Arthritis Treatment

Medically reviewed by Joshua L. Hare, DO, Founder & Medical Director

What arthritis does to a joint

Arthritis is a broad term for conditions that cause joint inflammation, pain, stiffness, and reduced range of motion. The two most common types — osteoarthritis (wear-and-tear degeneration)[1] and rheumatoid arthritis (autoimmune inflammation) — can affect any joint in the body, including the spine, hips, knees, shoulders, and hands. At IPC, we focus on managing the pain and functional limitations caused by arthritis using a range of interventional techniques. Our treatments include intra-articular joint injections with corticosteroids or hyaluronic acid (viscosupplementation), genicular nerve blocks and radiofrequency ablation for knee arthritis, facet joint injections for spinal arthritis, and regenerative medicine options like platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy.

Symptoms of arthritis

Arthritis pain usually builds over months or years rather than arriving suddenly. Most people notice it first in the joints they use most — knees, hips, hands, or the small joints of the spine.

• Joint pain that is worse during or after using the joint, and eases with rest
• Stiffness that is most noticeable in the morning or after sitting still; in osteoarthritis this typically loosens within about half an hour, while stiffness lasting an hour or more more often points to an inflammatory arthritis
• Swelling, warmth, or a joint that looks larger than its partner on the other side
• A grinding or crackling sensation when the joint moves
• Losing range of motion — a knee that will not fully straighten, a hip that makes putting on socks difficult

Pain that wakes you at night, or that has started limiting what you do rather than just making it uncomfortable, is a meaningful change and worth reporting.

When to see a pain specialist about arthritis

A pain specialist is the right next call when arthritis pain is no longer controlled by over-the-counter medication, weight management and activity changes — or when those options are not tolerable. You do not need to have exhausted every alternative first, and you do not need to be a surgical candidate.

Consider an evaluation if joint pain has limited your work, sleep or walking for more than a few weeks, if you are relying on anti-inflammatories most days, or if you have been told you are "too young" or "not ready" for joint replacement and are looking for what comes in between. Interventional options — image-guided joint injections, nerve blocks and radiofrequency procedures — are aimed at exactly that gap.

A hot, swollen, intensely painful joint with a fever needs same-day medical assessment, not a scheduled appointment. A joint infection is uncommon but is treated urgently.

Treatment options for arthritis

The options below run from joint injections and viscosupplementation through to nerve blocks and radiofrequency ablation. Which one fits depends on which joint is involved, what your imaging shows, and what you have already tried.

References

Clinical sources for this page.

1. National Library of Medicine, MedlinePlus. Osteoarthritis. Back to first citation ↑