Overview
Joint pain is a common symptom we all experience at some point or another. Painful joints can have a significant impact on quality of life and the ability to do daily activities.
There are numerous causes of joint pain, and treatment for joint pain can depend on what’s causing it.
Keep reading to learn about what causes joint pain, how it’s diagnosed and treated, and what you can do to help prevent it. (Learn more about Back Pain.)
What Is Joint Pain?
Joint pain is pain associated with one of the many joints in your body. The medical term for joint pain is arthralgia.
Jointscommonlyaffected by pain:
Knee
Hip
Neck
Shoulder
Elbow
Joints of the hand, including the wrist and fingers
Joints of the foot, including the ankle and toes
Joint pain can be related to problems with any tissues in a joint. These include:
Connective tissue like cartilage, tendons, and ligaments
The synovium (connective tissue lining a joint)
Bone
Joint pain is extremely common. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)reportedthat 18.9 percent of American adults had been diagnosed with any type of arthritis, a common cause of joint pain, in 2022.
Joint pain can also be more common in people with overweight orobesity. One reason for this is that extra weight puts stress on joints,particularlyweight-bearing joints like the knees, hips, ankles, and feet.
Symptoms
What does joint pain feel like, and how does it affect you?
Joint pain can have many qualities. For instance, it can:
Feel different from person to person
Vary in intensity from mild to severe
Come and go or be constant
Happen at specific times or with certain movements
Affect more than one joint
Occur with additional symptoms
Let’s delve deeper into the symptoms of joint pain below.
Symptoms of Joint Pain
When people talk about joint pain, they may mention feeling a variety of sensations, including:
Soreness
Dull aching
Tenderness
Throbbing
Stabbing
Burning
Grinding
Depending on the cause, joint pain can happen along with other symptoms, such as:
Joint swelling
Redness around the joint
Skin around the joint that’s warm to the touch
Stiffness or reduced range of motion
If you’re experiencing any of the above symptoms, it’s best to check in with a medical provider.
Causes
What causes joint pain? There are many possible causes of joint pain. We’ll give an overview of some of the most common ones now.
Arthritis
As mentioned, arthritis is a very common cause of joint pain. There areover 100different types of arthritis.
Osteoarthritis
Themostcommon type of arthritis is osteoarthritis. It happens when cartilage and other joint tissues wear down over time.
As osteoarthritis progresses, tissues in the joint continue to wear down. Because of this, the joint doesn’t move as smoothly as it used to, and bones and other tissues start to grind against each other. This leads to pain, stiffness, and a reduced range of motion.
Wondering,Why do my joints hurt?orWhy do my bones hurt?Osteoarthritis could be the culprit.
An additional knock-on effect of osteoarthritis is muscle weakness that can go on to make the effects of osteoarthritis worse. As osteoarthritis worsens and moving the affected joint becomes more painful, you may become less active. This can lead to muscle weakness around the joint that intensifies the stress placed on it.
Joints impacted by osteoarthritis can also become misaligned, or the bone itself may change shape. For example, growths of bone called bone spurs can develop along the edges of the joint, leading to more inflammation and pain.
Inflammatory Arthritis
Another form of arthritis that can cause joint pain is inflammatory arthritis. Symptoms and outcomes can include:
Rheumatoid arthritis
Psoriatic arthritis
Gout
Ankylosing spondylitis
Juvenile idiopathic arthritis
Septic, or infectious, arthritis
Reactive arthritis
This is because of the role the immune system plays in joint inflammation, pain, and other symptoms associated with these conditions.
Injury
While arthritis is a very common cause of joint pain, it’s certainly not the only one. For instance, joint pain can happen due to an injury such as:
A sprain or strain
Tendinitis (inflamed or swollen tendon)
Bursitis (painful swelling of the fluid-filled pads in the joints)
Joint injuries can happen in many ways. These include:
Having an accident, such as a bad fall or a car wreck
Engaging in sports or other strenuous physical activities, which can lead to injuries like tearing your ACL (anterior cruciate ligament)
Doing frequent repetitive motions in some jobs or sports, such as bending, kneeling, reaching, or swinging
Not using proper gear or protective equipment on the job or while playing sports
Those with obesity might also have ahigherrisk of joint injury. Anolder studyfound an association between higher body mass index (BMI) and the risk of sustaining an injury. This could be due to many factors, like increased stress on joints, altered gait, or muscle weakness.
Pain from a joint injury might be acute, meaning it’s severe and happens in the short term after an injury. It could also be chronic, meaning it’s continuous and persistent. (Learn more about Weight Loss Workout Plan for Women.)
Additional Causes of Joint Pain
Many health conditions can cause joint pain as a symptom. These include:
Autoimmune diseases like lupus, Sjögren’s syndrome, and sarcoidosis
Inflammatory bowel diseases such as Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis
Fibromyalgia
Underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism)
Acute infections like the flu or COVID-19
Long COVID
Cancers like leukemia, multiple myeloma, or bone cancers
If you’re experiencing joint stiffness or pain and aren’t sure what’s behind it, make an appointment with a healthcare provider.
Risk Factors
Many things can increase your risk for joint pain. The exact risk factors for joint pain can depend on what’s causing it.
Age
The risk of most causes of joint pain increases with age. This may be due to increased wear and stress on joints over time and ahigherlikelihood of other underlying medical conditions, called comorbidities, in older age that can contribute to joint pain.
Data from theCDCbreaks down the percentage of people who reported an arthritis diagnosis in 2022:
Age 18 to 34: 3.6 percent
Age 35 to 49: 11.5 percent
Age 50 to 64: 29 percent
Age 65 to 74: 44 percent
Age 75 and older: 53.9 percent
As you can see, the joint disease is most common among older adults.
Weight
Having overweight or obesity can strain your joints. This is especially true for weight-bearing joints like the knees and hips. The severity of arthritis, specifically knee osteoarthritis,increaseswith a higher BMI.
Did you know that when you walk normally, the forces moving across your knees aretwo to threetimes that of your body weight? That means each pound of excess weight can be multiplied two to three times with pressure put on your knees.
Another factor is inflammation. Obesityleads toinflammation in the body. Beyond effects of excess weight, it’s thought that this inflammationcontributes tothe progression of osteoarthritis in individuals with obesity.
Physical Activity
The way you do certain activities can raise the risk of a joint injury. A few examplesincludeoveruse of a joint, repetitive motions, not using the proper technique or equipment when exercising, or overtraining.
Additionally, folks who do less physical activity tend to have a higher risk of conditions that can cause joint pain. For instance, a2019 studyfound that light physical activity and walking were associated with a lower risk of osteoarthritis. Meanwhile, sedentary behaviors like TV watching increased the risk.
Other Risk Factors for Joint Pain
Further risk factors for joint pain include:
Sex. People assigned female at birth are more likely to have certain types of joint pain like those due to osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, autoimmune disease, and Crohn’s disease.
Family history. If someone else in your family has been diagnosed with a medical condition that causes joint pain, you may be more likely to have it as well.
Infections. Lyme disease and Staphylococcus (staph) can lead to arthritis. Having COVID-19 could result in long COVID-related joint pain. Other viral infections, such as the Epstein-Barr virus, may increase the risk of autoimmune conditions that can cause joint pain.
Smoking. Smoking can elevate the risk of medical conditions like rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn’s disease.
These are just a sampling of risk factors that many causes of joint pain share. Additional risk factors may contribute to joint pain causes.
Diagnosing
We all have joint pain from time to time. But there are a few specific signs it’s time to talk to a healthcare provider about it.
These include joint pain that:
Is persistent, recurring, or getting worse
Significantly affects your ability to do daily activities
Happens with symptoms like mild swelling, redness, and warmth
Joint pain can be a sign of a medical emergency if it:
Is severe
Comes on after an injury
Affects your ability to use the joint
Reduces your mobility, such that you cannot walk or put weight on it
Occurs with symptoms like severe swelling, fever, chills, numbness, or tingling
Seek medical care right away if you experience severe or sudden joint pain with any of the above symptoms.
Diagnosing Joint Pain
When you see your healthcare provider for joint pain, they’ll first get your medical history. It’s always good to come to your appointment prepared to answer questions related to:
Which joint (or joints) is affected and when the pain started
What the pain feels like, how severe it is, and if anything makes it better or worse
Any other symptoms happening with your joint pain
A family history of any medical conditions that may lead to joint pain
Whether you’ve recently had an injury or infection
What your lifestyle is like, such as your level of physical activity, smoking status, and diet
Prescription medications, over-the-counter medications, and supplements you’re taking
Your healthcare provider will then do a physical exam of the affected joint. They’ll check the shape of your joint and look for signs of swelling, redness, and warmth. They may ask you to do simple movements to get an idea of your range of motion and mobility.
Several types of tests can be ordered to help diagnose the cause of joint pain:
Blood tests. Blood tests can give your healthcare provider an idea of your general health and check for signs of inflammation or markers associated with autoimmune diseases or infections.
Tests on joint fluid. Tests on joint fluid may pick up on markers associated with some causes of joint pain like gout and infectious arthritis.
Imaging tests. Imaging can help a healthcare provider visualize what your joint tissue looks like. Several types of imaging can be used, including X-rays, CT (computed tomography) scans, and MRIs (magnetic resonance imaging).
If you see your primary care provider for joint pain, they might refer you to an orthopedist or a rheumatologist. These are doctors who specialize in treating musculoskeletal conditions, which include those affecting the joints.
Treatment
There are many potential treatments for joint pain. The specific treatment you receive can depend on the cause of your pain.
Overall, the goals of joint pain treatment are to promote pain relief and prevent joint pain from coming back. For some chronic conditions that cause joint pain, treatment might also aim to prevent progression of the condition and limit joint damage.
We’ll dive into each type of treatment for joint pain. Keep in mind this is just a general overview — your treatment plan will be tailored to your unique needs and the source of your joint pain.
Home Remedies for Joint Pain
Home remedies for many causes of joint pain include resting the affected joint and using hot and cold therapy. Hot and cold therapy involves alternating a source of warmth like a heating pad with a source of cold like an ice pack.
Joint pain from a mild injury may benefit from the R-I-C-E method, whichstands forrest, ice, compression, elevation.
Some supplements may also help with joint pain. The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) notes that, although some research is conflicting, the following supplementsmay bebeneficial:
Glucosamine and chondroitin
SAMe (S-adenosyl methionine)
Fish oil
Thunder god vine (tripterygium wilfordii)
Additionally,someresearchhas found that curcumin and cannabidiol (CBD) may help ease joint pain.
Weight Loss for Joint Pain
If you have overweight or obesity, your healthcare provider might recommendweight lossas a part of your treatment plan. Weight loss can have many benefits in this scenario,includinglowering stress on joints and reducing inflammation.
A2019 studyfound that sustained weight loss of 10 to 20 percent of baseline body weight had substantial benefits for people with knee osteoarthritis. This included reductions in joint pain.
There are several methods that can help with weight loss. Depending on your individual situation, your provider may recommend one or a combination of the following:
A2021 studyfound that the most effective methods for alleviating pain due to knee osteoarthritis were bariatric surgery, low-calorie diet and exercise, and intensive weight loss and exercise.
Data onweight loss medicationsand joint pain is still emerging. The results of one 2021clinical trialfound that using liraglutide (Saxenda) after a diet intervention led to weight loss but didn’t reduce knee pain.
However, a2023 studyfound that slow to moderate weight loss with weight loss medications led to a reduced risk of death in people with osteoarthritis.
Medications for Joint Pain
A few types of medications may be used for joint pain, including:
Topical medications applied directly to skin
Oral medications taken by mouth
Injected medications
Potential medications for joint paininclude:
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) and naproxen (Aleve), which may be over-the-counter or prescription-strength
Acetaminophen (Tylenol), available over-the-counter
Topical capsaicin or salicylate
Duloxetine (Cymbalta®), an antidepressant
Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs), which can be traditional medications, biologics, or small molecules, for conditions like rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis
Steroid injections
Hyaluronic acid injections
Antibiotics for septic arthritis caused by a bacterial infection
Ask your healthcare provider before taking any of these medications for muscle and joint pain, even those available over the counter.
Therapies and Complementary Approaches for Joint Pain
In addition to home remedies, weight loss, and medications, other therapies can be used to help with joint pain. These include:
Immobilization, such as through bracing
Physical therapy exercises
According to theNCCIH, certain complementary approaches have shown benefits for joint pain:
Massage
Tai chi
These alternative treatments might be particularly helpful at offering joint pain relief related to arthritis.
Surgery for Joint Pain
When joint pain is severe and doesn’t respond to the treatments described above, surgery may be necessary.
The types of surgery that may be usedinclude:
Partial or total joint replacement, such as a knee or hip replacement
Realigning damaged joints, called an osteotomy
Synovectomy, which removes damaged joint lining
Fusion, a procedure that binds two bones in a joint together
Surgery is usually recommended only after other first-line treatments have been tried, such as weight loss, medication, and physical exercises.
Prevention
There’s no 100 percent effective way to prevent joint pain. That’s because risk factors like your age and family history are completely out of your control.
However, there are steps you can take in your day-to-day life to help protect your joint health. The great part about these things is that many of them also promote a healthy lifestyle in general.
Joint Pain Prevention Tips
Here’s how you can reduce your risk of joint pain:
Get regular exercise. Try to implement different types of exercise, such as cardio, resistance training, and stretching and balance exercises. Be sure to warm up before getting started and to cool down afterward.
Do low-impact activities. If you already have arthritis or another joint disease, consider trying exercises that are low-impact, such as swimming or cycling.
Be careful with physically strenuous activity. This includes appropriately lifting heavy objects and wearing the right gear when playing sports.
Consider weight loss. Talk to your healthcare provider about healthy weight loss strategies if you have overweight or obesity. Excess weight can place additional strain on your joints.
Don’t start smoking. If you already smoke, try to quit.
Explore ergonomic options to protect your joints. Examples include more supportive footwear and office chairs that support your back and neck.
Rethink your meals. Focus on a diet rich in fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and healthy protein sources.
Lastly, seeing your healthcare provider for regular wellness checkups can help prevent a variety of medical conditions that may contribute to joint pain.
The frequency you should go in for a checkup can vary based on your age and overall health. Ask your healthcare provider how often they’d like you to come in.
This article originally appeared on ForHers.comand was syndicated by MediaFeed.org.
