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Rheumatoid Arthritis
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Rheumatoid arthritis is a serious inflammatory disease. It is also known as cooked food disease. It is mainly characterized by the inflammation of lining of the joints accompanied by swelling and deformation. The inflammation also affects the connective tissues throughout the body. It usually begins slowly but sometimes appears suddenly. Rheumatoid arthritis takes place in three stages. In the first stage there is swelling in the synovial lining with pain and swelling in and around the joints. In second stage there is rapid growth and division of the cells that makes the synovium thick. In the last stage the inflamed cells start releasing enzymes that digest bones and cartilage causing deformation of the joints. It affects more than 2 million people in the United States. It is three times more common in women as compare to men. It may have different affects on different people. Some may feel intense pain and for some no such signs of pain occurs. It can occur at any age but the prone periods are of mid forties till sixties.
Symptoms for
Different people show different symptoms but the major one is pain and stiffness in the morning that reduces during the day. In rheumatoid arthritis more than one joint is affected. The other symptoms of arthritis may appear and disappear soon depending on the degree of tissue inflammation. Most commonly it begins in the smaller joints of the fingers, hands and wrists. With the time the movement becomes painful and difficult. Various other symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are:
- Fatigue
- Weight loss
- Anemia
- Poor appetite
- Fever
- Enlargement of liver and spleen
- Weakness
- Muscle pain
Causes for Rheumatoid Arthritis
In rheumatoid arthritis the immune system turns against healthy cells and till date all the scientists have failed to understand the cause behind this process. Some are of the view that it can be caused by viral or bacterial infection. Heredity is considered to be the main factor. But this cause is also contradictory, as research has shown that a particular gene responsible for rheumatoid arthritis is absent in some patients suffering from the disease. It is present in others that show no such signs and symptoms of the arthritis. Women suffer from rheumatoid arthritis more often than expected in the year after pregnancy and symptoms increases after the delivery. These facts lead researchers to believe that gender might play a role in the process of development of this arthritis. Many researchers believe that there is a foreign substance that may contribute to the development of rheumatoid arthritis but it is still not revealed and proved. Inflammation caused by this foreign body is believed to be the cause of joint pain, swelling and deformation. The various factors like hormonal imbalance, physical and emotional stress, severe fright, shock and injury are also thought to be responsible for the rheumatoid arthritis. |
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