What exactly is rheumatoid arthritis a disease?

  Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease characterized by swelling and pain mainly in the peripheral joints, which is not a decline in immune function, but rather an immune disorder in which the body produces an abnormal antibody that “does not know its own family” and instead of dealing with foreign pathogens and foreign substances, it destroys its own normal tissues (The result is the development of rheumatoid arthritis.  Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic disease that is difficult to cure in the middle and late stages, and can easily lead to joint deformation and physical disability, or even lifelong paralysis, and is therefore known as the “cancer that never dies”, and is one of the main causes of loss of labor and disability.  Rheumatoid arthritis is more common in women, with three times as many female patients as male patients. Acute rheumatoid arthritis often affects children and young adults, with the first onset occurring between the ages of 5 and 15, with a peak between the ages of 7 and 10, and only 8.5% of those under the age of 5. Most recurrences of the disease occur within 3-5 years of the initial onset, so recurrences are most often seen before the age of 25, but many patients can be delayed into middle and old age. The first attack of rheumatoid arthritis occurs mostly in winter and spring, with the most frequent attacks occurring from November to February.  The average life expectancy of patients with rheumatoid arthritis is 10-15 years shorter than normal, and may be life-threatening if the lesions invade the heart, blood vessels, lungs, and nervous system.