Senior Health Connection news letter Intermountain McKay-Dee Hospital Center 1 / f / Did you feel that? It could be Osteoarthritis. (Information Health Resources— Intermountain Healthcare) Healthy joints help your body move, bend and twist. Knees climb the stairs easily moving up and down without creaking and crunching. Hips move along smoothly on your walk and you give them little thought. But when you have arthritis, these simple everyday movements can hurt. Climbing stairs, walking, and other easy activities can be hard. Most often arthritis is found in the knee, hip, hand, spine, and foot, but it can happen in other joints too. Any joint where two bones connect; arthritis in only found in joints not internal organs. Even though you cannot cure arthritis, there are many treatments that can make it easier for you to move. There are also things you can do to keep the damage from getting worse. Experts do not know why the cartilage in the joints break down, but aging, joint injury, being overweight, and genetics may be part of the reason. There are many treatments for arthritis but what works for you may not work for someone else. Work with your doctor to find what will best ease the pain for you. Often a mix of treatments are most effective. Treatments may include: • Using pain medicine. If the pain is mild, use over the counter medicines. If these don't help, you may 141 December 2011 need stronger prescription medicine. It is important to work closely with your doctor. Use heat or ice on the painful joint. Heat will help you loosen up before an activity and ice will help relieve pain after the activity or exercise. Lose weight. Weight loss could be the single best thing you could do for your arthritis. Exercise to strengthen your muscles. Having stronger muscles can reduce stress on your joints. Talk to your doctor for the best exercises for you. Have joint replacement. If the pain is really bad, you may decide to have surgery to replace the joint. Use devices or tools to take the stress and weight off you joints. Tape, braces, splints, and canes may help. Change activities or the way you do things to reduce the stress on your joints that hurt and allow you to move better.