Aspirin and Related Drugs (NSAIDs).
Last updated Friday, May 11, 2007
Seeking professional adviceCan arthritis be treated by only taking aspirin? Many aspirin ads and commercials make arthritis sound as if it were
nothing more than minor aches and pains. The truth is that arthritis
can be serious, the pain can be extreme, and it can cause deformity
unless a careful treatment program is begun early in the course of the
disease.
Don't let advertising lead you to diagnose and treat yourself for
arthritis. There is much more to controlling arthritis than getting
"wonderful relief." Arthritis isn't something to fool around with. If
you medicate yourself and stay away from the doctor, your affected
joints may suffer damage that can't be reversed. Take arthritis
seriously and get proper medical help.
Do "special formula" drugs work better for arthritis than aspirin does? Unproven remedies
are treatments that have not yet shown that they both work and are
safe. They can include products, drugs, diets, and procedures.
Sometimes "special formula" medicines are promoted for the relief of
arthritis. Often these contain more than one ingredient, and the chief
one (the only one that may help the arthritis) is some form of aspirin.
These products may be offered at very high prices.
In addition, keep in mind that, because of the changing course of
arthritis, it may appear that an unproven remedy caused improvement.
The best guide to remember is to stay with your prescribed treatment
plan. It involves treatments that have worked and have been proven safe
in large numbers of people. Although some unproven remedies are not
dangerous, others can be very harmful. If you have questions about an
unproven remedy, contact your doctor. Seeking Professional Advice Patients whose joint pain persists despite aspirin or NSAIDs for joint
pain may have a serious orthopaedic condition. Older patients with knee
pain, hip pain, shoulder pain, or elbow pain may have arthritis, and
there are surgical options for managing this -- including minimally-invasive knee replacement, total hip replacement, shoulder replacement, or elbow replacement, depending on the joint involved. Younger patients whose knee pain persists despite NSAIDs may have a meniscus tear, which may be repairable.
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