Rheumatoid Arthritis Pain Relief (Cont.)

 
Joint Protection
Using a splint or a brace to allow joints to rest and protect them from injury can be helpful. Your physician or physical therapist can make recommendations.
 
Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS)
A small TENS device that directs mild electric pulses to nerve endings that lie beneath the skin in the painful area may relieve some rheumatoid arthritis pain. TENS seems to work by blocking pain messages to the brain and by modifying pain perception.
 
Massage
In this pain-relief approach, a massage therapist will lightly stroke and/or knead the painful muscle. This may increase blood flow and bring warmth to a stressed area. However, arthritis-stressed joints are very sensitive, so the therapist must be familiar with the problems of the disease.
 

Long-Term Pain Relief

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic disease that may last a lifetime. Learning how to manage your pain over the long term is an important factor in controlling the disease and maintaining a good quality of life.
 
Long-term rheumatoid arthritis pain-relief options can include:
 
  • Medications
  • Other Products
  • Exercise
  • Surgery
  • Alternative therapies.
     
Medications
There are many different types of medicines that can be used to treat rheumatoid arthritis pain. Some of the different classes of medicines include:
 
  • Biological response modifiers
  • Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)
  • Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs)
  • Corticosteroids.

 

(Click Rheumatoid Arthritis Medication for more information on these different classes of medicines used for long-term pain relief.)
(Rheumatoid Arthritis Pain Relief Continued: Page 3)
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Written by/reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD