Bombarding blood vessels with tiny gel balls could help ease painful arthritic joints.

Abnormal blood vessels can form around injured joints. These, in turn, are thought to cause the chronic pain linked to osteoarthritis, stiff shoulders and tendon injuries.

Now scientists have discovered a one‑off treatment where blocking the abnormal vessels dramatically reduces pain in patients with these conditions.

Bombarding blood vessels with tiny gel balls could help ease painful arthritic joints

In a recent trial in Japan, people with knee arthritis experienced a four-fold drop in symptoms just four weeks following treatment; after four months, their symptoms had reduced six-fold.

Similar benefits were seen in those with painful tendons and frozen shoulders.

Osteoarthritis is the most common joint disorder, with an estimated 8.75 million people in the UK having sought treatment for it. However, it's not entirely clear what causes the pain, and many patients fail to respond to standard treatments such as painkillers or anti-inflammatory drugs.

The condition occurs when the cartilage that lines the joints is damaged, usually due to wear and tear.

Osteoarthritis is the most common joint disorder, with an estimated 8.75 million people in the UK having sought treatment for it

However, the pain is often not proportional to the damage: some people with relatively large amounts of damage don't experience discomfort, while others with little wear and tear suffer chronic pain.

The new therapy, known as transcatheter arterial embolisation, is based on the theory that the pain is linked to new blood vessels forming around the joint as part of the body's natural repair process, rather than the cartilage damage itself.

Sometimes in inflammatory conditions such as arthritis, this process gets out of control, causing blood vessels to grow where they're not needed.

The thinking is that as more blood vessels develop, they trigger the growth of nerves, which mean more pain signals. Tenderness during physical examination is a good indicator that abnormal vessels have formed. The new treatment first identifies the rogue blood vessels using arteriograms - where special dye is injected into them so they show up on an X-ray.

Then tiny spheres, which are a thousandth of an inch in diameter and made of a special gel, are inserted using a thin tube fed through the main artery in the groin to the problem area, such as the knee.

Some people with relatively large amounts of knee damage don't experience discomfort, while others with little wear and tear suffer chronic pain (stock photo)

Once in place, these microspheres are released, blocking the blood supply to the neighbouring nerves, which reduces pain signals. As the blood vessels and nerves die, they and the microspheres are absorbed by the body.

Animal studies have shown the treatment reduces inflammation and pain. Now researchers at Edogawa University Hospital, Tokyo, have shown it also provides significant benefits for humans with tendon injuries, frozen shoulder and knee osteoarthritis.

Commenting on the new approach, Dr Stephen Simpson, director of research and programmes at charity Arthritis Research UK, said: 'This study shows that in a small number of patients, physically blocking blood vessels in the joints of people with arthritis may be effective at relieving the pain associated with their condition.

'However, more research is needed to understand any potential long-term effects.'

Taking daily aspirin could also help arthritic knees, say Australian researchers.

A study of 117 patients with osteoarthritis found that those who were also taking aspirin (for their heart problems) had nearly three times less cartilage damage than those who weren't taking the drug, reports the journal Maturitas.

Low doses of aspirin may have an anti-inflammatory effect, but patients are warned not to self-medicate and to seek medical advice

A survey of more than 1,000 non-smoking, middle-aged women suggested that those who were exposed to second-hand smoke had more than double the risk of having depression than those who were not

Could having a partner who smokes make you depressed? A survey of more than 1,000 non-smoking, middle-aged women suggested that those who were exposed to second-hand smoke had more than double the risk of having depression than those who were not, reports the journal Psychiatry Research.

Researchers at Guangdong Pharmaceutical University, China, also found that the more regular the exposure to secondhand smoke, the worse the women’s symptoms were.

One theory is that nicotine in the exhaled smoke changes the balance of various brain chemicals, including serotonin and norepinephrine, which control mood.

Smokers have previously been shown to be more likely to be depressed, too.

Stem cells from unfertilised, donated human eggs are being used to treat Parkinson’s disease.

Foetal stem cells have been used before, but this new method avoids the ethical issues in using human embryos.

In a trial in Australia, 12 patients with moderate to severe Parkinson’s will have a single dose of a stem-cell solution injected into their brains. Stem cells have the ability to develop into other kinds of cells.

The idea is that these will replace the cells that produce dopamine (a chemical that helps control movement) which die off in Parkinson’s.

Around three tablespoons of cooked celeriac make up one of your five a day

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