What are the signs and symptoms of Rheumatoid Arthritis?
Signs and symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis may include: Tender, warm, swollen joints, Joint stiffness that is usually worse in the mornings and after inactivity, Fatigue, fever, reduced muscle power, loss of joint range of motion, significant loss of function and independence, morning stiffness in the joints which may last up to several hours. and loss of appetite. Early rheumatoid arthritis tends to affect your smaller joints first, particularly the joints that attach your fingers to your hands and your toes to feet. As the disease progresses, symptoms often spread to the wrists, knees, ankles, elbows, hips and shoulders. In most cases, symptoms occur in the same joints on both sides of body.
Hence its limits the daily movements like difficulty making a fist, opening objects, twisting objects, climbing stairs and other. Other signs and symptoms include weight loss and Rheumatoid nodules (small lumps of tissue under the skin).
Diagnosis
Blood tests may be used to check for signs of infection or inflammation. X-ray or MRI pictures may be taken of the bones and tissues in your joints. You may be given contrast liquid as a shot into the joint to help your joint show up better. Tell the healthcare provider if you have ever had an allergic reaction to contrast liquid. Do not enter the MRI room with anything metal. Metal can cause serious injury. Tell the healthcare provider if you have any metal in or on your body. Arthrocentesis is a procedure used to drain fluid out of a joint. The fluid is tested for infection or other problems that can cause arthritis.
Synovial biopsy may be used if your joint fluid cannot be drained or if you have signs of an infection. A piece of tissue is removed from the lining of a joint. The tissue is tested for possible causes of your arthritis.
MANAGEMENT
Management should be patient centred while taking into account each patient’s individual needs; therefore a thorough patient assessment must be completed before any treatment is undertaken. Curezone physiotherapy Clinic, Mississauga is a team of multidisciplinary practitioners’ showing effective management of the patients with Rheumatoid arthritis and providing access to all members of the team as necessary. We make sure we have good communication and cooperation between all team members for providing best results.
RA is a chronic disorder that has no cure. All the currently available treatments are geared towards improving the symptoms and offering a better quality of life. Physiotherapy aims to reduce pain and stiffness, stabilize joints, prevent joint deformity, improve exercise tolerance and muscle power, maximize function Independence and quality of life and promote self-management by utilizing number of various modalities available.
Exercise and education are the most important aspects of physiotherapy intervention. RA is diagnosed by patient’s symptoms, results of doctor´s examination, assessment of risk factors, family history, joint assessment by ultrasound sonography, and laboratory blood tests. Ultrasound and MRI are usually recommended for diagnosing and monitoring disease activity.
Physiotherapy Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis
The common components of Physiotherapy treatment in Mississauga for RA are:
- Exercise therapy: Exercises include range of motion exercises, Muscle re-education and strengthening exercises using free weights such as plastic bottle or dumbbells.
- Joint protection
- Functional splinting and assistive devices
- Massage therapy
- Patient education. And self-management: Increase patients’ knowledge about their disease, help patient to make informed choices, encourage self management, empower patient and improve self-confidence. Education should be made available in different languages do suit the local population.
- Aquatic physical therapy in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. It is one of the oldest and the most frequently used treatment for rheumatoid arthritis.
- Paraffin wax bath combined with exercises have shown who provides short-term effects for hands.
- Tai Chi is another form of Chinese Health martial art form as a therapy for arthritis for centuries.
At the present, there is no therapy that can completely heal RA. But there are treatments that achieve pain relief and the slowdown of the activity of RA to prevent disability and increase functional capacity. RA patients are unfortunately committed to a treatment for life. The benefits of physiotherapy interventions have been well documented. Physiotherapists play an integral role in the non pharmacologic management of RA. They help patients with RA cope with chronic pain and disability through the design of programs that address flexibility, endurance, aerobic condition, a range of motion (ROM), strength, bone integrity, coordination, balance and risk of falls.
All current UK clinical guidelines for the management of RA recommend the use of physiotherapy (PT) and occupational therapy (OT) as an adjunct to drug treatment. The three most common components of PT/OT for RA hands are exercise therapy, joint protection advice and provision of functional splinting and assistive devices, massage therapy, exercise therapy and patient education.
Dynamic exercise (aerobic capacity and/or muscle strength training) was effective in improving muscular endurance and strength, without detrimental effects on disease activity or pain.
