Hod 20245

RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS
Table of Contents
Introduction
Health disorder can be effectively removed by application of orthodox medication as

mentioned by NHS. The orthodox medication refers to the system in which health
professional treat health disorder by identifying sign and symptoms by using medical drugs,
surgery or radiation. In present scenario, reflexology has become a prominent therapy which
is used to treat health disorder for providing physiological relief to the patients from their
suffering. The assignment is going to provide information about how orthodox medication is
used for treatment of a health disorder by NHS and the advantages and issues that may be
faced by using reflexology treatment of the disease.
Concept about Rheumatoid Arthritis
Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is a form of autoimmune disorder which affects the joints of the
body resulting them to get swollen. In this disease, initially the joints of the hands and fingers
are many affected but later with the time its gets spread to the spine, knee and other parts of
the body. As mentioned by (), rheumatoid arthritis is often diagnosed on the basis of their
symptoms, medical imaging of joints and blood tests. The exact reason behind the rise of
rheumatoid arthritis is still unknown but it is believed to be caused by combination of
environmental and genetic factors. As asserted by (), rheumatoid arthritis is caused because
the body’s immune system attacks on the joints resulting in their thickening and
inflammation of the joint capsule. The Rheumatoid arthritis makes the person suffer lifelong
and is incurable. The disorder rises from the middle age of individuals and becomes more
prominent and painful with progression of age.
Manifestation of Rheumatoid Arthritis
There are various painful symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis that include stiffness, visible
swollen arms along with stiffness in joints which is usually felt during the morning and
prolonged stage of inactivity. Moreover, this disease also shows rise of fatigue with loss in
weight and low fever among individuals as an early symptom (). As mentioned by (), signs of
rheumatoid arthritis include joint pain that affects both parts of the body and the primes areas
in which the sign is shown include knee, feet, shoulders and wrists. The signs also include
numbness and tingling feeling in the hands as a result of inflammation of tendons which
creates pressure on the nerves. The disease on extensive progression shows signs of
immobility among individuals as they find it hard to bend and straight some joints.
Psychological effect
The psychological effect of rheumatoid arthritis includes stress, development of depression

and anxiety among people. As asserted by (), stress in people with rheumatoid arthritis is
faced because they experience difficulty in doing everyday work due to inability to move
properly as a result of painful and swollen joints. The stress among individuals affected by
this disease results to have a negative impact on the immune system which plays the role in
worsening the situation by triggering flare of pain. As argued by (), patient affected by
rheumatoid arthritis feels anxiety due to uncertainty of health. Moreover, individuals affected
by the disease feel depression as another common psychological impact due to inefficiency to
move freely.
Physiological impact
The rheumatoid arthritis is seen to cause inflammation of the smaller joints in the hands and
feet resulting in painful situation as the patients cannot move their arms and legs freely. The
people with this disease are often seen to develop hammer toes, bunions and claw toes.
Moreover, with the progression of the disease the tendon and ligaments of the skeletal system
also gets affected making the muscle weak (). As mentioned by (), rheumatoid arthritis results
to deliver a high risk of developing osteoporosis by individuals due to weakness of bones. In
extreme situation, the inflammation of wrist due to rheumatoid arthritis leads to develop
carpel tunnel syndrome which makes individuals incapable to use hands and wrists resulting
in painful situation. As asserted by (), rheumatoid arthritis affects the circulatory system that
shows hardening or blockage of arteries or decreased red blood cell production. Moreover,
due to rheumatoid arthritis lumps are formed under the skin which generally is located near
the joints. As a result of rheumatoid arthritis, people suffer pain in the knee, shoulder, hands,
feet and other parts of the body.
Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis by NHS 500
According to NHS, the treatment for rheumatoid arthritis is usually done by using orthodox
medication to reduce the pain experienced by the individuals as a result of the disease within
minimised time. Various medications are present in stopping the progression of rheumatoid
arthritis among individuals out of which disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs)
are most frequently used along with biological treatment (). Moreover, in extreme cases
surgery is used to relief the patients from the painful state faced due to rheumatoid arthritis.
As mentioned by (), DMARDs are provided to rheumatoid arthritis patients for blocking the
influence of chemicals released during the time immune system attacks on the skeletal joints
of the body. According to NHS, the different DMARDs often used for treatment of
rheumatoid arthritis include methotrexate, leflunomide, hydroxychloroquine and
sulfasalazine. Moreover, it is informed by the NHS that methotrexate is the initial medication
used for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis patients along with implementation of short-
course of corticosteroid hormones for easing their pain.
The biological treatment used for rheumatoid arthritis includes use of etanercept, infliximab,
adalimumab, certolizmab, golimumab, abatacept, tocilizumab and sarilumab. The mentioned
biological medications are usually given in combination with the DMARDs and in case the
DMARDs are not effective, these biological medications are alone used. The NHS informs
that the biological medications are inserted by the help of injection to block the chemicals
that instigates the immune system of the body to attack the joints. The NHS presently
recommends use of Jak inhibitors for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis patients who are in
moderate to severe stage. The Jak inhibitors are provided in form of oral medicine named
tofacitinib and barcitinib. The Jak inhibitors are given to patients who have shown lower or
neglected response to DMARDs and biological medication. Moreover, it is also prescribed to
patients who are unable to take in methotrexate.
Reflexology Treatment Plan 500
Comparing and Contrasting NHS treatment with Reflexology Treatment Plan 400
Conclusion 100

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RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS

Health disorder can be effectively removed by application of orthodox medication as

Concept about Rheumatoid Arthritis

Manifestation of Rheumatoid Arthritis

The psychological effect of rheumatoid arthritis includes stress, development of depression

Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis by NHS 500

Reflexology Treatment Plan 500

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