It Takes a Village to Deal With Chronic Arthritis Pain

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It Takes a Village to Deal With Chronic

Arthritis Pain

Sun May 19,11:57 PM ET

The latest recommendation from pain

professionals is that the pain should be

treated with a multi- leveled approach

that includes everything from medication

and proper nutrition to exercise and

family and patient education.

The new guidelines, directed towards

health care providers, were unveiled by

the American Pain Society (APS) at its

recent annual meeting in Baltimore.

The recommendations range from standard

medication guidelines to some more

innovative ideas:

In cases of juvenile chronic arthritis,

emphasis should be placed on patient and

family. education

Cognitive-behavioral therapy could be used

to help reduce pain and psychological

disability and enhance pain-coping skills.

APS president Ashburn told the

meeting that the impact of chronic pain on

patients' lives extends far beyond just

the physical discomfort.

" Research shows that the under-treatment

of pain in adults and children can have

many serious consequences, including

physiological complications, such as

muscle breakdown and weakness;

psychosocial impairments, including

anxiety and depression; and an overall

decrease in quality of life, " he said.

When people refer to arthritic pain, they

could be referring to pain from the more

than 100 conditions that fall under the

generic term of arthritis. The most common

form of the condition is osteoarthritis,

which occurs with aging and is said to

affect eight out of every 10 men and women

over age 75.

The second most common type of arthritis

is rheumatoid arthritis (RA), with which

the body's immune system attacks healthy

joint tissue, causing inflammation and

damage. The condition is more common in

women and can appear between the ages of

20 and 50.

About two percent of all adult Americans

suffer from RA.

More information

The Arthritis Foundation always has new

material about managing the disease.