The consultant of internal diseases and rheumatology, director of academic affairs at Asir Central Hospital, Dr. Al-Hussein Muhammad Asiri, confirmed that rheumatoid arthritis affects the synovial membrane, which envelops the joint, causing swelling, and that women are two to three times more affected than men, and it usually appears between the ages of 40 and 60 years. But it may affect young children and the elderly as well.
Asiri added that until now, doctors do not know the cause of rheumatoid arthritis, and it is likely that the emergence of rheumatoid arthritis is the result of a combination of several genetic and lifestyle factors, such as smoking and environmental factors such as viruses, and joint deformities associated with rheumatoid arthritis, which has not been treated. Correctly, joint deformities result in delay in treatment.
Dr. Al-Hussein explained that the signs and symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis differ in their severity, and they may sometimes appear and then disappear. The periods in which the disease is most effective are called “attack” or “seizure”, compared to periods of “relative calm”, in which they diminish or disappear.
Among the signs and symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are joint pain, swelling in the joints, joint sensitivity to touch, redness and swelling of the hands, the emergence of a solid bump under the skin in the arms, "rheumatoid nodules", fatigue and a feeling of stiffness, which is difficulty in moving the joints in the morning, fever and fever, especially at night, and loss the weight.
The disease also leads to complications that affect the patient''s internal organs and viscera, especially if the disease is not controlled and the symptoms are called non-articular or supra-articular, which are: fibrosis of the lungs, inflammation of the eyes, Felti syndrome, Sjogren''s syndrome, vasculitis, peripheral neuritis, and fluid accumulation around the heart. And lungs, atherosclerosis, and vulnerable to heart attacks and stroke, and inflammation also leads to the release of proteins, which in turn, within months or years, to thicken the synovial membrane, and these proteins may cause damage to each of: cartilage, bone, tendons and ligaments near the joint, As a result, the joint gradually loses its normal shape, and is "warped", so that it may become completely disrupted and become unable to perform its function. He added that the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis begins with a clinical medical examination, where the doctor asks questions about signs and symptoms and examines the affected joints, and blood tests, which are a test that measures the speed of deposition of red blood cells in a sample of non-clotting blood, usually when the percentage is high indicating the presence of inflammation in the body, And examination of fluid in the joint by means of X-rays, and rheumatoid arthritis often causes problems in several joints at the same time, as it affects in the first stage, in most cases, small joints such as the wrist joint, the palms of the hands, the ankles and the soles of the feet, and with the progression of inflammation Rheumatoid joint symptoms can also be felt in: shoulders, elbows, knees, hip pelvis, jaw and neck.
Asiri stressed that the factors that increase the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis
Gender: Women are more likely to develop rheumatoid arthritis.
Age: Rheumatoid arthritis appears, in most cases, between the ages of 40 and 60 years. However, it may affect older people, and even children, "rheumatoid arthritis at a young age."
Family history: The risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis is increased in people whose family member has previously had rheumatoid arthritis. Doctors do not believe that rheumatoid arthritis is inherited directly, but susceptibility to developing rheumatoid arthritis is that it is transmitted genetically.
Smoking: Cigarette smoking increases the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis. And quitting smoking may reduce the risk.
As for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, a consultant of internal and rheumatoid arthritis says, there is not yet a cure for rheumatoid arthritis, but there is a treatment aimed at reducing inflammation in a way that relieves pain and prevents or stops the progression of damage, and early and intensive treatment against rheumatoid arthritis can slow down Joint damage and to help reduce the risk of disability, overcome all symptoms and complications of the disease, and live a long and active life with rheumatoid arthritis, if appropriate rheumatoid arthritis treatment is adopted, which includes protecting the joints and changing the lifestyle. Treatments available mainly include medication, although some cases of severe damage may sometimes require surgical treatments. Anti-rheumatoid arthritis medications can relieve pain and slow or completely stop the progression of damage in joint treatment.
Treatment includes anti-inflammatory drugs that reduce inflammation and pain and slow the process of joint damage, anti-rheumatic drugs to change the pattern of disease, and anti-tumor necrosis factor alpha, which is a protein secreted by immune system cells in the body.
Dr. Al-Hussein advised patients that every rheumatoid patient should be examined and followed up by a doctor specializing in rheumatology, in order to diagnose his disease accurately and in the fastest time, and then give him the appropriate treatment.
