Both AS and OA

Sylmowarrington1

Hi. I m new here. I had AS for over 15 years and just got diagnosed with OA in both hips. Anyone had both? How do you manage pain? Suggestions very welcome!

[Deleted User]

Hi Sylmowarrington1 and welcome to the Arthritis Care Forums.

I'm sorry to hear you've had AS (ankylosing spondylitis) for so long and now have a diagnosis of Osteoarthritis of both hips.

As a preliminary, you may like to take a look at our factsheet on the subject which can be downloaded here: https://www.arthritiscare.org.uk/do-i-have-arthritis/publications/233-osteoarthritis-of-the-hip

It has some good tips on living with the pain, what you can do to help as well as advice on exercise.

Im sure that forum members with direct experience of both conditions combined will also have helpful ideas.

Best wishes
Brynmor

Sylmowarrington1

moderator wrote:

Hi Sylmowarrington1 and welcome to the Arthritis Care Forums.

I'm sorry to hear you've had AS (ankylosing spondylitis) for so long and now have a diagnosis of Osteoarthritis of both hips.

As a preliminary, you may like to take a look at our factsheet on the subject which can be downloaded here: https://www.arthritiscare.org.uk/do-i-have-arthritis/publications/233-osteoarthritis-of-the-hip

It has some good tips on living with the pain, what you can do to help as well as advice on exercise.

Im sure that forum members with direct experience of both conditions combined will also have helpful ideas.

Best wishes
Brynmor

dreamdaisy

Hello, I don't have AS plus OA but I do have psoriatic arthritis (PsA) which has led to OA in some useful places; some joints have one or the other, others have both which is not a barrel of laughs. I am also struggling with a bad cold at the moment so am not taking my meds for the PsA which isn't helping matters either!

I manage my pain by distracting myself from it and taking minimum pain relief to help me get by. I have OA in both ankles, both knees and both hips, plus some other places. I am on 30/500 cocodamol and usually take four per day but I have upped that at the moment due to the aches and pains caused by the cold. I apologise for being so brief but it's my bed time! I wish you well. DD

stickywicket

Hello and welcome from me too. I'm another who has 'done the double - in my case RA and OA. Like DD, I use distraction as much as possible and pain relief (co-codamol) when that fails.

Sylmowarrington1

dreamdaisy wrote:

Hello, I don't have AS plus OA but I do have psoriatic arthritis (PsA) which has led to OA in some useful places; some joints have one or the other, others have both which is not a barrel of laughs. I am also struggling with a bad cold at the moment so am not taking my meds for the PsA which isn't helping matters either!

I manage my pain by distracting myself from it and taking minimum pain relief to help me get by. I have OA in both ankles, both knees and both hips, plus some other places. I am on 30/500 cocodamol and usually take four per day but I have upped that at the moment due to the aches and pains caused by the cold. I apologise for being so brief but it's my bed time! I wish you well. DD

Hi DD thanks for your post. It does help as I m a bit worried... Obviously 😉
Isn't cocodamol addictive? I have been taking some for AS flare up with some limited effect and was told to be careful with it.

Any tips for distraction?

Sylmowarrington1

stickywicket wrote:

Hello and welcome from me too. I'm another who has 'done the double - in my case RA and OA. Like DD, I use distraction as much as possible and pain relief (co-codamol) when that fails.

Hi Stickywicket
Thanks for your post! Do you think food supplements like glucosamine help at all? Ready to try to control at least the OA as the AS is so impressive able.
Sylmowarrington1

stickywicket

I'm not a great believer in supplements but, if you want to go down that route, ARUK suggest that turmeric and cod liver oil are probably the best for OA. But do check with your pharmacist that they won't clash with any prescribed meds.

Distraction is a personal thing - basically whatever grabs and holds your attention. For me, cricket plays a big part but, post-op, I've managed to delay the next lot of pain relief by reading, watching TV and / or playing mindless computer games. Basically anything that works.

dreamdaisy

Distraction for me involves using my laptop, doing jigsaws, crosswords, codewords and logic puzzles, watching TV and getting out and about.

I am aware of addiction issues with co-codamol but I have been on it for years and very rarely take more than six per day. Life became much easier to manage once attempting to be pain-free stopped being a goal. DD

Sylmowarrington1

dreamdaisy wrote:

Distraction for me involves using my laptop, doing jigsaws, crosswords, codewords and logic puzzles, watching TV and getting out and about.

I am aware of addiction issues with co-codamol but I have been on it for years and very rarely take more than six per day. Life became much easier to manage once attempting to be pain-free stopped being a goal. DD

Thanks both daisy dream and Stickywicket! I think I need to take things step by step and see how things progress... No doubt I love have more questions coming up!! S

dreamdaisy

Ask away but please bear in mind we can answer only as experienced patients, not doctors. DD