Can Infusion Therapy Help With Your Arthritis?

Are rheumatoid arthritis (RA) symptoms like joint pain and stiffness limiting your ability to get the things done this fall? Over time, your arthritis symptoms can worsen, causing lasting joint damage. Infusion therapy might be able to help ease your pain.

Our team of experts at Pleasanton Arthritis and Osteoporosis Medical Center, under the leadership of expert rheumatologist Iraj Sabahi, MD, provides a full range of care for arthritis patients. 

Here's what we want our new and existing patients in the Pleasanton and Turlock, California area to know about the potential of infusion therapy to address their arthritis symptoms this autumn.

Painful arthritis symptoms

RA and other autoimmune and inflammatory diseases like lupus cause your immune system to turn on your own body. Attacks on the healthy cells in your body can leave you suffering from symptoms including pain, inflammation, and swelling.

RA most commonly affects the joints located in your hands, wrists, and knees. Over time, RA can cause lasting joint damage, and even deformation, as your joints wear away under the force of your attacks.

In addition to joint pain, RA can cause uncomfortable and inconvenient problems around your body. You may notice problems with your heart and lungs or your eyes. You could experience weight loss, weakness, fatigue and tiredness, and fevers as a result of an RA attack.

Biologic infusion therapy can help

Biologic drugs work to reduce inflammation in your joints, relieving arthritis pain, and preventing joint damage. If you don't see satisfying results after treatment with disease-modifying drugs like methotrexate, we may recommend infusion therapy. Biologics can also help with osteoporosis and systemic lupus erythematosus.

Some of Medications for RA, SLE and Osteoporosis available as infusions are Orencia, Actemra, Remicade, Benlysta, Cimzia, Reclast and Prolia. Different medications target different functions and may need to be delivered on different schedules. Biologics can also come as injections that you can self-deliver at home.

We typically start your infusion therapy with once every 2 weeks treatment sessions. After a few rounds of treatment, you may be able to increase the spacing between your appointment to once a month or longer.

Getting an infusion treatment

During infusion treatment, we provide medication directly to your bloodstream, using a needle inserted into one of your veins. Before we get started, we check your pulse, blood pressure, and temperature, and continue to monitor your vitals throughout your appointment.

An infusion therapy session can last from between 30 minutes and three to four hours, depending on the medication used. Apart from feeling a pinch from the initial needle insertion, your infusion therapy shouldn't be painful, and you can rest and read or watch a movie while you wait for your treatment to be completed.

Side effects can include redness and swelling by the injection site, rashes, headaches, and nausea. We may be able to address these with additional medications. If you show symptoms of a severe reaction, we'll stop your treatment right away.

To learn more about infusion therapy and how it could improve your arthritis this fall, contact Pleasanton Arthritis and Osteoporosis Medical Center today. You can schedule your initial consultation appointment over the phone or by using the online tool.