Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune condition that can affect the joints, as well as body parts like the skin, eyes, heart, and lungs. This condition causes inflammation throughout the body due to a faulty immune system response.
While there is no cure for RA, certain medications can help manage symptoms and prevent a person’s quality of life from being significantly impacted.
Symptoms of RA
The chronic inflammation caused by RA often affects the joints. This can lead to symptoms like:
Stiffness within joints is often worse in the morning immediately after waking or after partaking in physical activity. Most people notice symptoms in the hands and feet first, but symptoms will eventually progress to joints in other parts of the body.
The good news is that there are numerous medications that are used to alleviate the effects of RA. They include:
DMARDs can be combined with drugs called biologic response modifiers to increase the therapeutic effect. There are also targeted DMARDs, which are used when standard DMARDs prove ineffective. DMARDs do carry some chance of side effects, so be sure to discuss them with your doctor.
Along with medications, many people with RA find physical therapy beneficial to improving joint flexibility and managing pain. Occupational therapy is also helpful for introducing new ways to perform everyday tasks when joint inflammation is an issue.
If medications and therapy prove ineffective, surgery is another possibility. Surgery can remove damaged tissues, repair tendons, or replace damaged joints.