Arthritis is an autoimmune ailment that results in chronic inflammation of the joints. RA will effect your whole body, most commonly affecting extra-articular fibres throughout your body including the muscles, heart, blood vessels, lungs and skin. Rheumatoid arthritis might also cause swelling of the tissue around the joints, as well as causing symptoms to other organs in the body. Rheumatoid arthritis is two to three times more likely to occur in a women than in a man, and usually will start affecting an individual between the ages of 20 and 50. But RA can also strike in small children and adults older than age 50.

About 60% of RA patients cannot work 10 years after the start of their debility. Rheumatoid arthritis is a common debilitating disease, that affects more than two million people in the USA. Rheumatoid arthritis is three times more common in women as in men. It plagues people of all ethnicities without prejudice. The disease can affect any joint, but the most common joints are in your hands and/or feet. RA causes swelling, pain,redness or a hot (or warm) sensation in the lining of a joint, the spot where 2 or more bones actually touch. Worldwide, about one percent of people are believed to have RA, but the rate does vary among different groups of people.

The disease is different from osteoarthritis, the typical form of arthritis that often comes with older age. Arthritis will affect body parts as well as joints, such as your mouth, lungs and eyes. The disease is an autoimmune disease, which means RA results from your immune system intruding the body's own fibres. The disease most often affects the lesser joints, such as those of the hands and/or feet, wrists, elbows, knees, and/or ankles.

Arthritis may start gradually or with a sudden, severe assault with flu-like symptoms. It's crucial to remember that rheumatoid arthritis's symptoms are different from person to person. In some people the debility will be mild with periods of activity, or joint inflammation with inactivity. As well as painful, inflamed joints, arthritis can cause inflammation in other organs and body tissues. In twenty percent of sufferers, growths called rheumatoid nodules develop under the skin, often over bony areas.

Treatments for the disease have improved in recent years. Corticosteroids which are drugs, such as methylprednisolone and prednisone, decrease inflammation and pain, and slow joint damage. Medications used to control RA fall into two categories: those that are used to relieve symptoms, and those that have the potential to alter the course of the debility. Exercise is also a crucial part of any treatment program. Immunosuppressants medicines act to manage your immune system, which is sporadic in the disease. A few of the popular immunosuppressants include cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan), cyclosporine (Neoral, Sandimmune), leflunomide (Arava) and azathioprine (Imuran).

These arthritis relievers may have potentially severe side effects like an increased chance of infection. Rituximab-Rituximab decreases the amount of B cells in your body, and B cells are involved in inflammation.

Anti depressants are commonly used also. The most common antidepressants used for rheumatoid arthritis pain and sleeping problems are trazodone (Desyrel), amitriptyline, and nortriptyline (Aventyl, Pamelor).

Arthritis Treatment Tips

You can try non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen (Motrin and others), naproxen (Naprosyn, Aleve), celecoxib (Celebrex), and a ton of others. NSAIDs are a type of medication that decreases pain and swelling.

Various anti-cytokine medications are now being used to treat agonizing debilities such as RA.

Joint replacement surgery may be necessary for seriously affected joints, such as knee replacement.

Manmade drugs such as Cortisteroids can be used. These are drugs that closely resemble cortisone which is a natural hormone produced by the body.

Some light exercise can be good for improving your blood circulation to the joints.