Free Republic

In a nutshell * Steroid injections were associated with faster arthritis progression compared to no treatment or hyaluronic acid injections * Hyaluronic acid injections showed signs of slowing disease progression while still providing pain relief * Both treatments reduced pain, but only steroid shots were linked to concerning structural changes on MRI scans ============================================================ SAN FRANCISCO — Getting a cortisone shot for knee arthritis might provide quick pain relief, but new research reveals a troubling association: those steroid injections may be linked to faster joint damage over time. A surprising study found that patients who received corticosteroid injections showed more...

A clinical trial led by Monash University found that the common diabetes drug metformin significantly reduced knee pain in people with osteoarthritis and overweight or obesity, potentially delaying the need for knee replacements. Over six months, participants taking metformin experienced greater pain relief than those on placebo, offering a promising, low-cost alternative treatment. ======================================================================== Metformin may reduce knee pain in overweight patients with osteoarthritis, offering a low-cost alternative to early knee replacement surgery, according to a Monash University trial. A widely used diabetes medication may help relieve knee osteoarthritis (OA) pain in people who are overweight or obese, potentially delaying...

A cure for ageing sounds like something right out of a wild science-fiction film like The Substance. But scientists could now be close to making this a reality. Researchers from Osaka University, Japan claim to have found a cellular 'master switch' which can reverse the process of ageing. This protein, called AP2A1, could be the key to future treatments that will turn back the body's biological clock and undo the damage caused by old age. As our bodies get older, we build up a growing number of old or 'senescent' cells which stop dividing and functioning as they should. These...

Intermittent fasting may benefit antioxidant and inflammatory markers in postmenopausal women with rheumatoid arthritis, according to a study. Aryan Tavakoli and colleagues randomly assigned 44 postmenopausal women (with overweight or obesity) with rheumatoid arthritis to either following a 16:8 intermittent fasting diet or their usual diet. The researchers found that the intermittent fasting group showed significant decreases in serum malondialdehyde levels and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and increased catalase levels versus the control group. There were also significant decreases seen in the liver enzymes aspartate transaminase and alanine transaminase in the intermittent fasting group. "In conclusion, these findings indicate that intermittent fasting...

Turmeric has been a healing remedy in traditional Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine for centuries. It comes from the rhizome (root) of the Curcuma longa plant and has a warm, earthy flavor. Turmeric's active compound, curcumin, is a potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant with many health benefits, from soothing joint pain to enhancing digestion and immunity. 1. Arthritis (Joint Pain) Arthritis is a broad term that describes over 100 conditions that cause joint inflammation, pain, stiffness, and reduced mobility. Osteoarthritis, the most common form of arthritis, typically develops due to age-related "wear and tear." Other types, like rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and psoriatic...

It’s the cycle of life. Lifelong bicyclers may live longer, have stronger immune systems and are less likely to experience knee pain or osteoarthritis, than people who don’t ride bikes. Although previous studies have already shown several benefits of cycling, new research now shows that people who cycle regularly have significantly less chance of developing osteoarthritis by the age of 65, according to NPR. The study, which was published last month in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, surveyed 2,600 people with an average age of 64 about their lifetime exercise habits. All of the participants were at an...

Fenoprofen, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), successfully alleviated pain and inflammation in a rodent model of endometriosis, according to researchers. They chose the drug after using a computer algorithm to evaluate nearly 1,300 existing compounds for their ability to reverse gene expression related to endometriosis disease. Analysis by researchers using publicly available data from people with endometriosis, returned 299 candidate compounds with seven considered top candidates. These drugs included commonly used treatments for the disease, such as aspirin, as well as those not yet studied for this purpose. The researchers chose fenoprofen for further evaluation because it returned the highest...

A daily dose of baking soda may help reduce the destructive inflammation of autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, scientists say. They have shown that when rats or healthy people drink a solution of baking soda, or sodium bicarbonate, it becomes a trigger for the stomach to make more acid to digest the next meal and for little-studied mesothelial cells sitting on the spleen to tell the fist-sized organ that there's no need to mount a protective immune response. Mesothelial cells line body cavities, like the one that contains our digestive tract, and they also cover the exterior of our organs...

A faculty member and her colleagues have identified the means in which bacteria in the digestive system can break down tryptophan in the diet into an inflammatory chemical that primes the immune system towards arthritis. She says the research "builds upon some observations we had in patients with spondyloarthritis where changes in the microbiome were associated with increased production of indoles, which are what bacteria make from tryptophan." Similar changes were observed in arthritis studies involving mice, she says. "We found that when indole is present, the mice start to develop autoreactive T-cells that are more inflammatory. They have less...

Ibuprofen works wonders for your headaches, joint pain, muscle aches, and menstrual cramps, so it's probably no surprise that it's the second most common over-the-counter (OTC) drug behind paracetamol (Tylenol), according to a 2023 article https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36876700/ in the European Review for Medical and Pharmacological Sciences. You might get a prescription for ibuprofen if you have rheumatoid arthritis or osteoarthritis to reduce the pain and swelling from these conditions. Ibuprofen might also be used for psoriatic arthritis, arthritis of the spine, and gouty arthritis. Like other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), ibuprofen works by blocking an enzyme that makes prostaglandins that cause...

Researchers show that antibody therapy can be effective against erosive hand osteoarthritis. Using the antibody denosumab leads to bone remodeling and the prevention of erosive joint damage. This is the first evidence that erosive progression can be halted in this disease. While current therapies can alleviate symptoms, they do not address the structural damage in the affected hands. Recent research, however, suggests that people with erosive hand arthritis have other issues as well. Overall, their bones are thinner and they lose bone and cartilage as the condition progresses, even in bones and joints that are not immediately affected by the...

A new study has confirmed the effectiveness of JAK inhibitors in treating rheumatoid arthritis. The Japanese multicenter, retrospective study found high remission and low disease activity rates among patients, with the majority continuing treatment. This success highlights the potential of JAK inhibitors as a favorable alternative to conventional treatments, which often lead to reduced effectiveness and discomfort over time. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A new study published in the journal Rheumatology reveals that JAK inhibitors, commonly used to treat arthritis patients, are indeed effective. Despite initial concerns about their effectiveness, this multicenter, retrospective study conducted by Japanese researchers has shown impressive remission rates...

According to a paper, JAK inhibitors, which doctors have used to treat patients with arthritis despite concerns about the effectiveness of such drugs, actually do work quite well. In a multicenter, retrospective study Japanese researchers found that the drugs resulted in impressive remission rates in patients, most of whom choose to continue such treatment. Rheumatoid arthritis is a common autoimmune disease. The use of biological disease-modifying drugs enables patients to enjoy the achievement of low disease activity and remission. But clinics must administer such drugs through subcutaneous or intravenous routes, which is unpleasant for patients. Recently scientists have developed Janus...

The amount of environmental exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAH for short, is strongly linked to a person's risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis, suggests research. These chemicals, formed from the burning of coal, oil, gas, wood, or tobacco as well as the flame grilling of meat and other foods, also seem to account for most of smoking's impact on risk of the disease, the findings indicate. The researchers drew on the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) between 2007 and 2016. NHANES evaluates a wide variety of toxicants, along with data related to health, nutrition, behaviors and...

Painful, stiff or swollen joints are a common complaint among older adults, and for many, may be the first sign of arthritis - but the condition shouldn’t be an inevitable part of growing older as it can be avoided.What was once an easy run may feel tougher to complete. Or perhaps a challenging game of tennis might leave your hip or ankle sore for days. Painful, stiff or swollen joints are a common complaint among older adults — and for many, they’re the first sign of what may feel like an unavoidable diagnosis: Arthritis. In a 2022 survey of more...

Being overweight may be physically changing the environment within people's joints, as new research suggests that obesity is promoting pro-inflammatory conditions which worsen arthritis. In a study, researchers have found that specific cells in the joint lining tissue (synovium) of patients with osteoarthritis are being changed due to factors associated with obesity. Previous research has shown that fat tissue that has been metabolically altered by obesity releases proteins called cytokines and adipokines, which are known to promote inflammation around the body. The newly published study observed that in cells taken from biopsies of arthritic joints, obesity also changes the environment...

A large study of women with rheumatoid arthritis has found that those taking oral contraceptives or hormone replacement therapy (HRT) had a greater chance of achieving remission. The study revealed the following: Pre-menopausal women (those still experiencing a regular menstrual cycle) reported fewer RA symptoms than peri-menopausal (irregular or infrequent periods) or post-menopausal women with RA. RA patients using HRT or oral contraceptives in combination with the drugs prescribed for rheumatoid arthritis had a much greater likelihood of remission. Post-menopausal women, comprising 63% of the participants, of whom only 8% were using HRT, were less likely to achieve RA remission...

Two studies comparing injections commonly used to relieve the pain of knee osteoarthritis found that corticosteroid injections were associated with the progression of the disease. Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis, affecting 32.5 million adults in the U.S. Knee osteoarthritis is a chronic, degenerative and progressive condition with an estimated incidence of 800,000 patients each year. More than 10% of patients with knee osteoarthritis seek noninvasive treatment for pain relief through corticosteroid or hyaluronic acid injections. In the first study, MRI was performed on all patients at the time of the injection and two years before and after....

Abstract The trace mineral boron is a micronutrient with diverse and vitally important roles in metabolism that render it necessary for plant, animal, and human health, and as recent research suggests, possibly for the evolution of life on Earth. As the current article shows, boron has been proven to be an important trace mineral because it (1) is essential for the growth and maintenance of bone; (2) greatly improves wound healing; (3) beneficially impacts the bodyÂ’s use of estrogen, testosterone, and vitamin D; (4) boosts magnesium absorption; (5) reduces levels of inflammatory biomarkers, such as high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and...

Well . . . . . it has begun.I was told when I was younger that I would more than likely develop arthritis and now, at 74, My hands are quickly becoming sore and stiff albeit not RA type deformed. I have access to OTC pain creams and rather than ask about this one or that, what are my fellow FReepers using to keep their nimble fingers nimble.All orgamic ?Lidocain ?etc.Thanks