Treatment for rheumatoid arthritis can the risk of joint damage and limit the impact of the condition and enable you to live as active a life as possible.
Although it is hard to cure for rheumatoid arthritis, the doctors try many methods to control the pain and inflammation. The common early treatment and support are including disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs), biological treatments, physical therapy and surgery.
DMARDS Treatment
when you've been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, your doctor normally will offer a combination of DMARD tablets as part of your initial treatment. These medications have good effects in easing symptoms of the condition and slowing down its progression.
Methotrexate is normally the first kind of DMARD given for rheumatoid arthritis. As we know, all the medications have their own set of side effects.
For methotrexate, the common effect includes:
feeling sick
loss of appetite
a sore mouth
diarrhoea
headaches
hair loss
The Methotrexate can also sometimes have an effect on your blood count and your liver, so you should regular blood tests to monitor this.
Less commonly, methotrexate can affect the lungs, so you'll usually have a chest X-ray and possibly breathing tests when you start taking methotrexate, to provide a comparison if you develop shortness of breath or a persistent dry cough while taking it. However, most people tolerate methotrexate well.
Biological treatments
Biological treatments are a newer form of treatment for rheumatoid arthritis. They include:
etanercept
infliximab
adalimumab
certolizumab
golimumab
Biological medications are given by injection and they work by stopping particular chemicals in the blood from activating your immune system to attack your joints.
For Biological medications, the common effect includes:
skin reactions at the site of the injections
infections
feeling sick
a high temperature (fever)
headaches
Some people may also be at risk of getting more serious problems, including the reactivation of infections such as tuberculosis (TB) in people who have had them in the past.
Physical treatment
The therapist or occupational therapist may also suggest new ways to do daily tasks, which will be easier on your joints. For example, if your fingers are sore, you may want to pick up an object using your forearms.
Surgery
If the above method fails to prevent or slow joint damage, the doctor may consider surgery to repair damaged joints. It can also reduce pain and correct deformities.
Surgery carries a risk of bleeding, infection, and pain, also high cost.
In addition, we have a new breakthrough- The laser treatment for rheumatoid arthritis
Low-level laser therapy (LLLT) was introduced as an alternative non-invasive treatment for RA about 10 years ago. The Clinical Research Organization randomized controlled trials of LLLT for the treatment of patients with a clinical diagnosis of RA were eligible. Thirteen trials were included, with 212 patients randomized to laser and 174 patients to placebo laser, and 68 patients received active laser on one hand and placebo on the opposite hand. Treatment duration ranged from 4 to 10 weeks. Follow-up was reported by only 2 trials for up to 3 months. LLLT reduced pain by 70% relative to placebo and reduced morning stiffness by 27.5 min (95% CI –52.0 to –2.9) and increased tip to palm flexibility by 1.3 cm (95% CI –1.7 to –0.8).
Laser Therapy instrument (LLLT) has a 5-star rating for the inflammation and joint pain. Low Level Laser Therapy is a no pain, non-invasive, no side effect medical device.
Especially our multi-functional Low Level Laser treatment instrument, we combined it with acupoint to treat rheumatoid arthritis, it causes a series of physiological and biochemical changes, such as anti-inflammatory and analgesic, convergence wound, desensitization, adjusts the body function and relieves the pain, the clinically proven only about 10 to 15 sessions, the patient will have good result.
Please refer to the treatment protocols on Rheumatoid Arthritis.
Please refer to " How to treat Rheumatoid Arthritis by Laser Therapy Instrument? "
