Rheumatoid arthritis - What are the symptoms?
In this section
Rheumatoid arthritis usually starts slowly. At first, you may notice that your joints feel a little stiff, especially in the mornings. Later, your joints may become swollen and feel painful.
The disease usually affects the small joints in the fingers but it may also affect the joints in the feet. It tends to happen in similar areas on both sides of your body.[2]
At the start of the disease, you may feel tired and lose your appetite.[2] This is because rheumatoid arthritis can affect the rest of your body too.
The symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis can come and go. They may change from one day to the next.
The main symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are:
- Pain
- Stiffness
- Joint swelling
- Lumps under the skin.
Here's an overview.
Pain
People describe the pain of rheumatoid arthritis as aching and throbbing. The amount of pain varies from person to person and also from day to day. Often the mornings are the worst times, but the pain often gets better after half an hour or so as your joints get moving.[2] The pain tends to be worse after you've been sitting for a while.
If you've been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, then it is normal to feel anxious about being in pain. But there are lots of ways that you can control your pain. Your doctor will give you painkillers, but other things, such as exercise, can also help.
If you want to read more about how you can control your pain, see Managing pain.
Stiffness
Joints that are affected by rheumatoid arthritis often feel stiff. The stiffness is usually worse first thing in the morning, and you may find it difficult to move around. But once you get going, the stiffness can get better.[1]
Doctors aren't sure what makes your joints feel stiff. But it is probably because your cartilage becomes rough. This stops your joints from moving smoothly. (Cartilage is the material covering the ends of your bones in your joints.)
Joint swelling
Your joints can swell up in rheumatoid arthritis. Usually it happens in the small joints of your hands, wrists and feet. In your fingers, it can affect any joint, apart from the ones closest to your fingernails (with the exception of your thumb). Your joints can feel warm when you touch them, and they can look slightly red.
The reason your joints swell is because the lining of the joint becomes inflamed and makes too much fluid. This fluid, called synovial fluid, then makes the joints swell.
Lumps under the skin
Sometimes rheumatoid arthritis can spread to other parts of the body.[3] One of the most common areas it can affect is your skin. About 1 in 5 people get firm lumps under the skin, called rheumatoid nodules. These lumps are often on the back of the elbows or on the finger joints. You can have them removed by surgery if they bother you.
References
- National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS). Questions and answers about arthritis and rheumatic diseases. National Institutes of Health (NIH). Available at: www.niams.nih.gov. Accessed on June 4 2003.
- Lee DM, Weinblatt ME. Rheumatoid arthritis. Lancet. 2001; 358: 903-911.
- Akil M,Amos RS. ABC of rheumatology. Rheumatoid arthritis--I: Clinical features and diagnosis. BMJ;310:587-590
Glossary
- inflammation
- Inflammation is when your skin or some other part of your body becomes red, swollen, hot and sore. Inflammation happens because your body is trying to protect you from germs, from something that's in your body and could harm you (like a splinter) or from things that cause allergies (these things are called allergens). Inflammation is one of the ways in which your body heals an infection or an injury.
© BMJ Publishing Group Limited ("BMJ Group") 2007. All rights reserved
This information does not replace medical advice. If you are concerned you might have a medical problem please ask your Boots pharmacy team in your local Boots store, or see your doctor.
