How does it start and what are its symptoms?
It is crucial to know the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, recognize them and differentiate between this disease and other health problems with similar symptoms, because the patient has only 1 year before joint problems start. There are early signs, or warning signs of rheumatoid arthritis which are reported in the early stage of the disease or early in an exacerbation.
Early rheumatoid arthritis symptoms and signs
Swelling of joints
This symptom occurs acutely, which means fast, severe, and with no warning in multiple joints. The joints are stiff, red, hot, painful when touched and moved. Rheumatoid arthritis usually affects the joints of the hands and fingers, but in early stages, it can affect large joints such as knees, elbows, ankles, and shoulders. This happens when the white blood cells and immune cells attack the joints because the body immune system does not recognize the joints as a part of the body or mistake them for harmful substances like bacteria or viruses.