INFO - RA is a common rheumatic disease

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MedicineNet.com

Last reviewed 25 Mar 2008

" Rheumatoid Arthritis "

Rheumatoid arthritis is a common rheumatic disease, affecting

approximately 1.3 million people in the United States, according to

current census data. The disease is three times more common in women

as in men. It afflicts people of all races equally. The disease can

begin at any age, but it most often starts after age 40 and before 60.

In some families, multiple members can be affected, suggesting a

genetic basis for the disorder.

http://www.medicinenet.com/Rheumatoid Arthritis/article.htm

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Holistic Nursing Practice

September/October 2005

New Rheumatoid Arthritis Treatments

According to the Arthritis Foundation, over 2 million people in the

United States are afflicted with RA. 3 While the disease is not

considered rare, it is not common compared to osteoarthritis, the

familiar type of arthritis normally associated with age. However, RA

is common enough that any primary care provider who sees a

cross-section of patients can expect to see it periodically in

practice.

http://www.nursingcenter.com/prodev/ce_article.asp?tid=601252

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Hospital for Special Surgery

Posted 02 Aug 2005

" Medical Management of Arthritis: Early Diagnosis and Current Therapies "

The most common type of IA is rheumatoid arthritis (RA) — 1% of the

world's population is affected by this condition (3 women to every

man), and RA is one of the most common potentially treatable causes of

disability in the Western world.

....

RA is the most common form of inflammatory arthritis -- as previously

mentioned, it affects 1% of the world's population, occurs 3 times

more often in women than in men, and in most cases, develops in adults

between the ages of 25 and 50. However, children and the elderly are

also at risk.

http://www.hss.edu/professional-conditions_13583.asp

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Tissue Antigens

Volume 60 Issue 6 Page 465-473, December 2002

" Genetic epidemiology of rheumatoid arthritis "

Abstract:Building on the spectacular success of molecular genetics in

defining the biological basis of many rare single gene disorders over

the past decade, epidemiologists have turned their attention to

unravelling the complex genetic mysteries of common disorders, such as

rheumatoid arthritis (RA). As a prelude to any such endeavour it is

obviously important to establish that there is a significant genetic

component to the disease. The classical approaches of twin and other

family recurrence risk studies, coupled with prevalence studies in

different ethnic and migrant populations, have been used to estimate

the environmental and genetic contributions to RA. However, developing

a consensus on these estimates has proved difficult, thereby providing

an early warning to the unwary investigator that the road to gene

discovery in RA is likely to be a rough ride.

http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1034/j.1399-0039.2002.600601.x?journ\

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