount of stress placed on the joints. Exercising helps a person to lose weight, but also reduces symptoms as well. 
  • Physical therapy: a trained physical therapist can recommend specific movements and exercises that can help to both increase your strength and flexibility
Medications: over-the-counter and prescription medications can help for managing pain flare-ups. In the beginning stages or for mild pain, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and pain medications are useful. For severe cases of pain and inflammation, anti-inflammatory medications are helpful. Opioid-based medications are no longer a recommended form of treatment for alleviating pain symptoms, unless in extremely severe cases. 
  • Joint injections: steroid and hyaluronic acid injections have provided short-term pain and inflammation relief in certain joints in the body. A great benefit is that joint injections allow patients to more comfortably take advantage of exercise and physical therapy to treat the underlying cause of pain with the goal to enjoy long-term results.
  • Surgery: when all other conservative therapies have been tried and pain relief has not been found, surgery might be the best option. Joint replacement, arthroscopy (a minimally invasive surgical procedure that allows a surgeon to examine and treat joint problems), or an osteotomy (when bone is removed from the joint) may be beneficial, but these options come with associated risks and complications. 

If you are living with joint pain and would like more information about treatment options, please schedule an appointment today with the Nevada Advanced Pain Specialists in the Reno, Sparks and Carson City areas. Our team can help to determine if osteoarthritis is causing your symptoms, and can help to recommend treatment that both gets you out of pain and slows the progression of the disease.

Back Pain

Your comprehensive treatment plan will help you eliminate chronic pain and get you back into a healthy life.

Imagine if chronic pain wasn’t holding you back every day. We believe you should be treated the way we would treat our own mom or dad which is how we have treated our patients for the past 15 years.

Just follow this simple plan:

Back Pain

Request your
appointment at a
clinic near you!

Back Pain

Consult with your personal expert mental health team and develop a plan.

Find the relief and dignity you have been searching for.

Save Time, Recover
Faster, Restore Your
Quality of Life!

You can defeat chronic pain.
We can help.

It’s wrong to miss out on the best parts of life because of chronic pain. You don’t have to put up with feeling older than you are. We can help you regain your vibrant life again.

Award Winning Team

Because you deserve
a full, pain-free life

At Nevada Advanced Pain Specialists, we know that you want to get back to living a pain-free life. To do that you need a pain management team you can trust. The problem is there are so many pain clinics that do not listen to you and treat you like a statistic which makes you feel frustrated.

We understand your pain and suffering. We believe you should be treated the way we would treat our own mom or dad which is how we have treated our patients for the past 15 years.

 

So, request an appointment today. And in the meantime, watch this patient success story. So, you can stop struggling with pain and instead get back to living your life again.

Cervical Epidural Steroid Injection

We Look Forward To Serving You!

If you suffer from chronic pain, contact us today. We can help you get back on your feet with your personal comprehensive treatment plan.