HealthDay reporter
TUESDAY, Sept. 13, 2022 (HealthDay News) — Joint pain is common for people over 50, experts say, but it’s still important to talk to a doctor about it rather than self-medication.
Now, a new survey from the University of Michigan has ended Joint painits impact on those who responded to the survey and how they chose to respond to this distressing condition.
Findings from the University of Michigan National Survey on Healthy Aging include that 70% of people over 50 experience joint pain at least occasionally. About 60% were told they had some form of arthritis.
Among those with arthritis symptoms, about 45% said they experience pain every day, and 49% said it somewhat limits their usual activities.
“If you have joint pain frequently, or it interferes with your normal activities, you don’t have to go it alone,” said Indira Venkat, senior vice president of AARP Research. The organization was a supporter of the survey. “Talk with your healthcare provider about how you treat your joint pain and additional strategies that may help you.”
About 80% of joint pain sufferers said they had at least some confidence in their ability to manage it on their own.
About 66% do so with over-the-counter pain relievers such as aspirin, acetaminophen (Tylenol), ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil) or naproxen (Aleve). About 26% reported taking a supplement, such as glucosamine or chondroitin. About 11% use cannabidiol (Convention on Biological Diversity) is derived from marijuana, while 9% uses marijuana.
About 18% use only prescribed non-opioid pain relievers, 19% get steroid injections, 14% take oral steroids, 14% use opioids, and 4% use disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs.
“There are significant risks associated with many of these treatment options, especially when taken long-term or in combination with other medications. However, 60% of those who took two or more substances to treat joint pain said their healthcare provider did not talk to them about the risks, or that they They can’t remember if they took them.Dr. Beth Wallace said 26% of those who take oral steroids have not talked with a provider about the special risks these drugs bring.She is a rheumatologist and researcher with the VA Ann Arbor Health Care System, the VA Research Center Clinical Management and Medicine of Michigan.
“This points to an urgent need for providers to talk to their patients about how they manage their joint pain, and the interactions and long-term risks that may arise if they use medications to do so,” Wallace said.
Guidelines from the American College of Rheumatology for in the spine More rare rheumatoid arthritis seeks to reduce the risk that can occur with long-term use or for those taking multiple medications that can affect a patient’s stomach, liver, blood pressure, blood sugar, mood or sleep.
Guidelines for osteoporosis, which can be caused by wear and tear, emphasize weight loss, exercise, and self-management programs with arthritis educators, tai chi, yoga, braces, splints, kinesiology planning, Acupuncture Or acupressure, cognitive behavioral therapy, and applying heat, cold, or topical pain relievers to joint pain.
For medications, the guidelines focus on short-term use of over-the-counter medications in low doses, along with injections of steroid joints in appropriate patients. They recommend that most other supplements, opioids, and medications not be used.
About 64% of survey participants with joint pain use exercises and 24% do it physical therapy. Far fewer non-drug options are used such as orthodontics.
Certain groups of older adults appear to be more likely to have worse joint pain, said survey director Dr. Priti Malaney, a Michigan medical doctor with training in infectious diseases and geriatrics.
“Those who say their overall health is fair or poor were twice as likely to report that they had moderate or severe joint pain as those who were in better health. The difference was almost as large between those who say their mental health is fair or poor than those who report for better mental health,”
“And older adults in fair or poor physical or mental health were more likely to agree with the statement that there is nothing a person with joint pain can do to relieve their symptoms, which we now know to be incorrect,” Malani said. Providers need to raise the issue of joint pain with their older patients, and help them create a plan of care that may work for them.”
The survey was conducted by telephone in January and February 2022 among 2,277 adults between the ages of 50 and 80.
more information
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on osteoporosis.
Source: Michigan Medicine – University of Michigan, press release, September 12, 2022
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