Arthritis Information - Symptoms And Treatments

Written By Chouhab on mercredi 17 décembre 2008 | 04:41

By Jennifer King

Arthritis is an autoimmune debility that results in an aching swelling of the joints. RA is a systemic disease, most commonly affecting extra-articular tissues throughout the body including the muscles, heart, blood vessels, lungs and skin. RA might also cause swelling of the tissue around the joints, as well as causing symptoms to other organs in the body. RA is two to three times more common in a women than in a man, and generally will start affecting someone between the ages of 20 and 50. But RA can also burdon small children and adults older than age 50.

About 60% of RA patients are unable to work 10 years after the onset of their disease. arthritis is a common rheumatic disease, affecting over two million people in the United States. The disease is three times more likely to become a problem in women as in men. It plaguesAstrikes people of all ethnicities equally. The disease can cripple any joint, but the most typical joints are in the hands and/or feet. The disease produces swelling, pain,redness or a hot (or warm) sensation in the lining of a joint, the part where 2 or more bones actually touch. Of the world's population, about one percent of people are believed to have the disease, but this percentage does vary among different groups of people.

The disease is different from osteoarthritis, the common form of arthritis that commonly comes with older age. The disease can affect body parts as well as joints, such as your mouth, lungs and eyes. The disease is an autoimmune disease, which means the disease results from the immune system threatening 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.

Rheumatoid arthritis might start gradually or with a sudden, severe assault with flu-like symptoms. It's imperrative to remember that rheumatoid arthritis's symptoms vary from person to person. In some people the debility will be mild with periods of activity, or joint swelling with inactivity. Along with painful, inflamed joints, the disease can cause swelling in other body tissues and organs. In 20% of sufferers, growths called rheumatoid nodules develop under the skin, often over bony areas.

Relief for the disease has improved over time. Corticosteroids which are drugs, such as methylprednisolone and prednisone, decrease inflammation and pain, and slow joint damage. Drugs used to control the disease fall into two categories: those that are used to relieve symptoms, and medications that have the potential to change the course of the disease. Exercise is also an imperative part of any treatment program. Immunosuppressants medicines act to tame your immune system, which is out of control in the disease. Some of the commonly used immunosuppressants include cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan), cyclosporine (Neoral, Sandimmune), leflunomide (Arava) and azathioprine (Imuran).

These medications could have potentially serious side effects such as increased susceptibility to infection. Rituximab-Rituximab decreases the amount of B cells in the body, and B cells are part of the cause of inflammation.

Anti depressants are commonly used also. The most common of these that are used for RA pain and sleeping problems are trazodone (Desyrel), amitriptyline, and nortriptyline (Aventyl, Pamelor).

RA Alleviating Tips

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

A variety of anti-cytokine drugs are now being used to treat agonizing disease states such as Arthritis.

Joint replacement surgery might be required for severely 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 great for improving the blood circulation to the joints.

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