It is well clear that rheumatoid arthritis is not brought about by the continued life-long process of joint wear and tear. In fact, its cause lies in an immune system fault. Though unnatural sounding, it is true that the body behaves as if it is warding off a disease, which is common practice initiated by the immune system. Only this time, the object of this vicious attack is not a germ but tissue otherwise healthy! When the tissues around joints are attacked in this manner, the effect is the erosion of muscle, bone whose linings have thinned. There is painful swelling as a result.
A rheumatoid arthritis patient stares at a crippled future. But with systematic addressing of the progress of this disease, it is quite possible to slow down the depletion of useful tissue, bone and muscle in a pseudo defence mechanism of the immune system. The first step is observation. With all that pain, a patient may be tempted to obtain any available painkillers. While this is normal and logical, you need to observe the nature and source of the pain. Note the frequency and intensity of the pain. Is it swollen, warm to touch, is is localised or wide spread?
Diagnosis is the second step. Once it is established that a form of arthritis has taken root in your body, a specialist will mark your symptoms against a checklist. Symmetrical swellings are common with rheumatoid arthritis. If one knee is infected, the other knee is also equally afflicted. A test on your blood can also confirm the presence of an abnormal antibody named the rheumatoid factor that is found present in close to ninety percent of all sufferers of rheumatoid arthritis.
Seeking treatment is the next logical step. An early diagnosis gives you a lead over the illness. You can slow the progress of the disease by using DMARDs. If taken early after diagnosis, it is possible to avoid crippling effects of the disease since administration of these drugs reduces damage to your joints. Killing the pain can be done by use of aspirin as well as some other anti-inflammatory medicines that do not contain a steroid base. It is however important to note that these drugs could cause bleeding in the gastro-intestinal regions and sometimes cause heart damage.
Moderate exercise is the other sure path to keeping your body able to as much as possible fight the debilitating progress of the disease. As it is known, rheumatoid arthritis has no cure. You can slow it down and set yourself up to enjoy the rest of your life, finish up projects before your mobility is completely messed up with. With medication, the rheumatoid arthritis pain is bearable and you can always weigh the risk associated with using the drugs against withstanding pain.
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One in three adult Americans suffer from some form of arthritis and the disease affects about twice as many women as men.Arthritic diseases include rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis, which are autoimmune diseases; septic arthritis, caused by joint infection; and the more common osteoarthritis, or degenerative joint disease. Arthritis can be caused from strains and injuries caused by repetitive motion, sports, overexertion, and falls. Unlike the autoimmune diseases, osteoarthritis largely affects older people and results from the degeneration of joint cartilage. Other forms are discussed below.
Arthritic joints can be sensitive to weather changes. The increased sensitivity is thought to be caused by the affected joints developing extra nerve endings in an attempt to protect the joint from further damage. Signs and symptoms All arthritides feature pain, which is generally worse in the morning and on initiating movement, and resolves in the course of time. In elderly people and children, the pain may not be the main feature, and the patient simply moves less (elderly) or refuse to use the affected limb (children).
When faced with joint pain, a doctor will generally ask about several other medical symptoms (such as fever, skin symptoms, breathlessness, Raynaud's phenomenon) that may narrow down the differential diagnosis to a few items, for which testing can be done. Arthritis and fever together are pointers towards septic arthritis (see below). This is a medical emergency, and requires urgent referral to a rheumatologist.
Blood tests and X-rays of the affected joints are often performed to make the diagnosis. X-rays can show erosions or bone appositions. Screening blood tests: full blood count, electrolytes, renal function, liver enzymes, calcium, phosphate, protein electrophoresis, C-reactive protein and the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR). Specific tests are the rheumatoid factor, antinuclear factor (ANF), extractable nuclear antigen and specific
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