Rheumatoid arthritis is among the most challenging diseases to diagnose. That is especially since patients in the early stages of this disease develop symptoms that mimic other diseases that are at times not even related to it. Unfortunately, there hasn’t been any medical developments to assist in that, notes an RA care centerin Boise. The best thing to do once you suppose you could have rheumatoid arthritis is waiting till it attains maturity.
It is then that your doctor can decipher from the physical medical examination whether that swelling of joints, a general increase in body warmth and redness of your skin is a sign that you could have rheumatoid arthritis. They may, however, need to check whether that has affected your muscle strength and body reflexes.
Further diagnosis
If your doctor cannot arrive at any quantifiable conclusions to affirm your rheumatoid arthritis status, they would need to carry out blood tests. From these tests, they will tell to which degree your sed rate is and the condition of your C-reactive proteins. The results here will indicate whether there is any inflammation that your body could be experiencing. Other blood tests here may also include determining the rheumatoid factor in your body. But, generally, the inferences should arrive at the same conclusion. That, however, may not be necessary for the next medical appointments.
The following appointments may only require you to take X-ray imaging tests. That will be enough for your doctor to track how the rheumatoid arthritis is progressing. These secondary tests are very critical in developing the best treatment option specifically for the level of the RA. Ultrasound and MRI tests are also helpful in determining the disease’s severity. But, talking of different treatment options, they should have the same goals.
The Aim of RA Treatments
Stopping inflammation
Every treatment method that you will use should aim at putting rheumatoid arthritis in remission. The joint inflammations should reduce drastically. Pain in joint areas should also stop.
Relieving symptoms
The primary symptoms of RA are around the affected joint areas. Mostly, that is on limbs and the back. But, RA can affect almost any joint of your body. With a comprehensive medical examination, your doctor should highlight all the areas that RA could have affected. In these joint areas, you may experience redness and general body warmth. So, the medication that you will take should first relieve these symptoms. Medical practitioners also use this strategy to determine how well your body responds to a particular medication.
Preventing joint damage
Rheumatoid arthritis can destroy joint performance pretty fast if you do not manage it on time. So, every RA care option should target preventing further joint damage from the disease. Additionally, the medication should aim at improving your overall well-being, and reducing any long-term health complications.
As it is with endocrine disorders, rheumatoid arthritis may take you a pretty long time to cure, notes an endocrine specialist in Boise. But, however challenging it may be to treat it, your doctor can manage it to reduce its severity. Only that you should choose your doctor right and have these services from a well-known rheumatoid arthritis care center.
