Symptoms of Rheumatoid Arthritis Explained
Rheumatoid Arthritis can be a big hindrance to daily activities and patients are often faced with many difficulties. Categorized under the autoimmune type among the seven main arthritis conditions, rheumatoid arthritis is a disorder occurring when the body’s immune system starts to attack itself because of some external trigger. The most commonly found arthritis condition is osteoarthritis, which affects the joints due to age, trauma or infection. Rheumatoid arthritis is a gradual condition, developing over several months and years. The symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis begin with little joint aches and pains.
Described in brief, rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic ailment, caused in response to some external factor triggering a systemic autoimmune condition. The joints swell up and begin to worsen in physical fitness over time, creating long-term pain and discomfort. The beginning symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are inflamed and painful fingers and toes. The disorder mostly affects the joints, but around 15% of rheumatoid arthritis patients are also affected with extra-articular (beyond the joint areas) symptoms.
In general, the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are not uniform, rising up and dying down sporadically. This is known as ?flare-ups.?The symptoms can appear day or night, but the swelling and pain are often at their worst during the morning, just after waking. Since you move around during the day, or at least try to, and the joints grow less stiffened, the symptoms ease out by afternoon and often reduce dramatically by nighttime.
After rheumatoid arthritis starts to diffuse around the human system, it generally affects all the joints, including shoulders, elbows, jaws and hips. The swelling commonly affect in pairs, often causing discomfort in both elbows or both knees etc. The typical symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are joint swelling, pain and stiffness, mostly seeing with additional redness and a faint burning sensation around the joints.
Secondary symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are related to general health, occurring in response to the painful symptoms. These include appetite loss, depression, anxiety, anemia, skin nodules and general feeling of sickness. The skin nodules are developed by 25% of the patients, mostly over the elbows and forearms. These are painless and resemble small lumps. Anemia is caused by the lack of red blood cells for the purpose of carrying oxygen, resulting in the patient feeling lazy and fatigued. This condition is seeing in 80% of the rheumatoid arthritis patients.
Severe rheumatoid arthritis can also cause fever and weight loss due to the combination of other symptoms. The discomfort often drives patients to sleep deprivation, weakness and constant pain. Most patients suffer from anxiety and depression because of this and as a result, they become more physically ill. The symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis also include inflammation of other body parts, such as the lining of the heart and lungs, blood vessels, tear glands and salivary glands.
There are certain risk factors associated with the conditions that go beyond simply recognizing the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis. Gender, age, smoking and genetics are the most common risk factors for rheumatoid arthritis. Women are more susceptible to the ailment and women over 40 are at a higher risk than younger women. Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis can occur in younger people, although it’s rare. It’s important to understand that rheumatoid arthritis is not entirely hereditary, which means you can be carrying the genes for it, but it’s not assured you’ll develop the condition. External triggers are necessary for that to happen. Smoking in particular can trigger and worsen rheumatoid arthritis.
