Rheumatoid Arthritis Essay

Rheumatoid arthritis is a systemic disease that affects whole systems of body particularly cardiovascular system, nerves, respiratory system (RACGP, 2009). The causes of rheumatoid arthritis are unknown but it is hereditary which assists to have a risk of rheumatoid arthritis by 50%-60% (RACGP, 2009).

Rheumatoid Arthritis or “RA” is an autoimmune disorder where the immune system mistakenly attacks its own body tissues. This disease affects the lining of joints causing pain and swelling. Eventually the swelling can lead to bone erosion and joint deformity. RA can happen to anyone at any age, but the majority of people who have to endure this disease are women over the age of 40.

As I began my sophomore year of high school, I envisioned another year full of sports and normal high school activities. I was looking forward to playing basketball as I had done in my freshman year. A few weeks into the new school year I slowly realized that vision would not play out how I thought it would. When I began to notice a nagging pain in my hands and fingers that would not go away, I knew something was wrong. Basketball, a sport that I had once loved to play became almost impossible for my swollen hands to handle. The pain progressively got worse and eventually spread throughout my body, making it difficult to walk and carry out simple tasks. After two long months of tests and several doctors, I was finally diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease that causes chronic inflammation of the joints. While inflammation of the tissue around the joints and inflammatory arthritis are characteristic features of rheumatoid arthritis, the disease can also cause inflammation and injury in other organs in the

As we grow older our bodies begin to degenerate, and stop working. There are many different kinds of diseases that we are subject to as we age, cancers, heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease, arthritis, and many others. All have a negative affect on our lives, making it difficult to function. Arthritis is the second leading chronic disease in the United States.

Rheumatoid Arthritis(RA) is the most common type of autoimmune arthritis. RA is a progressive and debilitating musculoskeletal disorder that affects the joints symmetrically, causing a range of systemic effects. What it causes is still not well known; nevertheless, findings of new research points towards a believe that it is triggered by a defective immune system, which causes the release of inflammatory chemicals. These chemicals cause damage to cartilage and bone, usually affecting the wrists, the joints of the hand, including the knuckles, the middle joints of the fingers and feet. While this condition can affect any joints, besides, important body organs such as the eyes and the lungs can also be affected by the inflammation that occurs as a result of this chronic condition. Only in America 1.3 million of people are affected by this ailment, and 75 % of them are mainly women. Its onset usually occurs between fourth and sixth decades; however, RA can occur at any age("Diseases And

Rheumatoid Arthritis has been subject of numerous studies and researches in the look for a better understanding of how it effects the individuals diagnosed with it. There is a higher incident of females diagnosed with RA than male as well as a relationship with genetic and environmental factors involved. Around one percent of the world population is affected by RA; therefore, diverse studies have been performed to understand how the lives of the diagnosed patients can be impacted by the disease. For example, how RA affects the mobility, safety and activities of daily living in general as well as the development of interventions to better approach RA. On

Treatment addresses the problems identified by evaluation of the patient, and often are guided by the progression of the disease. Some specific goals to work on with an individual with RA may be to maintain joint mobility, prevent joint deformity, maintain or increase strength and functional ability, balancing activity with rest, develop problem-solving skills to modify daily activities at home and at work to protect joints and preserve energy, and especially promote psychosocial adaptations to deal with their chronic disability. (Pisetsky, 2789).

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, systemic inflammatory autoimmune disease. The disease happens when the immune system mistakenly attacks a healthy tissue as if it was a foreign invader, such as a virus or bacteria. If left untreated it can lead to permanent joint damage, decrease in quality of life, and total disability. It affects over a million people in the U.S. alone. Rheumatoid arthritis symptoms include persistent joint inflammation which causes joint pain, stiffness, and swelling. Fatigue and stiffness are usually early symptoms. Joint pain can be an early symptom in a variety of diseases. Symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis often develop slowly over a period of weeks or longer, but this is not always the case, it can have an acute

Many people all over the world may have rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatoid Arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disorder that affects the small joints in the hands and feet (Mayoclinicorg, 2015). It is also an autoimmune disease, where the immune system sees the body as a foreign object and attacks it (Mayoclinicorg, 2015). As the chronic disorder matures, it could seep into the blood vessels and into other organs: heart, lungs, skin, and eyes (Mayoclinicorg, 2015). This chronic pain is found mostly in women around forty to sixty years old; however, men with low testosterone could also have the chronic disorder (Mayoclinicorg, 2015). Because smokers burn off certain cells to prevent infection, they are also at risk for rheumatoid arthritis. This

Rheumatoid Arthritis is a systemic autoimmune disorder. There are more than 100 different types of Arthritis, yet it is estimated that it affects approximately 1% of the population in the Western World. The disease is generally diagnosed in middle aged adults and the elderly. In rarer cases, children can also develop the disease and it is called Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. Women are three times more likely to have rheumatoid arthritis than men. (Stevens) Many people living with Rheumatoid Arthritis appear to be healthy individuals, but suffer internally. Today, I will discuss what rheumatoid arthritis is, how it is diagnosed, and how it affects the body.

A history and physical is the first thing exam that us done and based on those findings more tests are completed. A complete blood count is done to check for anemia which can be common in a RA patient and the white blood count. Positive RF occurs in approximately 80% of patients, and titers rise during active disease (Lewis et al., 2011). The RF is done to check how much in the blood and circulation throughout the body. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) are done to check for active local and systemic inflammation. Antinuclear antibody (ANA) titers are also seen in some RA patients (Lewis et al., 2011). ANA checks for the bad antibodies that are attacking the joints. Synovial fluid analysis is used to help diagnosis inflammation, pain and swelling. Increase in the fluid of the patient with RA and it may be a marker of progressive joint damage (Lewis et al., 2011). X-rays are done to check for swelling, bone demineralization, narrowing of the joint, subluxation and deformity (Lewis et al., 2011). Bone scans are done to detect joint changes. These tests are done at the beginning of the disease process and throughout to check on the progression of

Rheumatoid Arthritis is an inflammatory and autoimmune disease that occurs when your immune system mistakenly attacks healthy joints, causing horrific symptoms such as immense pain, swelling, stiffness, and loss of physical function (What is rheumatoid arthritis (RA)?). Joint pain which affects over seventy million Americans each year, can be discomfort, pain, or inflammation arising from any part of a joint, including cartilage, bone, ligaments, tendons, or muscles (Rheumatoid Arthritis.). It is very common in Rheumatoid Arthritis and Osteoarthritis, which is inflammation or pain from within the joint itself. It can be mild, causing soreness only after certain activities, or it can be severe making even limited movement, particularly bearing

Rheumatoid Arthritis or (RA) is an autoimmune disease that attacks the joints and connective tissue. The result is inflammation that produces permanent damage in the joints. Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic syndrome that tends to be progressive and destructive as compared to Osteoarthritis or (OA), which is more of an age related disease caused by “wear and tear” of the joints. In contrast to (OA), rheumatoid arthritis is characterized by inflammation mostly of the joints, but is a general body disease.

It is usually know as rheumatoid arthritis, but this disease is one caused by the patient’s own body against itself. The body produces proteins that attack healthy tissue causing it to be an autoimmune disease. The true cause of rheumatoid arthritis is unknown but could be due to certain viruses, bacteria, fungi or due to genetics. The diagnosis of RA is established usually on clinical criteria and serologic results in the lab. Usually rheumatoid factor, which is an antibody specific for the Fc portion of the human IgG, this has been a marker used by doctors to help diagnose RA. The detection of elevated serum levels RF IgG antibodies has been almost exclusively confined to rheumatoid arthritis patients, not patients with other types of arthritis. The first of the symptoms one is looking for is the inflammation within joints of the body and inflammation causing stiffness and soreness to the patient. One may also experience fatigue from the inflammation and fever. When trying to figure out if a patient is infected with rheumatoid factors a doctor may run a number of tests to deliver a confirmatory diagnosis. One of the most simple and crude ways to test for this is ESR which is also known as Sedimentation Rate. This test helps to the doctor if there is inflammation within the body. The test results show that if someone has higher levels of inflammation in their body the sedimentation rate results will be higher. Another test to help doctors see if there is inflammation within the body is the C-reactive protein test. Both of these tests are done when your doctor suspects that you have an acute condition causing inflammation, such as a serious bacterial or fungal infection or when you are suffering from an inflammatory disorder such as arthritis, an autoimmune disorder such as rheumatoid arthritis. The gold standard of testing for RA is the CylicCitrullinated Peptide Antibody, this