A particularly good and legitimate concern several people have when a knee, shoulder or any joint for that matter starts hurting without obvious trauma is, “Do I have arthritis”?

As aches and pains can simply be blamed on life, the way the pain presents is how to differentiate an autoimmune disease like rheumatoid arthritis from a wear and tear arthritis, also known as osteoarthritis. If you can differentiate your own pain, it allows you to know how to treat it and when to see your doctor.

The first and most accepted way to distinguish a worrisome autoimmune process from a simple wear and tear process is when the pain presents itself. Pain upon awakening that gets better with activity is more indicative of an autoimmune inflammatory process like rheumatoid arthritis. Pain that gets worse with activity is more likely osteoarthritis or an injury. If you strain or injure your knee it feels better to rest it and it hurts more when using it. If you have primarily joint pain it is more likely osteoarthritis.

It is unlikely for an autoimmune inflammatory process to involve pain in muscles and joints. Autoimmune muscle disease usually presents as weakness, not pain. Full body aching and pain is less likely autoimmune disease. Stiffness as a symptom is not helpful in discerning the different forms of arthritis as we all get stiff as we age. If your pain is greater when you wake up in the morning and gets better over the course of the day, it is a good idea to see your doctor. If your pain gets worse with activity, it may also be good to see your doctor, but using remedies like alternating ice and heat on the painful area, a topical anti-inflammatory, or natural alternatives such as the pain treating combination of Curcumin and Boswellia can also help. Oral anti-inflammatories, such as ibuprofen need to be taken with caution as they have a very extensive side effect profile.

Obviously, there is a lot of variability in how people perceive pain, but my hope is this will provide you with more direction as to when to seek medical care.

Dr. Warren Willey is a Pocatello physician. Visit his website at drwilley.com.