Because these drugs can increase the risk of cardiovascular and GI issues, be sure to speak to your doctor before taking them either for short- or long-term use. NSAIDS help block the production of prostaglandins, a group of chemicals that play a role in pain and inflammation. Use pain medsĪvailable in both over-the-counter and prescription versions, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin, ibuprofen, and naproxen are a top-line treatment for reducing the pain, swelling, and redness associated with arthritis, including when arthritis strikes in the feet. Now that we’ve established why your feet are hurting, consider these strategies for easing the pain, stiffness, and swelling that arthritis patients often know all too well. Ankylosing spondylitis also causes enthesitis, such as plantar fasciitis and pain at the Achilles tendon.In the feet this usually presents as plantar fasciitis, an inflammation of the band of tissue that connects the heel bone to the toes, as well as the bony projections known as bone spurs, which can cause pain if they press or rub on other bones or soft tissues. PsA is often also accompanied by inflammation of the entheses, the places where tendons and ligaments attach to bones. Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) can also take a toll on toes, causing sausage-like swelling called dactylitis.Gout frequently affects only the feet, often the big toe.This is in contrast to OA, which typically affects one specific joint. Rheumatoid arthritis usually appears in both feet and affects the same joints in each foot.Osteoarthritis most commonly affects the first metatarsophalangeal joint (MTP) that connects your big toe to your foot, although it’s also often found in the midfoot and ankle.Various types of arthritis present differently in the feet. How Different Kinds of Arthritis Hurt Your Feet It’s not surprising that you can feel arthritis in your feet: The disease predominantly affects your joints, and your foot contains more than 30 joints.

In about 20 percent of RA cases, foot and ankle symptoms are even among the first signs of the disease. With rheumatoid arthritis (RA), the most common type of inflammatory autoimmune arthritis, more than 90 percent of patients develop symptoms in the foot and ankle over the course of the disease. Indeed, osteoarthritis (OA), the most common type of arthritis, affects the feet of one in six people over the age of 50.

“Feet are tremendously affected by arthritis,” says Vinicius Domingues, MD, a rheumatologist in Daytona Beach, Florida, and medical advisor for CreakyJoints. If you live with arthritis, chances are you feel the painful effects in your feet.

Burning pain on top of foot