Improved treatments of joint diseases, such as, e.g. osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, and pain, wherein a strontium-containing compound is administered alone or in combination with one or more second therapeutically and / or prophylactically active substances, selected from the group consisting of bisphosphonates, glucosamine, pallitative agents, analgesic agents, disease modifying anti-rheumatic compounds (DMARDs), selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs), aromatase inhibitors, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents (NSAIDs), COX-2 inhibitors, COX-3 inhibitors, opioids, inhibitors / antagonists of IL-1, inhibitors / antagonists of TNF-alpha, inhibitors of matrix metallo-proteinases (MMPs), cathepsin K inhibitors, inhibitors / antagonists of RANK-ligand, statins, glucocorticoids, chondroitin sulphate, NMDA receptor antagonists, inhibitors of interleukin-I converting enzyme, Calcitonin gene related peptide antagonists, glycine antagonists, vanilloid receptor antagonists, inhibitors of inducible nitric oxide synthetase (iNOS), N-acetylcholine receptor agonists, neurokinin antagonists, neuroleptic agents, PAR2 receptor antagonists and anabolic growth factors acting on joint tissue components. Pharmaceutical compositions comprising a strontium-containing compound and a second therapeutically and / or prophylactically active substance as defined above.