Posts Tagged ‘Arthritis causes’
What Is Rheumatoid Arthritis?
Rheumatoid arthritis is a destructive disease that targets primarily the joints. However, it also affects many other organs and systems, including brain, heart, kidneys, spleen, blood vessels, lungs and muscles.
Rheumatoid arthritis affects about 1 in 100 people. In developed countries, rheumatoid arthritis is the most common autoimmune disease. Although rheumatoid arthritis can begin at any age, is more common after sixty. One in twenty women over the age of 65 has the disease. Economically it is very costly disease. Besides high direct medical costs is much more indirect medical cost. Rheumatoid arthritis causes many complications, requires drastic therapies and orthopedic surgery. Doctors estimate that rheumatoid arthritis does at a time and three patients with permanent disabilities. Half of the patients stop working in the first decade of diagnosis.
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic disease. This leads to loss of mobility due to joint destruction and pain. The joints suffer a polyarticular form. This means that many affected joints, at the same time. Usually at the start joint problems are asymmetrical, the symmetrical later. The pain improves when you use the affected joints. There is also morning stiffness of all joints for an hour or more. In osteoarthritis pain worsens in the opposite direction – on the day after use. Read the rest of this entry »