Rheumatoid arthritis is a disease with unknown causes. There is chronic inflammation of various joints of the body, such as joints of the fingers, wrists, toes, ankles and often the knees, hips and shoulder, with severe pain and considerable swelling.
It is not just a disease of joints only but every system, tissue or part of the body is involved, suchas lungs, nerve tissues, and small arteries. Patient may have hypertensions, difficult breathing. Women are affected more than men. Eventually the affected joints may develop deformities. Non-articular rheumatism involves the soft tissues and causes fibrositis and lumbago.
