Monday, January 14, 2013

What You Should Know About Methotrexate For Rheumatoid Arthritis


Rheumatoid Arthritis is an auto-immune disease in which the immune system attacks the body, causing damage in the joints that results in pain and swelling. Unlike ordinary arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis affects the other organs. People who have this condition generally get worse as years go on, although it can go into remission for many years. Methotrexate for treating this condition can help those with this disease go into remission for longer periods of time.

Types of Drugs used for this condition

There are two types of drugs that are used to treat this condition. They are considered Type I and Type II drugs. The first type of drugs are those that relieve the swelling and pain that the condition causes. These can be pain medications as well as anti-inflammatory drugs. These simply treat the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis and make it easier for a person to live with this condition.

The second type of drug is slower acting and attacks the disease itself, causing it to go into remission. Methotrexate is one of these type of drugs. Methotrexate for Rheumatoid Arthritis has proven to be successful when it comes to putting patients in remission. When the patient with rheumatoid arthritis is in remission, they do not feel the effects of the disease. The type of treatment that you get for your disease depends upon your age and general health.

Diseases that attack the immune system can be particularly troublesome as they can lead to other infections as well as diseases. This is the reason why many doctors want to put the disease into remission so that it cannot continue to do harm. Someone who suffers from rheumatoid arthritis will feel the same type of inflamed joint pain that someone does who has other forms of arthritis. But this disease is worse because as it progresses, it also harms other organs.

As is the case with most arthritis, the disease can end up crippling the person who carries it to the point where they are incapacitated. Most people who are diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis understand that the disease will continue to progress as time moves forward. This can last for years or even decades, but eventually the person will end up unable to walk.

When they use Methotrexate for this disease, these patients have more hope for a brighter future. With the disease in remission, the person who has this condition does not necessarily have to continue getting worse throughout the years. The disease can lay dormant. While there is no cure for rheumatoid arthritis, remission is the next best thing. And it can give someone a new lease on life.

Methotrexate for this condition is not without risk. As is the case with many drugs that put a disease into remission, there is a risk for infection as well as contracting other diseases while on this medication. There is an increased risk of high blood pressure and stroke. Persons who are on this medication to treat rheumatoid arthritis need to be monitored by a doctor.

Rheumatoid arthritis may also go into a spontaneous remission. There are natural treatments that people can use to treat this disease, including diet and exercise as well as massage that will reduce inflammation and boost up the immune system.

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