Facts you should know about rheumatoid arthritis (RA)
Doctors classify the severity of a patient’s RA using a classification and staging system. There are four stages and four classes of rheumatoid arthritis.
What should you know about Rheumatoid arthritis?
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The COVID-19 vaccine may be less effective in individuals with RA compared with the general population because of drugs against rheumatoid arthritis (DMARDs) administered to these patients.
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Rheumatoid arthritis signs and symptoms include
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joint pain, such as in the joints of the feet, hands, and knees,
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swollen joints,
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fever,
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limping,
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loss of range of motion,
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tender joints,
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loss of joint function,
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stiff joints,
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fatigue,
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joint redness,
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rheumatoid nodules,
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anemia,
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joint warmth,
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joint deformity, and
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symptoms and signs that affect both sides of the body (symmetry).
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There is no cure for RA. The treatment of rheumatoid arthritis optimally involves a combination of patient education, rest and exercise, joint protection, medicines, and occasionally surgery.
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Early RA treatment results in a better prognosis.
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In rheumatoid arthritis, multiple joints are usually, but not always, affected (polyarthritis) in a symmetrical pattern.
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Damage to joints can occur early and does not always correlate with the severity of RA symptoms.
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The “rheumatoid factor” is an antibody that can be found in the blood of 80% of people with rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatoid factor is detected in a simple blood test. Possible risk factors for developing rheumatoid arthritis include genetic background, smoking, silica inhalation, periodontal disease, and microbes in the bowels (gut bacteria).
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The cause of rheumatoid arthritis is not known.
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Rheumatoid arthritis can affect people of all ages.
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NSAIDs, DMARDs, TNF alpha inhibitors, IL-6 inhibitors, T-cell activation inhibitors, B-cell depleters, JAK inhibitors, immunosuppressants, and steroids treat RA.
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Researchers have developed medicines that are biosimilar to biologic drugs, and many others are currently under study.