New member – M, 32, 🇬🇧, Osteoarthritis and Haemophilia-A

missingfaktor

Hey folks, I just joined this community. Haemophilia-A is a congenital disorder, i.e. I've had it since birth. In the first 25 years of my life, I didn't have access to regular prophylactic clotting factor injections, which led to hundreds of late-treated and even untreated internal bleeds in joints, which further led to several permanently damaged joints.

Of all those joints, the right knee was recently established as having osteoarthritis. About six months ago, I had a fusion surgery for my left ankle. That shifted my entire body weight to the right leg for a while, which caused a massive flare-up in the right knee, and since then, the knee has been bent and locked. Its range of movement is merely 90°-120°. I haven't stood or walked since. I'm due to receive intra-articular steroid injections on 15 December, and I'm really hoping that'll enable me to stand and walk again.

I'm used to living with haemophilia but osteoarthritis is a new world for me. I hope to learn how to manage the condition better, how to live with it, various treatment options available, and perhaps someday give back by sharing my experiences and helping others.

Love,

Rahul

MammaBuckz

Hi @RahulGomaPhulore

Welcome to the Online Community. Here you'll find a friendly bunch of people with different types of arthritis, who are happy to help.

I'm sorry to hear you have had a tough time over the years, it sounds like you have had a lot to deal with around the lack of regular treatment or your Haemophilia-A, resulting in the permanent damage to your joints.

There are many things that can be done to manage the pain of osteoarthritis, often using several techniques at once can help, but it is about finding the right treatment path. Symptoms can vary so having the right approach can make a big difference in how the condition is managed. Depending what type of pain, you are experiencing, and which joints are affected, there are several ways it can be treated.

Treatments can include painkillers and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory creams and gels, heat/ice therapy, exercise, complementary and alternative treatments and therapies, cognitive behaviour therapies (CBT), and mindfulness programs.

When joints are affected by arthritis, they sometimes become weak and unstable. It is important to ensure that a good range of movement is continued and muscles above and below the joint are kept strong, this can be done by regular specific exercises designed to help keep the joint moving. 

You can find out more on osteoarthritis on our website:

https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/conditions/osteoarthritis/

You may find the information for newly diagnosed on our website also useful:

https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/newly-diagnosed/

Please feel free to ask questions of others and share your experiences, also please let us know how you're getting on.

Best wishes,

MammaBuckz - Moderator

CrazyrunningDog

hi Rahul thank you for sharing your story I have been recently diagnosed with RA and have found it a pretty traumatic experience. Talking to the helpline helped me and they also know about treatments etc as well as being able to cope with a very distressed crying middle aged man.

I wish you well and hope the steroid works it helped me at the beginning of this saga.

All the best to you

Martyn

frogmorton

Morning @RahulGomaPhulore

Lovely to meet you and welcome you to the online Community.

I'm so pleased you have found us.

Your story is quite unusual for us but however you arrived at your Arthritis diagnosis all of us here understand the pain you are in.

Maybe take Martyn's advice above (Crazyrunningdog) I have also phoned the helplines and bawled and bawled.

Do please keep posting it really does help.

Tak care

Toni x