by 
The Curious Bag
-
Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disorder that causes chronic inflammation in the joints, especially the hands and feet. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported that about 1.3 million people in the United States had rheumatoid arthritis in 2005.
Symptoms
Symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis include pain and swelling in joints, skin bumps (nodules), fatigue, stiffness and weight loss. These symptoms generally appear during flare-ups of the disease.
Risk Factors
Rheumatoid arthritis is more likely to affect women, people aged 40 to 60, smokers, and people with a family history of rheumatoid arthritis.
Complications
As the disease progresses, it can cause permanent damage to joints and the surrounding cartilage. This can result in skeletal deformations that have a debilitating affect on a person's ability to move freely.
Medication
Treatments aim at relieving the symptoms. Medications used to treat rheumatoid arthritis include non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), corticosteroids, disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs), immunosuppressants and TNF-alpha inhibitors
Surgery
Surgery (to repair the damage to joints) is another option for people who do not respond to medication and physical therapy. Surgical procedures for rheumatoid arthritis include joint replacement, tendon repair, joint-lining removal and joint fusion.
Source:
Mayo Clinic: Rheumatoid Arthritis
RELATED QUESTIONS
Copyright 2023, Wired Ivy, LLC