If you’re wondering whether you might be a candidate for degenerative joint disease treatment, the best way to find out is to have a face-to-face consultation with a qualified physician. After evaluating your specific diagnosis, symptoms, lifestyle and other unique factors, your physician can provide you with personalized advice and guidance. And, regardless of whether your spinal condition requires formal treatment, you and your physician can develop an appropriate strategy to help you live with it.

Before you meet with your physician, you might find it helpful to gain a basic understanding of the circumstances under which degenerative joint disease treatment is usually appropriate. Toward that end, here are two general questions that you should think about in advance of your appointment so that you’ll be better prepared to discuss your answers with your physician.

Is discomfort affecting your quality of life?

Degenerative joint disease, or osteoarthritis, occurs when the shock-absorbing cartilage that cushions a joint becomes inflamed, breaks down and is eventually lost. Typically, the condition isn’t diagnosed until it causes painful symptoms that prompt a medical evaluation. Therefore, if you already know that you have degenerative joint disease, you’re probably experiencing some level of neck or back pain, mobility limitations or grinding sensations when you move a particular joint. If your discomfort is severe, you are likely a candidate for treatment.

However, even if your symptoms aren’t really interfering with your daily life, your physician may still recommend degenerative joint disease treatment. That’s because, when left untreated, the condition often worsens over time. By proactively addressing your osteoarthritis, you may be able to avoid the onset of debilitating symptoms down the road, and also prevent the development of problematic secondary conditions, such as disc herniation, spinal stenosis and spinal fractures.

What causes your symptoms to improve or worsen?

Many people are able to find significant relief from degenerative joint disease symptoms by staying active, applying a heating pad or ice pack to a painful area, taking over-the-counter pain relievers and anti-inflammatory drugs as needed and avoiding movements and positions that cause pain. Based on the information you provide, your physician can recommend a customized plan to provide you with ongoing relief and to help you keep up with your daily activities.

For some people, degenerative joint disease treatment involves surgery. If surgery is recommended for you, you may be interested in knowing that the minimally invasive spine surgery performed by the surgeons at USA Spine Care is often the clinically appropriate first choice and provides many advantages versus open neck or back surgery.^ To find out if you’re a candidate, contact us today.

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