Women are more prone to joint pain than men for several reasons. Hormone fluctuations make women more vulnerable to joint pain, and female physiology is less equipped to deal with pain. Several conditions that cause joint pain, such as osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and lupus, disproportionately affect women. Estrogen levels impact joint pain, with many women experiencing increased pain before or during their periods when estrogen levels decrease. Differences in the female brain and joints may also contribute to greater pain sensitivity and risk of conditions like osteoarthritis of the knee. Women need to be aware of how medications can differently impact them due to hormonal fluctuations.

1. Joint Pain and Women Women suffer from joint pain more than men Many factors contribute to this: Hormone fluctuations affect their vulnerability Physiologically less equipped to deal with pain. Joint Pain & Women

2. Causes of Joint Pain in Women In osteoarthritis,60 percent are women Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), an autoimmune disease, women are 3 times more prone than men. Women are nine times more likely to develop lupus Women are three times more likely to have scleroderma Women are twice as likely to suffer from MS. Fibromyalgia, a condition that can cause joint pain, affects women eight times more than men. Joint Pain & Women

3. The Estrogen-Joint Pain Connection "Women typically feel pain more intensively, more often, and in more parts of the body than men Female hormones are believed to play a role in women's high vulnerability to pain. Many women with OA, RA, lupus, and fibromyalgia report an increase in joint pain just before or during their periods This is likely because estrogen levels plummet right before menstruation and rise again after a woman's period is over Joint Pain & Women

4. The Estrogen-Joint Pain Connection Estrogen is protective against pain 80 percent of women with RA experience a remission of symptoms during pregnancy and a flare-up during the postpartum period Reproductive hormones are suspected as factors in the high incidence of autoimmune diseases in women Joint Pain & Women

5. Women's Bodies and Joint Pain Hormones are only part of the picture, however. Female brains may be wired for pain. It's thought that endorphins, the body's natural painkillers, work more effectively in men than in women. "Studies have found that females release less of the brain chemical dopamine in response to painful stimulation. Without dopamine, endorphins can't function effectively," says Patrick Wood, MD, a pain researcher at Louisiana State University, in Shreveport, and medical advisor to the National Fibromyalgia Association. Female structural differences may contribute to some kinds of joint pain, too. For example, women are more prone to osteoarthritis of the knee. One possible explanation: "Women tend to be more limber and loose-jointed than men, so there's more movement in that area, increasing the risk that the kneecap will rub on the bones below it," notes Bruce Solitar, MD, a rheumatologist at the NYU Hospital for Joint Diseases, in New York City. This may lead to osteoarthritis symptoms in the knee area. Joint Pain Medication and Women Women react differently than men to some medications for relieving joint pain. For example, fluctuating hormone levels can reduce the amount of medicine circulating in the bloodstream, which means that women may need more of the standard dose. Plus, female digestive systems are slower, causing certain medications (like pain relievers) to take more time to pass through the digestive tract where they're absorbed more fully. And because pain sensitivity increases right before a woman's period, more pain-relieving medicine may be required at this time of the month. "Women need to be aware of these factors, ask the right questions, and be persistent about getting an accurate diagnosis and proper treatment," says Dr. Tucker. By becoming educated about how joint pain affects them, women can increase the odds of finding relief and getting the best health care possible. Joint Pain & Women