You want a specialist's name before you spend a morning on the phone. The choice is easier once you know the two kinds of doctor in play and what to ask each office.
Rheumatologist or orthopedist
The Arthritis Foundation lists two likely referrals. You may be referred to a rheumatologist or orthopedist, doctors who specialize in arthritis and other musculoskeletal conditions.
Which one fits your kind of arthritis is a question for the first office you call.
Costs and terms a specialist's title cannot give you
A title carries no fee, wait time or agreement term. Those figures come from the office itself.
In Little Falls, that means a few plain questions to each office before you book.
What to do before you book
Ask each office what a first visit costs and what it covers. Ask whether follow-up visits are billed separately, and ask for any agreement or plan terms in writing.
For background while you wait, WebMD's pain management center gives a general overview of the field. If your joint pain comes in sudden flares, the NIAMS page on gout describes one specific cause worth raising at the visit. The CDC's arthritis overview is a neutral place to read about the condition itself.
A practitioner's note
Choosing a doctor is a commitment that outlasts the first appointment. The better pick is the office whose costs and terms you can read before you sit down, not the one with the shortest hold message.