Because of the aggressiveness joint inflammation, the pain is much more sever and disabling than that of osteoarthritis.
Rheumatoid arthritis is the second most common arthritis found in older adults. Unlike osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis is a systemic inflammatory and potentially destructive disorder of multiple joints.
The disease is affecting an estimated 2.1 million individuals in the United States or about 1 percent of the population. Like most autoimmune diseases, rheumatoid arthritis is more common in women. Other risk factors for rheumatoid arthritis include age greater than 50, smoking and relatives with rheumatoid arthritis.
Persons with rheumatoid arthritis feel systemically ill, with marked fatigue and a pervasive sense of overwhelming stiffness known as morning stiffness.
The Raynaud phenomenon and Sjogren syndrome are two inflammatory diseases commonly seen in rheumatoid arthritis patients.
Rheumatoid arthritis
