How to Treat Arthritis Through Medication

Medication is usually the first step used to treat arthritis. In the past, the only medication available to treat arthritis was aspirin. While it worked to relieve the pain and stiffness of arthritis, it did nothing to slow down or stop the progression of the disease. It was also hard on the stomach. Today, however, there is a multitude of very powerful ways to treat arthritis through medication.

Instructions

Step 1: Try an over-the-counter remedy. If you have mild arthritis, this type of remedy may have a good chance of helping you. Aspirin, Motrin and Aleve are all anti-inflammatories you can get without a prescription.

Step 2: Use non-Steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) to relieve pain and reduce inflammation. NSAIDs are modern medicine's answer to aspirin, doing what aspirin does--only better. There are many different kinds of NSAIDs, so ask your doctor which one is right for you.

Step 3: Get on a remittive agent. Remittive agents are used to induce remission of arthritis. They often take a few weeks to a few months to work, but can produce extraordinary results. Methotrexate, Arava and Plaquenil are some commonly used remittive agents.

Step 4: Start using a disease modifying, anti-rheumatic drug (DMARD), such as remicade, humira and enbrel. DMARDs are typically used when other arthritis medication has failed or has stopped working. These drugs are given through injection or intravenously, working by stopping the inflammatory process at the molecular level.

Step 5: See if B-cell depletion therapy works for you. Researchers have found that the B cells in your immune system are the main culprits when it comes to autoimmune arthritis conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis. By administering medication to destroy your B cells, the mechanism for inflammation is removed.

Tips & Warnings

# Sometimes, the medication you use to treat your arthritis will suddenly stop working. This can happen even if it has been effective for years. If this happens to you, let your doctor know right away so he or she can start you on a new medication.

# Always let your doctor know whether you are taking medications for other conditions, using any over-the-counter medications or taking vitamins or herbal supplements. All of these can have negative interactions with certain arthritis medications. If your doctor knows what you are already taking, he or she can recommend the best and safest course of treatment for you, based on that information.