Arthritis is primarily related to joints, though it may also affect your muscles, bones, and ligaments. Arthritis medication is only one of the many ways that can keep the disease in control and slow down or stop the progress of disease. Apart from traditional medicines, you should take care of your diet and have some regular exercises. For treatment, you can use natural home remedies as well as herbal treatment along with prescribed arthritis medication.

The treatment of your arthritis requires a joint effort from your doctor, yourself and those living around you. While taking conventional medication, you should ask the doctor about any potential side effects. Communicate your symptoms properly and carefully since a little variance in explaining symptoms means that you may not get the right kind of medicine. Also, discuss with your doctor any changes in your diet plan; about what to eat and what not to eat. If you wish to take some home remedies, or herbal products, consult with your doctor about the dosage, and about its chances of interference with your prescribed medication for arthritis.

In terms of conventional arthritis medication, there are different types of medicines, such as analgesics, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), Cox-2 inhibitors, and corticosteroids. There are some medications as disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs), and biologic response modifiers (BRMs) as well.

Analgesics are simple pain killers. These are not anti-inflammatory, rather these are recommended to relieve pain. You can get it as OTC. These have very few side effects such as stomach upset, or nausea. Always consult the dosage with your doctor, and for how long you can take it.

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs help you to get relief from inflammation, swelling, and joint pain. These are the largest and most popular category of arthritis medications. These take care of your symptoms; though these do not stop the progression of joint damage. The main side effect of these drugs is stomach upsets, including irritation and ulcers. Take these with food or some milk. You may require some extra medicines to deal with your stomach upsets. Generally, there are signs of noticeable improvement within a week of taking these medicines.

Cox -2 inhibitors are a newer type of medication that reduces pain and inflammation. These are less likely to cause stomach upset. Your physician injects corticosteroids into the affected joint that relieves the inflammation and swelling. It also helps to improve joint mobility.

Side effects of Arthritis Medication

Corticosteroid medications carry some harmful side effects, particularly when given over long periods of time.
Corticosteroids lead to weak skin where bruises happen more easily and heal slowly. Bones too become more prone to breakage and fractures. Prolonged use can lead to cataracts in the eye.
To minimize corticosteroid side effects, doctors usually recommend high doses during flare ups, for short time. Since you feel the improvement quickly, within a couple of days, your doctor may stop using these as the situation improves.

Cautions for Arthritis Medication

Take your medicine regularly and exactly as your physician had prescribed it. Do not change your dosage if you see any change in symptoms. Take all arthritis medicines with food unless you are told so. Follow the sandwich technique which says “Eat a little food, Take your medication, and Eat a little more food.”

Keep each your medicines in a labeled container and give your medications some time to work. Always carry your medications with you while visiting your doctor, and ask him the tentative time that medicines would take time to cause improvement. If you talk to doctor on phone for some query or opinion, have your medicines near the telephone so that you can refer these, if required.

If you notice any unexpected side effects or unusual reactions, report it to your doctor. Even if you have common fever, headache or nausea, consult with your doctor. It may be possible that your physician prescribes some alternative medicine that has less probability to cause these side effects.

Tell your physician if you are taking any other drugs or supplements that are recommended by some other physician. This is required since certain medications are not suitable to take with different set of medicines. Moreover, if you have been irregular in taking medicines, be honest with your doctor, and tell the truth so that one can change the dosage or periodicity, if required.

Precautions for Arthritis Medication

Don’t stop your medication unless told to do so by your physician. Since you may feel little drowsy after some time of taking medicine, avoid driving or working with heavy machinery where an accident could happen. Putting many kinds of medicines in same container is discouraged as this can lead to chemical interactions.

While purchasing arthritis medicines, you should see the expiry date carefully and don’t buy an expired medicine. Since arthritis treatment is a long and gradual process, don’t change your medication dose by yourself. Consult with your physician in case of any doubts or to seek any clarification.