Rheumatoid
Arthritis (RA)
- Causes
redness, warmth, and swelling of joints
- Usually
affects the same joint on both sides of the body
- Often
causes a general feeling of sickness, fatigue, weight loss, and fever
- May
develop suddenly, within weeks or months
- Most
often begins between ages 25 and 50
- Tiredness/Fatigue
- Stiffness,
Morning stiffness
- Flu-like
symptoms, low grade fever
- Pain
with prolonged sitting
- Rheumatoid
nodules, lumps of tissue directly under the skin
- Muscle
pain
- Depression,
weight loss, anemia, loss of appetite
WHAT
IS RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS?
Rheumatoid arthritis, or RA, is a common form
of arthritis (arh=joint, itis=inflammation). RA involves inflammation in the lining
of joints, leading to warmth, decreased range of motion, swelling and pain in
the joint. RA tends to persist for many years. Typically, it affects many different
joints throughout the body and can cause damage to the cartilage, bone, tendons
and ligaments of the joints.
In
the United States, almost one percent of the population, or 2.1 million people,
have RA. There are nearly three times as many women as there are men with the
disease. In women, the disease most commonly begins in the 30s through 60s. It
often occurs later in life for men than women. However, anyone can get RA, including
children. The disease occurs in all ethnic groups and in all parts of the world.
WHAT CAUSES
RA?
The cause of RA is not yet known, although we do know that the body's
immune system plays an important role in the inflammation and joint damage that
occurs in RA. The immune system is the body's defense against bacteria, viruses
and other foreign cells. In RA, your body's own immune system mistakes cells found
in your joints, and other organs as foreign cells and it wants to attack them.
In the process of attacking your own cells, fluid builds up in joints and causes
inflammation. Inflammation often means warmth, swelling, redness and pain in the
joint. The fluid and cells in the inflamed joint produce many substances, including
enzymes, antibodies, and cytokines, that cause joint damage. If inflammation persists,
it leads to damage to the smooth, protective lining (cartilage) that covers the
ends of the bones. Once this structure is damaged it does not repair itself. Bone
can rub against bone and the joint can be loose, unstable and painful, and lose
its mobility.
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