May is National Arthritis Awareness Month, and in the United States, 23% of all adults—over 54 million people—have arthritis.

“About 24 million adults are limited in their activities from arthritis, and more than 1 in 4 adults with arthritis report severe joint pain,” reports the CDC. As new OTC products enter the marketplace to address pain management, how can we determine which ones will be most effective?

Hisamitsu America, the marketers of Salonpas®, are duty bound to educate, update and share the contemporary view of how and where topical analgesics fit within pain management. The company motto is ‘Salonpathy’ – which means to improve the quality of life through patch. As such, Hisamitsu America commissioned a video tutorial by Dr. Bob Arnot, who over the course of his career as a physician, Chief Medical Correspondent and War Correspondent, has been exposed to a wide variety of pain management drugs and approaches.

The FDA just approved a new drug, formerly available by prescription only exclusively for arthritis, to over-the-counter (OTC) status. In addition, government medical agencies including the CDC, and American College of Rheumatologists are embracing topical medicines as the first line treatment in light of their strong safety profile and, for a select few, clinically supported efficacy. In that last regard, there is news on a product that can provide clinically meaningful pain relief in the first day. All of this is captured in the educational video.

“One thing I’ve seen is that the United States is much more reliant on taking pills for pain than the rest of the world, where topical analgesics, physical therapy and other approaches are more widely used,” says Dr. Bob Arnot. “The reliance on pills, many of which come with side effects that can be severe when used in greater quantities than labeled or for longer than labeled has led me to conclude for muscle, back and joint pains it’s best to start with ‘Topicals First’.”

“As a physician, I have share some great options to safely and effectively relieve your pain,” says Dr. Bob Arnot on the video where he comments on recommended Arthritis medicines, “Salonpas Pain Relief Patch Large, the first OTC topical analgesic ever approved by the FDA, and a new entrant to the category, Voltaren Arthritis Pain Gel which was recently approved by the FDA for OTC use.

“In regard to the FDA new drug approval process, there is a new over-the-counter option for arthritis sufferers,” says Dr. Bob Arnot. On February 14, 2020 the Food and Drug administration approved Voltaren Arthritis Pain Gel for OTC use. Dr. Bob points out some things to consider if you are an arthritis sufferer and want to consider this product:

It’s not labeled for immediate relief, something to think about if you are in pain now.

Dosing can be cumbersome as you need to squeeze a length of gel next to a dosing card. There are two doses depending on the size of the joints you are treating. This can be repeated up to 4 times a day.
Voltaren can only be used on 6 joints and has not been proven effective for any other pains such as back aches or muscle strains.

“The good news is if you are an arthritis sufferer and want fast and effective relief, there are other topical options,” says Dr. Bob Arnot including “Salonpas Pain Relief Patch Large which is a great choice for fast, effective arthritis relief.” Additional benefits of the Salonpas Pain Relief Patch are:
Speed of onset –It begins to work in one hour.
Time to efficacy- The patch demonstrated clinically meaningful pain relief in the first day, and improved range of motion.
Salonpas is easy to apply and the dose is pre-measured in the patch.
Salonpas works up to 12 hours.
Salonpas can be used for multiple pains.

“As a physician, I recommend topicals first and I have shared some great options to safely and effectively relieve your pain,” says Dr. Bob Arnot.

Disclosure of Material Connection: This is a "sponsored post." The company who sponsored it compensated me via a cash payment, gift, or something else of value to write it. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."