Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease affecting over 1.3 million Americans. Autoimmune disease occurs when your immune system—which generally fights invaders and infections—mistakenly attacks its own healthy tissue and organs instead.
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) causes joint inflammation and pain, and commonly affects the hands, knees or ankles, and usually the same joint on both sides of the body. Occasionally, RA can cause symptoms in the heart, lungs, circulatory system or eyes. Although chronic, RA progresses over time and has periods of remission as well as increased activity, called “flares.”
