Treatment for Advanced Rheumatoid Arthritis

Approximately 1.3 million Americans suffer from rheumatoid arthritis, a condition where your immune system attacks your joints, causing inflammation in the lining that surrounds the joints, reports the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As rheumatoid arthritis progresses, it can cause debilitating pain that requires treatment to be able to continue daily activities.

Identification

• Advanced rheumatoid arthritis treatment typically involves the use of prescription medications, and assistive devices like a cane or walker may be necessary to help you keep your balance while walking. When joint damage becomes severe, doctors perform surgery to repair or replace the affected joint.

Types of Medication

• Medications used to treat advanced rheumatoid arthritis include immunosuppressants like azathioprine and cyclosporine, TNF-alpha inhibitors like etanercept and infliximab and disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs like methotrexate and hydroxychloroquine and leflunomide.

Function of Medications

• Immunosuppressants prevent your body from causing further damage to your joints, while disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs protect tissues in your body from the damaging effects of rheumatoid arthritis. TNF-alpha inhibitors are administered by injection to reduce inflammation.

Risks

• Risks associated with the medications used for the treatment of advanced rheumatoid arthritis include liver damage, increased incidence of bacterial and viral infections, lung inflammation and infections, shortages of red or white blood cells or platelets in your blood stream, congestive heart failure, demyelinating diseases and the development of lymphoma or cancer of the lympatic system, warns the Mayo Clinic.

Self-Care

• If you are able, light exercise or stretching can help alleviate the pain of advanced rheumatoid arthritis. It is also important that you receive between eight and ten hours of sleep per night, explains the U.S. National Library of Medicine.