Painful joints can make your life a misery, but there are ways to ease the discomfort:

Often wrongly associated with the elderly, arthritis is a common condition that causes pain and inflammation in a joint. In the UK, around 10 million people have it, and it affects all ages, including children. The two most common types of arthritis are osteoarthritis, with around eight million sufferers, and rheumatoid arthritis.

So what exactly is it? A joint is where two or more bones meet, says consultant hand surgeon, Mr Sanjay Miranda. The ends of the bones are covered in a tissue called cartilage. Cartilage enables smooth, pain free movement due to its lubricating properties. Arthritis occurs when the cartilage becomes thin, cracked and eventually goes. The rate of deterioration varies from a few months to many decades, depending on the underlying cause. The most commonly affected hand joints are the base of the thumb and joints at the end of the fingers.