As widely recognized, rheumatoid arthritis flare-ups not only cause significant pain but also substantially disrupt patients' daily lives. What are the common symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis? Below is an expert overview of rheumatoid arthritis.Specifically:
(1) Stiffness: Patients experience a glue-like stiffness in joints upon waking or after prolonged rest, which eases or disappears with movement. Morning stiffness is most pronounced in rheumatoid arthritis, lasting several hours, whereas it persists for shorter periods in other forms of arthritis.
(2) Pain: The location of pain helps determine whether it originates from joint lesions.It is essential to distinguish between localized pain caused by joint lesions and widespread pain stemming from systemic disease.
(3) Joint Swelling and Tenderness: Often present in painful joints, these are signs of synovitis or surrounding soft tissue inflammation. The severity in rheumatoid arthritis varies with the intensity of inflammation. Swelling may result from joint effusion or synovial hypertrophy. Osteoarthritis typically presents with bony hypertrophic changes.
(4) Weakness: This refers to diminished or lost muscle strength. Since weakness often accompanies other rheumatoid arthritis symptoms like pain, morning stiffness, and fatigue, patients may struggle to distinguish it. Weakness typically becomes apparent when patients struggle with activities like walking, chewing, or swallowing.