The Rheumatoid Arthritis Symptom Overview

Did you know that there are 100 types of Rheumatoid Arthritis? Here is a symptom overview.

The main symptom of rheumatoid arthritis is when you feel your joints are stiff when you wake up in the morning usually in the hands or feet. If you feel stiff in the affected areas for more than an hour or develop swelling and pain which lasts for longer than six weeks, it could be a symptom of rheumatoid arthritis. Usually, if the hands feel stiff so will the feet and vice versa.

Joint pain can also be an early sign of other diseases. Symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis usually begin slowly over a period of weeks or months.

The joints will feel painful, swollen, tender and stiff. Other similar joints on either side of the body will feel similar pain as well for example, hands, wrists, elbows, feet, knees and neck.

Stiff joints can also be felt after sleeping or sitting for a long period of time and may last an hour up to several hours long.

Pea-sized bumps or lumps called rheumatoid nodules may develop in some people who have rheumatoid arthritis. These are usually formed around the elbows, knuckles, spine and lower leg bones where the pressure points in the body is.

The pain may also be aggravated by activity or movement of the joints, such as walking, getting up from a chair, typing, writing, holding or throwing an object and even turning a key.

Inflammation caused by joint stiffness may also occur and in severe cases, the affected joints may suffer from a loss of range of motion, lose its flexibility and even get deformed.

In addition to joint symptoms, rheumatoid arthritis can show signs throughout the body. These include:-

- Extreme fatigue where patients will feel excessively tired, lacking of energy, weak or a feeling of malaise.
- A loss of appetite.
- Weight loss; sometimes unexplained.
- Mild or low-grade fever which is usually not specific.
- Numb and tingling sensations felt in the hands.
- Anemia
- Fluid accumulating behind the knee or in the ankles.
- Crepitus also known as creaky or popping joints

Rheumatoid arthritis can also inflict children and their symptoms may include shaking chills and a pink rash may result from the usual stiff, painful and swollen joints.

There are more than 100 different types and diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis and you could suffer from one or more of them. Do see a doctor to assess your medical history, having a physical check-up, taking x-rays and other specific laboratory tests to determine your exact diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis.

For rheumatoid arthritis patients, there is hope though as there are real people who cured themselves of rheumatoid arthritis.

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