What Is Rheumatoid Arthritis?

For the latest information on arthritis and what is rheumatoid arthritis? please take a look at this short post.

The term ‘arthritis’ in often used when talking about a variety of conditions where arthritis plays a principle role, instead of to a single specific medical condition. In this group there are two conditions which are particularly prominent and these are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis and causes the destruction of the cartilage within the joints uncovering the ends of the bones so that they can rub against each other with very painful results. This pain, as well as stiffness, a lack of movement and usually inflammation can ruin your quality of life. Osteoarthritis is usually found in the hips, knees, ankles and spine although it can also frequently be seen in the fingers. Although there might be some hereditary basis for osteoarthritis, it is more commonly the result of some kind of injury or a metabolic disease. Today, the obesity epidemic sweeping the States also plays a growing part in the onset of osteoarthritis.

The second most common form of arthritis is rheumatoid arthritis which is a condition caused by a deficiency of the immune system. The condition quite often appears in pairs of joints, such as the elbows and knees, when it is referred to as being symmetrical. Initially appearing as an inflammation of the lining of the joints concerned it goes on to attack first the cartilage and then the bones of the joint.

Before looking in detail at what is rheumatoid arthritis? we should take a moment to examine a few of the many different types of arthritis.

Among those conditions that are considered to be primarily arthritis are:

Pseudogout. Pseudogout similar to gout except that the crystals seen in the joints are formed from calcium rather than from uric acid. The results are commonly swelling and pain and, occasionally, the destruction of the cartilage within the joints. The formation of crystals in pseudogout is not related to the intake of dietary calcium.

Gout. A perhaps ‘historical’ condition usually thought of as being prevalent within the royal houses of Europe, gout is a particularly painful condition that attacks the knees, wrists and the ‘bunion’ joint of the big toe. Gout is caused by the formation of uric acid crystals in the joints frequently resulting from the use of a number of drugs and by following a particular type of diet. Heredity is also thought to have a role to play in gout.

Arthritis can also accompany other conditions where it is not the central problem but is an extremely important player in your condition. Such conditions include:

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. Generally referred to as simply Lupus this is another disease where the body’s immune system turns to attack the body causing inflammation, stiffness, joint pain and exhaustion. Lupus is normally seen in women of child bearing age, although it can also appear in men and can happen at all ages.

There are also a number of medical conditions in which arthritis plays a minor part:

Polymyalgia Rheumatica. PMR, as it is more commonly called, creates stiffness and pain in the neck, hips, lower back and shoulders that can appear literally overnight and cause difficulties with such things as getting out of bed. while the pain is much like that experienced with rheumatoid arthritis, in PMR there is no evidence of active arthritis.

Lastly, we should familiarize ourselves with a selection of the suggestions that can help in dealing with arthritis prior to moving forward to look in some detail at what is rheumatoid arthritis?.

Take steps to conserve your energy by breaking your day up into times of activity and times of rest.

Make sure you get a good night’s sleep by going to bed and getting up at the same time each day (even on weekends).

Try adapting your house to make things simpler by purchasing kitchen utensils such as potato peelers which are fitted with large rubber easy-grip handles.

Make household cleaning simpler by wearing old socks sprayed with a little furniture polish on your hands rather than trying to use a duster.

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