Do you wake up daily with stiff and painful joints? This means you have rheumatoid arthritis, a disorder that causes inflammation and severe to mild pains in joints. The doctors term it as an auto-immune condition caused when the immune system attacks the body’s healthy tissues.
Generally, RA starts in adults and is most common in older people. This joint condition can be cured through various treatment methods like medicines, therapy and home remedies. If you feel pain or stiffness of joints regularly, do not ignore it; consult a physician and treat it immediately.
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic auto-immune disorder that affects your joints. The immune system goes awry and attacks your body's healthy cells, which results in severe pain in joints. It generally starts with hands and feet, but if ignored, it can damage other parts and organs of the body.
RA mainly affects the joints in the hands, wrists and knees. Signs of rheumatoid arthritis include –
There are mainly three types of RA, they are –
An individual whose blood consists of a specific protein, RF (Rheumatic Factor), may develop RA. A family history of positive RF also increases the risk by four times.
People who have negative RF and anti-CCP blood have milder RA than those who tested positive.
It is the most common type of RA found in children below 17 years. Symptoms are similar to adult RA but can hinder a child’s growth and development.
Some signs and symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis can be felt and others cannot, but it happens in stages as follows –
|
Stage |
Symptoms |
|
Stage 1 – Early Stage |
Inflammation inside joint, mild pain, stiffness, redness and tenderness. |
|
Stage 2 – Moderate Stage |
Pain and loss of mobility, and inflammation damages the cartilages. |
|
Stage 3 – Severe Stage |
Physical joint deformities, formation of rheumatoid nodules, and a further decrease in mobility. |
|
Stage 4 – End Stage |
Decrease of inflammation, and functional capability of joints that are more severe, chronic and disabling |
According to the researchers, women are more susceptible to rheumatoid arthritisthan men. Other characteristics that increase the risk factors of RA are as follows -
You cannot cure rheumatoid arthritis but it can be treated to prevent further complications. Medication, home remedies, exercises and dietary changes are types of treatment that one is prescribed.
Some drugs relieve pain and inflammation while others slow down the condition's progression.
A person diagnosed with RA can take some home remedies to improve quality of life.
A doctor may prescribe physiotherapy sessions to help you learn certain exercises or use assistive devices to slow down the progression of RA.
If medications fail surgery may be required to prevent or slow down the damage of joints. The surgeries include –
To prevent RA, specific measures can be taken, which includes –
RA can bring a lot of other health complications like –
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Disclaimer #2: This information is added only for informative purposes and collected from different sources across the Internet. Digit Insurance is not promoting or recommending anything here. Please verify the information before making any decisions.
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