Handout on Health: Rheumatoid Arthritis This booklet is for people who have rheumatoid arthritis, as well as for their family members, friends, and others who want to find out more about this disease. The booklet describes how rheumatoid arthritis develops, how it is diagnosed, and how it is treated, including what patients can do to help manage their disease. It also highlights current research efforts supported by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) and other components arthritis cartoons thomas pain of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). If you have further questions after reading this booklet, you may wish to discuss them with your doctor. Features of Rheumatoid Arthritis How Rheumatoid Arthritis Develops and Progresses Occurrence and Impact of Rheumatoid Arthritis Searching for the Cause of Rheumatoid Arthritis Diagnosing and Treating Rheumatoid Arthritis Current Research Hope for the Future For More Information Acknowledgments About NIAMS and NAMSIC Features of Rheumatoid Arthritis Rheumatoid arthritis is an inflammatory disease that causes pain, swelling, stiffness, and loss thomas pain thomas pain of function in the joints. It has several special features that make it different from other kinds of arthritis (see information box below). For example, rheumatoid arthritis generally occurs in a symmetrical pattern. This means that if one knee or hand is involved, the other one is also. The disease often affects the wrist joints and the finger joints closest to the hand. It can also affect other parts of the body besides the joints (see illustrations below). In addition, people tai chi for arthritis thomas pain with the disease may have fatigue, occasional fever, and a general sense of not feeling well (malaise). Another feature of rheumatoid arthritis is that it varies a lot from person to person. For some people, it lasts only a few months or a year or two and goes away without causing any noticeable damage. Other people have mild or moderate disease, with periods of worsening symptoms, called flares, and periods in which they feel better, called remissions. Still others have severe scalp pain thomas pain disease
