Bone spurs, also known as osteophytes, are common in middle-aged and older adults over the age of 40, and are often painful enough to prevent them from standing or walking for long periods of time. Why do bone spurs occur? When people reach a certain age, all body tissues and organs degenerate, and bone tissue is no exception. Therefore, degeneration is the basis for the development of bone spurs. Combined with congenital genetics, congenital abnormalities in joint structure; acquired unevenness, injury or mechanical wear of the joint surface, poor joint alignment due to extra-articular deformities, and joint instability, the degree of bone growth varies for each person. Some people think that the more they wear their bone spurs, the better they are, and the more they wear their joints, the less painful they become. As a result, some elderly people start to climb mountains, go up and down steps, walk or run for a long time, hoping to grind away the bone spurs through these exercises, but as a result, instead of grinding away the bone spurs, the remaining good cartilage and normal bones are also worn away, making the clinical symptoms more serious and even causing bone defects, which can cause a lot of trouble for future joint surgery. Can medications eliminate bone spurs? Bone spurs are normal bone tissue, and they cannot be eliminated by medications. Clinical symptoms caused by less serious bone spurs can be treated by medication, joint injections, physical therapy and body therapy; while arthritis caused by serious bone spurs can only be treated by joint cavity cleaning and artificial joint surface replacement. Bone spurs can be treated with moderate exercise, which is beneficial for recovery. As a common disease in middle-aged and elderly people, many patients are very nervous about having a bone spur and often use incorrect treatment methods, such as not daring to move to prevent the condition from worsening, or over-activity in an attempt to wear down the spur. The clinical manifestations of bone spurs are mainly pain, which is aggravated by activity and improves after rest. Some patients feel pain at rest or in the morning, which is relieved after a little activity. The pain of bone spurs is sometimes associated with factors such as changes in the weather. Patients are reminded that having a bone spur does not mean that they cannot exercise. On the contrary, activities such as walking, cycling and swimming can be done moderately during the non-acute period, especially to increase the exercise of the muscles around the joint to increase joint stability. Patients with bone spurs should pay attention to the protection of the joints in their daily life and avoid excessive weight-bearing activities of the joints. In particular, they should avoid inappropriate long-distance running, mountain climbing, stair climbing and other exercises. Patients with bone spurs who are overly obese should also lose weight to reduce the load on their joints. When you have bone spurs and experience joint pain, you should go to the hospital in time to identify the cause of the pain and ensure accurate and timely treatment.