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Rheumatoid arthritis symptoms, causes and other risk factors

Rheumatoid arthritis is a disease that affects the small joint in your hands and feet. This is chronic inflammatory disorder. Same as the wear-and-tear damage to osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis is affecting the lining on your joints. Rheumatoid arthritis can cause a painful swelling that can eventually result in bone erosion and joint defamatory. Rheumatoid-arthritis is occurring when your immune system attacks your own body’s tissues. Sometimes rheumatoid arthritis can affect on other organs of the body (such as the eyes, skin, lungs and blood vessels). This disease can occur at any age. Usually, it begins at the age of 40 [1]. Rheumatoid arthritis is the most affecting on women [2]. The most medical treatments are focusing on the control on the rheumatoid arthritis symptoms and preventing the joint causes.

Symptoms of Rheumatoid Arthritis

These are the signs and the symptoms:

  • Fever
  • Tender joints
  • Warm joints
  • Weight loss
  • Fatigue
  • Swollen joints
  • Rheumatoid arthritis (firm bumps of tissue under the skin of your arms)
  • Morning stiffness that may last for hours

When the rheumatoid arthritis is in the early stage it tends to affect your small joints first. The small joints are the joints that attach your fingers to your hand and your toes to your feet. As the disease progresses, symptoms often spread to the knees, ankles, wrists, hips, shoulders and elbows. In many cases symptoms occur in the same joints on the both sides of your body. Rheumatoid symptoms can vary. Also rheumatoid symptoms can come and go. The flares (periods of increased disease activity) are alternating with the periods of relative permission (when the pain and swelling disappear).rheumatoid arthritis

When to seek medical advice? If you think that you have the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, than you should visit your doctor. It is important to get a proper diagnosis. There are a number of conditions that can cause problems, such as stiffness and joint pain. When the rheumatoid arthritis is diagnosed in the early stages it is better for your health. It can help you to prevent yourself from more serious illness. If you have been swelling and discomfort in your joints, you should make an appointment with your doctor and make all the testes needed. You should expect from your doctor to ask you some questions, such as:

  • How long do you have your symptoms?
  • Are you physically active?
  • If you are physically active, does any activity make your symptoms better or worse?
  • Have your symptoms changed from the moment you are having them?
  • Is someone from your family having the same symptoms?
  • Has happened in the past rheumatoid arthritis in your family?

After your doctor had asked you all the questions, he or she will tell you to make some tests. These tests could be blood test or x-ray. After making these tests they will tell you if are having rheumatoid arthritis or not. If the rheumatoid arthritis is in early stage, than is easier to discover.

Causes of Rheumatoid Arthritis

The lining around your joints is called synovium. Rheumatoid arthritis is occuring when your immune system attacks yours synoviums. As the results of this inflammation thickens the synovium. This could be a reason to be destroyed your cartilage and bones within the joint. The ligaments and tendons that are holding the joint together stretch and weaken. The joints also can lose their shape and alignment. Sometimes doctors could not know what are causing your disease. To be sure your doctor, you should make all the testes that your doctor will tell you. Thank your doctor will diagnose you or you should tell your doctor that this could be genetic disease (might you have someone in your family which had rheumatoid arthritis in the past). Sometimes the reason for having rheumatoid disease is caused by environmental factors, such as bacteria and certain viruses. They might trigger your disease. [3]

Risk factors: Here we give you list of the factors that may increase your risk of this disease:

  • Age: Rheumatoid-arthritis can occur at any age. In the most cases is occurring between the age of 40 and 60. [1]
  • Sex: Women are having more chances to have rheumatoid-arthritis compared with the men. [2]
  • Family history: Rheumatoid arthritis is also genetic disease. If someone from your family is having rheumatoid arthritis, you might have more chances to have rheumatoid arthritis. [4,5]

References:

[1] Pawlowska J, Smolenska Z, Daca A, et al. Older age of rheumatoid arthritis onset is associated with higher activation status of peripheral blood CD4+ T cells and disease activity. Clinical and Experimental Immunology. 2011;163(2):157–64.

[2] Sokka T, Toloza S, Cutolo M, et al. Women, men, and rheumatoid arthritis: analyses of disease activity, disease characteristics, and treatments in the QUEST-RA Study. Arthritis Research and Therapy. 2009;11(1):R7.

[3] Wang WT, Huang SW, Liou TH, Lin HW. Patients with rheumatoid arthritis were associated with a risk of rotator cuff diseases. Journal of Clinical Medicine. 2019;8(2):129.

[4] Frisell T, Saevarsdottir S, Askling J. Family history of rheumatoid arthritis: An old concept with new developments. Nature Reviews Rheumatology. 2016;12(6).

[5] Larkin JG. Family history of rheumatoid arthritis—a non-predictor of inflammatory disease? Rheumatology. 2010;49(3):608-9.

Vijila
Vijila
Dr. Emil Sarsath (aka) Vijila, a licensed naturopathic doctor (BSMS) who always ensures his patients receive compassionate, and individualized care. He has extensive experience in primary care, digestive health, mental health, nervous system disorder and more.Area of Expertise – Naturopathic Medicine, Whole Foods-based Nutrition, Siddha, Panchakarma.She is always available through [email protected]

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