O A and RA

tenbury

Can anyone tell me how I know when a problem is O'A and when its R A, I have both and sometimes when I have pain in my back..hands and knee's I wonder who the culprit is that's causing it, just curious.

dreamdaisy

It's a tricky one, isn't it? When my PsA is having a snap the affected joints are hot to the touch and I generally feel lousy. My OA pain is deeper and sharper, 'hot' in its quality but I feel OK in myself. This morning it's definitely the OA that's to the fore due to the cold and damp, the PsA becomes more of an issue due to the heat and humidity of summer.

How is your back today? Have you been able to buy something to help? DD

stickywicket

Because I only discovered I had OA in my knees when I was told they needed replacing (I'd thought all the pain was my RA) I never really learned to distinguish. I tend to assume, though, that, if it's just pain, it's OA. When RA kicks in the joint feels hot and I feel flaked out and sometimes generally unwell. Like DD, my RA doesn't tolerate heat well.

barbara12

Hello tenbury
I suppose joint pain is more or less the same, I do know that with RA you get swelling, because of inflammation...but apart from that I should imagine it would be hard to distinguish between them...hope you get some relief very soon..x