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While the COVID-19 pandemic dominates the headlines and, of course, continues to change our lives, but the calendar has changed to May, which is Arthritis Awareness Month. So let's talk a little bit about those aches and pains and what you can do about them.

Let's start with the basics - what is arthritis and do your aches and pains indicate arthritis? According to Dr. Adrienne Hollander, a rheumatologist with Virtua Health, osteoarthritis is usually found in the hands, thumbs, knees, hips and back and symptoms include:

You can get details on those symptoms and possible treatment on the Virtua website.

If so, the problem may not be arthritis, but trigger finger.

According toDr. Andrew Sattel, a Virtua hand surgeon, you don't need to shoot a gun to get trigger finger. It's a common hand condition that affects all kinds of people, and it's easily treated. Symptoms are usually worse in the morning and include finger stiffness and a popping or clicking sensation as you bend your finger.

Learn all about the symptoms and treatment for trigger finger here.

Speaking of your hand, do you have pain in your thumb? According to Dr. Eric Strauss, a Virtua hand surgeon, that could indicate basal thumb arthritis. He said it's important that you know you don't have to "just deal with it." This condition is treatable through conservative management, and in advanced cases, surgery.

Basal thumb arthritis is common in women age 40 and older, but men also are affected.

Learn about the symptoms and treatments for basal thumb arthritis here.

If you know you have arthritis, you should know that there are ways you can ease your discomfort without medication or clinical treatments.

Sounds simple, doesn't it? Get all the details on how to use these five steps to improve your quality of life.

At some point, arthritis pain may require some over-the-counter medication. Finding them isn't difficult, but sorting through the seemingly endless options can be daunting.

Dr. Samuel Weiner, a Virtua family physician, said over-the-counter medication options aren't as complicated as they may seem.

"It can get confusing with the number of brands available on the market," he said. "But there are only four major over-the-counter pain-killing products - aspirin, acetaminophen, ibuprofen and naproxen. Each has a different overall effect on the body."

While each of the four major products has its own array of individual brands, Dr. Weiner advises not getting wrapped up in the hype.

"I encourage my patients to look for generics," he said. "Generic over-the-counter pain relievers are less expensive, and they are just as effective as the name brands."

If you're looking for more information on Arthritis Awareness Month, you can check out this website.

Virtua has created a COVID-19 resource hub that includes up-to-date information about the pandemic, changes to the health system's operating guidelines - including visitation, ways to connect with care - including a self-assessment tool, and the answers to frequently asked questions.

There, you will also find useful information such as:

All of these and many more can be found on Virtua's resource hub.

You can get news, information, tips, and guidelines for healthy living on any health or lifestyle topic that's important to you - by subscribing to Virtua's Good Vibes newsletter. You can customize the content to match your interests and receive a monthly email that will help you be well, get well, and stay well.

Read more from the original source:
Arthritis flaring up during the COVID-19 pandemic? - Patch.com

This entry was posted on May 7, 2020 at 7:46 am and is filed under Arthritis. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed. |