Joint pain is simply a frequent visitor in the daily life of many people, especially when they are older, this pain seems to become a "companion".Especially in winter, the symptoms of back pain and inflexibility of hands and feet are even more annoying.
But most people know that joint pain does not mean rheumatoid. Rheumatoid arthritis (rheumatoid for short) is a disease that you may have heard of, but you don't know whether it is or not.
Many people think that as long as it is joint pain, it may be related to rheumatoid, but in fact, rheumatoid is not just "pain", it has some characteristic manifestations.
Want to know if you've been "tricked"? Take a look at the typical manifestations and maybe you'll find the answer.
If you wake up in the morning and find that you can't move quickly at all, especially the joints such as your fingers and knees, you have to be careful.
The first typical symptom of rheumatoid is "morning stiffness". And this stiffness usually doesn't pass in minutes, it can last for half an hour, or even an hour.
Why is this happening? OriginallyRheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammation in which the body's immune system mistakenly attacks joint tissue, causing inflammation of the soft tissues around the joints.
When inflammation occurs, the joints seem to be "tightly wrapped", making it difficult to move.
Note that this kind of stiffness is not an ordinary "lazy to move", it is a significant local induration and limited activity.
If you try to reach out, touch your shoulders, touch your legs, you may find that your joints are rusty, hard, and "aged".
After a while, I slowly regained a little flexibility. This phenomenon often occurs in the hours after waking up in the early morning and is a "signature moment" for rheumatoid.
Many studies have also shown thatThe duration of joint stiffness can actually help doctors determine the severity of rheumatoid.
Those who have stiff joints for a longer period of time usually mean that the condition is more severe. Therefore, the feeling of stiffness in the morning is a sign that you have to pay attention to.
Rheumatoid is not a single joint pain disease. In other words, if you find that your right knee hurts and your left knee seems to be normal, you can basically rule out the possibility of rheumatoid.
True rheumatoid often presents with symmetrical joint pain.
In other words, the left and right joints are affected almost at the same time, such as the joints of both hands, the joints of both feet, and even the shoulders and knees on both sides may start to hurt at the same time.
The science behind this symptom is that rheumatoid arthritis is a systemic disease in which the immune system attacks multiple parts of the body, most commonly the joints on both sides, causing symmetrical pain.
So, if you wake up every day and find that your hands, feet, knees and even both shoulders are hurting, especially after activity, then it may be a "tendency" of rheumatoid.
simultaneousThis pain is usually accompanied by swelling and warmth, and not only the joints hurt, but the surrounding soft tissues may also become swollen due to inflammation.
It can be difficult to distinguish between common arthritis or strain at first, but as the condition worsens, the pain and swelling become more pronounced, last longer and become more difficult to treat.
When it comes to swelling, many people may think that it is a "common disease" - exercising too much, falling down, walking too much, swollen knees, swollen ankles, and people can always find a reason to explain it.
But swelling caused by rheumatoid arthritis is more than just trauma or overexertion.
This swelling is often due to increased secretion of synovial fluid glands in the joint, and inflammation in the soft tissues inside and outside the joint, resulting in redness, swelling, heat and pain.
Unlike normal joint swelling, rheumatoid swelling is accompanied by an inflammatory response that causes the joint to appear to swell and appear to bulge like a balloon.
When touched, there is a temperature on the surface of the joint, and it may also heat up. If the inflammation continues to intensify, the swelling will become more severe, and even affect the function of the joint, causing the joint to be unable to move normally.
According to a clinical study, about 40% of rheumatoid patients will initially present with joint swelling and pain, which is well worth it if it persists for more than three monthsAttentionFinish.
And as the course of the disease prolongs, the swelling and pain may become more and more severe, and even affect the patient's daily life.
Therefore, in the face of swelling, it is best not to take it lightly, and it is best to find a doctor to confirm whether it is because of rheumatoid arthritis or other types of joint problems.
Rheumatoid arthritis is a systemic disease that is different from a general local condition.
In addition to pain in the joints, patients with rheumatoid often present with some systemic symptoms.
These symptoms include low-grade fever, fatigue, weight loss, loss of appetite, etc.Fatigue is a typical symptom, and patients often feel inexplicably tired, as if the whole person is "tired".
Whether you wake up in the morning or after a day of activity, tiredness feels like a heavy stone weighing on your body.
In addition, some patients will also feel "weakness" in their hands and feet, which is particularly difficult to move, and even feel very tired when doing a little thing, as if the whole person's physical strength and energy have been drained.
This is because the immune system, while attacking the joints, also responds to other parts, resulting in a systemic inflammatory response. As the inflammation spreads, these systemic symptoms become more pronounced.
Low-grade fever is another big sign.Although this fever is usually not as intense as the high fever of a cold, it persists and often shows no obvious signs of infection.
People with rheumatoid often find themselves always feeling a little feverish, and although the body temperature is not high, they often feel hot, as if they are not feeling well.
Many people have joint pain due to a myriad of causes, which may just be overexercise, or degenerative changes in the bones and joints due to age, which is not necessarily rheumatoid arthritis.
SoIf it's only occasional joint pain, especially if it's unilateral, and not accompanied by other symptoms, it's not too much of a concern.
However, if the joint pain lasts for a long time and is accompanied by "morning stiffness", "symmetrical pain", "swelling and fever", and "systemic symptoms", then it is necessary to pay attention to it.
Be sure to go to the hospital as early as possible for early diagnosis and treatment.
Although rheumatoid arthritis is not easy to treat, early intervention can greatly slow down the progression of the disease and avoid irreversible damage to the joints.
This question may seem simple, but the answer is not.
There are many causes of joint pain, which can be due to osteoporosis, joint degeneration, or due to overwork, sports injuries, etc.
Everyone's joint pain should be judged based on specific symptoms, medical history, and medical examinations, and should not be taken lightly.
What are your thoughts on this? Welcome to discuss in the comment area!
Cheng Qiang. Predictive value of serum sST17 and sPD-0 in the prognosis of elderly patients with rheumatoid arthritis, Laboratory Medicine and Clinical Medicine, 0-0-0