Rheumatoid Arthritis Definition, Reason, Symptoms, Treatment & Prevention
Definition
Rheumatoid arthritis, or often called rheumatism, is an autoimmune disease that attacks the joints.
This disease causes inflammation in the joints, tissues around the joints, and can affect other organs in the body, such as the skin and lungs.
This disease usually appears slowly. In fact, initially joint pain is felt not too disturbing.
However, within a few weeks to several months, more and more joints will be affected. Inflammation will be more intense.
We see a full explanation of what is rheumatism.
Rheumatism
| Medical specialist | Diseases in the rheumatology subspecialty |
| Symptoms | Redness, swelling, and pain in the area of the affected joint |
| risk factor | Frequent exposure to cigarette smoke |
| diagnosis | Examination of the sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein, rheumatoid factor, and anti-CCP |
| Treatment | Anti-inflammatory drugs, medical rehabilitation |
| Drug | NSAID, steroid, disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARD), imunosupresan |
| Complications | Cervical myelopathy, carpal tunnel syndrome, Sjogren’s syndrome, heart disease |
| When to see a doctor? | Joint pain interferes with daily activities |
Symptoms
Arthritic symptoms usually appear in the joints of the fingers, wrists, shoulders, elbows and ankles.
Inflamed joints are characterized by redness, swelling, and pain in the affected joint area.
In addition, sufferers also experience joint stiffness in the morning.
In some people, joint stiffness when waking up in the morning is normal.
However, typical features of rheumatism, joint stiffness lasts for more than 1 hour.
Not infrequently, sufferers of rheumatoid arthritis also feel tired easily, the body often has a fever or chills and feels lazy to carry out daily activities.
Apart from joints, rheumatoid arthritis can also attack:
- lungs and lining of the lungs (pleura), which is characterized by complaints of pain and difficulty breathing
- the membrane covering the heart (pericardium), which is characterized by complaints of tightness and weakness because blood pressure tends to fall
- the white lining of the eye (sclera), causing red eyes, pain, and reduced visual acuity
Reason
Rheumatoid arthritis related to the joints. Basically, human joints have a synovial lining (membrane) that functions to protect the joints so that the bones, muscles and other tissues around the joints do not rub against each other.
In rheumatoid arthritis sufferers, for no apparent reason, the body’s immune system considers the synovial membrane in the joints as a “foreign object” and must fight it.
This is what causes the joints to become inflamed.
However, until now, the cause of the disruption of the body’s defense system is not known with certainty.
Risk Factors
While the exact cause of rheumatic disease is unknown, existing studies show several things can increase the risk, namely:
- female gender
- age 40-60 years
- have a family history of rheumatism
- and frequent exposure to secondhand smoke
Diagnosis
After examining the joints, the doctor will suggest blood tests in the laboratory, including:
- Erythrocyte sedimentation rate and C-reactive protein as general signs of inflammation in the body
- rheumatoid factor and anti-CCP ( cyclic citrullinated peptide ), a specific marker for rheumatoid arthritis
If rheumatoid factor or anti-CCP gives positive results, accompanied by an increase in ESR or CRP, it can generally be ascertained that the person has rheumatoid arthritis.
In some cases, the symptoms of this disease are difficult to distinguish from other joint disorders, such as gout or pseudogout.
If this happens, not infrequently the doctor will also recommend an X-ray or MRI examination of the joint to confirm it.
Treatment
There is no treatment to cure rheumatoid arthritis.
Treatment aims to reduce joint inflammation and to “calm down” the patient’s body’s defense system so it does not attack the body itself.
Treatment and treatment of rheumatism can be done by a rheumatologist.
Rheumatic drugs that can be used include:
1. Non-steroidal antiinflamatory drugs(NSAID)
This drug is useful for reducing pain and swelling that occurs in the joints.
2. Steroid
This drug is given to suppress the patient’s body’s defense system so that it does not continue to attack the joints.
3. Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARD)
This type of drug is the main choice for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis because it is useful in preventing the progression of joint damage and overcoming joint inflammation.
4. Immunosuppressants
The working principle of this drug is similar to steroids, which weaken the body’s defense system so it doesn’t continue to attack the joints.
In addition to drugs, medical rehabilitation also needs to be done so that people with rheumatism can still carry out their activities properly.
Sufferers need to be trained to keep using inflamed joints in their daily activities.
Prevention
Because the cause has not been ascertained, until now the action to prevent rheumatoid arthritis is also unknown.
Complications
When not treated properly, rheumatic diseases can cause some of the following complications.
1. Cervical Myelopathy
When rheumatoid arthritis has attacked the joints in the neck and spinal nerves, cervical myelopathy will occur.
2. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
If rheumatism attacks the wrist joint and presses on the surrounding nerves, carpal tunnel syndrome will occur.
3. Sjogren’s syndrome
If rheumatoid arthritis attacks the tear and salivary glands, Sjogren’s syndrome can occur with symptoms of dry eyes and mouth.
4. Heart disease
This condition can occur when the body’s immune system triggers inflammation in the blood vessels of the heart.
5. Insomnia
Sleep disturbances can occur when pain is present, causing discomfort and difficulty sleeping.