Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic systemic inflammatory disease of unknown etiology, with chronic, symmetric, multisynovial arthritis and extra-articular lesions as the main clinical manifestations, and is an autoimmune inflammatory disease. It affects the synovial membrane of the joints first, and then erodes the cartilage and bone tissue of the joints, leading to joint destruction, joint deformity, and loss of function, as well as damage to the heart, lungs, kidneys, nerves, and other internal organs, resulting in multi-system damage. Autoantibodies can be detected in the serum of patients, so the disease is considered to be a systemic autoimmune disease. According to epidemiological statistics: the number of rheumatoid arthritis patients in China is about 5 million; peak age of onset: 20-60 years old, with 45 years old as the peak, so it is clear that rheumatic immune diseases are not far from us. However, the awareness is quite low. With the improvement of diagnosis and treatment level in recent years, early and regular treatment can enable the majority of patients to be in remission and engage in daily work and life! Why do you get rheumatoid arthritis? The cause is now unclear and is associated with developmental factors, environmental factors, genetic factors, infections, etc. There is a slight tendency for rheumatoid arthritis to run in families and for twins to develop the disease together, suggesting that genetic factors play a role in the development of rheumatoid arthritis; the chance of co-occurrence is not 100% for identical twins, but 30%-50% for dizygotic twins, and only about 5% for dizygotic twins, suggesting that rheumatoid arthritis, like hypertension and diabetes, is not determined by a single gene; therefore, rheumatoid arthritis has genetic susceptibility, but its development is the result of a combination of factors. The genetic predisposition is the result of a combination of factors, and genetics only plays a role. The clinical manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis: After understanding the etiology and pathology of rheumatoid arthritis, let’s look at its clinical manifestations. The clinical manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis are divided into joint manifestations and extra-articular manifestations, with joint manifestations being the main ones. These include: morning stiffness, joint pain and pressure, swelling and deformity, and functional impairment, etc. The arthritis of this disease has the following characteristics: it is a symmetric polyarthritis involving mainly small joints, especially the hand joints. The disease is chronic and recurrent, and progressively worsens if not treated appropriately. The degree and speed of aggravation varies widely among individuals. Morning stiffness of joint manifestations: Morning stiffness of the diseased joint occurs in the morning or after a certain period of cessation of activity, which restricts movement and affects activities such as turning over, buttoning, and fist clenching. The duration of morning stiffness is parallel to the degree of the disease, and the duration of stiffness is shortened or even disappears after the disease is in remission, and the duration of stiffness can be used as an indicator to observe the activity and severity of the disease. The characteristics are: multi-joint, systemic, chronic, symmetrical, joint pain is obvious at night, in the morning and when the joints are moving, but reduced after a little activity. Joint deformation and joint dysfunction affect the overall activity function, such as loss of grip strength, difficulty in combing hair, and difficulty in walking. Joint deformation is a manifestation of the advanced stage of the disease. The early detection of symptoms and early, regular treatment can enable most patients to avoid such symptoms Can rheumatoid arthritis be cured? About 10% of patients are in remission after treatment and do not recur; the rest of patients are recurrent and require long-term treatment. Therefore, our rheumatoid arthritis patients should pay more attention to the regular hospital for comprehensive and systematic examination and treatment.