Menopause and arthritis? Help!

[bitachey]

I'm hoping someone can help.

I'm 49 and peri menopausal -brain fog, night sweats and have an appointment with a doctor next week about HRT.

I've also been diagnosed with osteoarthritis in my hands - swollen joints and a bit of aching. I was sent for an MRI to rule out rheumatoid arthritis but it's showing there is a small amount of inflammation in both my wrists and knuckles which could be RA. I've no symptoms there. CRP blood test inflammation marker came back negative.

I am going back in 2 months for further tests - bloods/ultrasound.

Has anyone had any experience of this? Could it be menopause related? The consultant was very dismissive of that. But I have read that HRT can help joint pain but I'm not sure about RA.

Just sad, worried and anxious.Thanks!

@Wombat27A

Eh hello, I’ve been diagnosed with OA by a rheumatologist and I‘m 49! What did the GP say? I find that mind boggling.

Particularly dim comment, given a surgeon said I had hip arthritis in 2017. 😳

? What? You don’t have “collagen” between your joints. It’s called cartilage.
And it’s the inflammation that causes pain, not the bone on bone rubbing of joints that have lost their cartilage because bones have no nerve endings.

Try again, and perhaps cite a source this time.

I had similar during menopause and it was caused by nerve issues in my spine. I'd previously had episodes of sciatica but this time the pain and numbness was in my hands feet ankles and wrists and elbows. It was really bothersome for a while but now is much better. I think HRT helped but don't know for sure. In the past my sciatica has come and gone with no real reason that I could pinpoint so think this is similar.
HRT made me feel a million times better in general. I hadn't realised how bad I felt with menopause.

Absolutely this! It’s the inflammation that causes pain, not rubbing as a lot of people think.

I don’t think it is as clear cut as this, it’s not appropriate to just rubbish the statement.

Cartilage is made of collagen. Because my cartilage is damaged / worn away, the rough bone on rough bone is painful, as well as the inflammation.

It’s the other way round. Cartilage produces collagen. And no bone on bone friction cannot cause any pain because there are no nerve endings in bone. You need nerve endings to feel pain. The pain you feel when bone rubs on bone is due to the inflammation of the surrounding soft tissues taking on the friction that cartilage would normally cushion and quite often with OA, pain includes bone spurs digging into soft tissue as the joint articulates.

The statement was complete rubbish. It’s perfectly appropriate to flag up questionable medical advice posted with zero citation that doesn’t even get basic human anatomy correct.

Yes it's inflammation and that is apparently why hot humid weather can exacerbate OA. Hot dry conditions are different apparently.

When I did my own research into HRT and OA there wasn't anything conclusive. A couple of papers suggested there might be a link so I thought it was worth a try. I don't think I can be sure the improvements are related to the HRT but these past couple of months have been better that the previous year.

Please @Discovereads OP here. This thread is so useful, can we bring the temperature down a bit? 🙏

I really appreciate your input thanks but I think you’re being a bit unnecessarily inflammatory.

Thanks @Jewel1968 my hands have been feeling a lot better this week. It’s hard to
pin down why. I need to keep a note of what I’m doing! I was reading about turmeric being helpful. There’s a Facebook group and they seem to get good results (anecdotally). They make up their own turmeric concoction!

The consultant gynaecologist I saw said there hadn’t been enough studies done on HRT/arthritis. Women’s problems eh?

ard.bmj.com/content/56/7/432
This one suggestive of some protection (more knee than hands) from her. Agree though I couldn't find much. And the consultant I saw looked at me blankly when I asked if it might be beneficial to take hrt.

I have RA (had it for years) and emerging possible OA. Oestrogen has definitely helped me.

I saw a female doctor today and have been prescribed the combined patch. Where is it best to put it? TIA

I am 52 and peri menopausal but periods are becoming more irregular . I have suddenly started to have joint pain and what I think is sciatica and am waking in the night due to the pain . Trying to get out of bed and down the stairs in the morning is hell on earth! I take one step at a time as I am so sore and stiff. Feels like every joint is aching . ITaking ibrufen which barely helps . I thought I had been over doing it at work and it was wear and tear but read that joint pain is a menopause symptom. I just wanted to know if hrt will help ? Will this last forever ? Is it arthritis? Messaged gp who then sent me a physio appointment ??!! But hey ho I will go and see what she says ….feel like im always crying I am so sore along with every other flaming menopause symptom there is … teenage kids , an elderly mum still needing help in her home , a physical job , housework . I need to lose abit weight and eat better I know that so i am going to try so hard to address that . Also waiting on a total hysterectomy due to fibroids and polyps … but because of covid I’ve now been waiting 18 months …. Sigh ….woman got the short end of the frigging straw !

That's strange that your GP told you that - when I was about 47 my GP diagnosed Heberden's nodes which is apparently a form of osteoarthritis. I didn't realise that it interacted with menopause but I am wondering now if that's why it's getting worse... Thank you for this thread! In fact this whole menopause forum is really opening my eyes, I wish I'd accessed it sooner.