Helping you to understand rheumatoid arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis is a condition that causes inflammation and swelling in the joints and connective tissues in the body.

Dealing with Rheumatoid Arthritis Fallout

These connective tissues are not limited to tendons and ligaments, but may also include soft organ tissues such as the eyes and the lungs. Rheumatoid arthritis is considered an autoimmune disease, which is an illness that occurs when the body attacks its own tissues and organs by mistake. This occurs when cells and anti-bodies receive messages from the brain and endocrine system to send out anti-bodies that fight specific infections, and then are unable to cease production of these anti-bodies.  The anti-bodies continue to seek and destroy a person's healthy cells and tissues after the original cause of the infection has been eradicated.

In addition to the typical symptoms and difficulties that are associated with rheumatoid arthritis, other medical issues and complications often arise. Because rheumatoid arthritis is a systemic disease, it may cause a multitude of problems such as lack of appetite, low-grade fevers, fatigue, difficulty walking, and difficulty performing normal range of motion movements that are involved in activities from cleaning to shopping to engaging in any type of sport.

Loss of cartilage, general weakness and erosion of bone matter and muscles produces increased loss of function, and in the worst cases, deformities in some individuals. Lung tissues may become inflamed, as well as the pericardium, the tissue that surrounds the heart. Rheumatoid arthritis fallout may also lead to anemia and a decrease in white blood cells, which affects immunity and the ability of the body to fight off infections.

Continue Seeing a Doctor

Because of the wide range of other medical complications and issues involved with a diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis, doctors suggest that individuals suffering from the condition make and keep timely appointments with physicians and caregivers in order to help reduce the potential for additional medical complications.  While there is no known cure for arthritis at this point in time, treatment goals mainly focus on reducing pain and joint inflammation, as well as striving to curtail deformity and loss of motion in joints.  Early treatment helps to improve prognosis and increase function.

Education and understanding of the disease process is essential for individuals in order to understand the treatment process and how he or she may play an active role in their own care. A combination of medications, exercise, nutrition and preventative care are used to help treat, reduce, and even prevent multiple complications in this disease process.

Many individuals diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis face are learning how to cope with physical pain and fatigue while they simultaneously learn to cope with the depression and stress the disease process often causes. Different individuals experience different severities of the disease process, and seeking the advice and help of medical professionals and caregivers and encouraging the support and understanding of family and friends goes a long way toward helping individuals deal with the multitude of additional medical conditions that are often associated with rheumatoid arthritis.

 

People who use four drugs to treat rheumatoid arthritis are at risk of contracting fatal fungus infections, according to the Food and Drug Administration.

The four drugs -- Enbrel, Remicade, Humira and Cimzia -- will be required to have proper warning labels on their packaging.

The drugs suppress the body's immune system, a key component in the rheumatoid arthritis disorder. Although the drugs relieve swelling and alleviate joint pain, they also leave users vulnerable to other infections, the FDA concluded.

Roughly 20 percent of patients who were taking one of the drugs had died the fungal disease histoplasmosis, the FDA said. The infection, which resembles the flu, attacks the lungs and spreads.