In fact, many gain additional weight, Rasmussen said. When arthritis initially takes hold, many people simply scale back their activity level to avoid the pain. By doing so, they become sedentary and gain weight, adding to the stress on their joints and creating new health problems or exacerbating existing conditions.

The downward spiral builds on itself, leading to depression and a continued lack of motivation to be active, he said. While the goal is avoiding joint pain from arthritis, the result is often a much larger set of health problems that further restrict activity.

"I see this almost on a weekly basis with patients who come in and seem good candidates for surgery based on the fact that they have hips or knees where the cartilage has worn away and it's bone-on-bone. They have severe pain that limits their function," he said.

"But they are not good surgery candidates because they have other medical problems that increase their risk from surgery, like diabetes, high blood pressure, lung disease and heart conditions."

That's where the hospital's Moves Program can help, he said.

Rather than treating arthritis as simply a disease of the joints, the program provides patients with all the resources necessary to "deal with other issues that go along with arthritis, so we can help them get by as long as possible before they need surgery and help make them better candidates for surgery at the same time."

Specialists use physical therapy, nutritional therapy, psychological testing, medical evaluation and medication to treat arthritis symptoms and related problems, he said. National studies have shown the true cost of arthritis goes beyond the financial burden. "It takes a toll on people physically, mentally and emotionally," he said.

After patients have made lifestyle changes and medication no longer works to help control the joint pain, a hip or knee replacement is often still necessary, but those procedures are much less traumatic for patients who are in good physical health otherwise, Rasmussen said.

"It's very effective at relieving pain and increasing mobility and function. Studies have shown that total hip and total knee replacements are the most successful reconstructive surgeries that have ever been done."

Health Hotline

Arthritis is the topic of Saturday's Deseret News/Intermountain Healthcare Hotline. From 10 a.m. to noon, Dr. Lynn Rasmussen, an orthopedic surgeon, and Dale Aguirre, a physical therapist, both from Intermountain Healthcare, will answer questions about symptoms, treatments and joint replacement. From the Salt Lake area, call 801-236-6061. Elsewhere, the toll-free number is 800-925-8177, only operational during hotline hours.

Tomorrow: Details about how costs and lifestyle factors figure into treatment for arthritis.

E-mail: carrie@desnews.com

This month, you can also e-mail questions to hotline@desnews.com from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. A sampling of questions and the answers will be posted online Friday, July 17, at deseretnews.com.