Symptoms and Risk Factors of Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis is all about inflammation in the bone joints of the affected patients. Rheumatoid arthritis affects the lining of the bone joints and ultimately results in painful inflammation tending toward bone erosion and permanent deformity of the affected joints.

It is an autoimmune disease which is initiated by the internal attack of the immune system to the body tissues causing pain in whole body with recurring fever and unconditional fatigue.

The signs and symptoms for this painful chronic disease vary from one patient to another by intensity; however, the symptoms related to this disease are all alike.

The common symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are moderate to terrible joint pain, swelling of the joints, increased touch sensitivity of the affected bone joints, puffy and red hands, fatigue, and moderate to high fever etc. Apart from these symptoms, rheumatoid nodules [solid bumps made of tissues under the skin on the arms mainly] are observed in some affected patients. Most of the rheumatoid arthritis patients suffer from morning stiffness of the joints which gets reduced with the progress of day.
Major weight loss in a rapid way within a short span is another typical symptom of induction of rheumatoid arthritis.

Another major trait for rheumatoid arthritis is the symptoms come and go at random in an irregular frequency. Once the painful symptoms become prominent and clearly recognizable, then these symptoms go away for some days and then again come back with severe intensity.

Early stage of rheumatoid arthritis affects small bone joints first and then gradually affects shoulders, neck, knee, elbows, ankles, and feet.  In most of the cases, symptoms take place in a typical symmetry- it affects same joints on both the sides of the body of the patient.

There are few factors which causes susceptibility to rheumatoid arthritis attack.  These factors are mentioned in brief here.

Studies have found that women are more at risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis problem.

Age of the patient is a key factor for the induction of rheumatoid arthritis; it has been found that most of the patients get induced to this lifetime disease in 40-60 age brackets.

If there is a family history of rheumatoid arthritis, linked family members are to be considered at higher risk of induction of the disease. This disease is not an inherited one but the tendency to develop the disease is a common factor.

The avid smokers are more at risk of induction of rheumatoid arthritis in comparison to non-smokers.