arthritis rheumatoid doctors near me for Dummies

A lot of people across the world are suffering with an immune system that can't differentiate between healthy cells, invader bacteria, and diseases. The defenses against diseases that were once protecting themselves are now attacking their organs and tissues.




This trend is being tackled by large international research initiatives. One such initiative is London's Francis Crick Institute. Two world experts, James Lee (from the Americas) and Carola Vinuesa (from Italy), have established separate research groups to pinpoint the exact causes.


Lee told the Observer the extent to which cases of autoimmune disease has increased in the past 40 years, particularly in Western countries. We are seeing a few cases in countries where we had never seen such diseases.


For instance, the Middle East/east Asia is the region that has seen the highest recent rise in the number of inflammatory bowel disease cases. They'd never experienced the disease.


Type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis IBD and rheumatoidarthitis all are auto-immune illnesses. In each case, your immune system becomes confused and switches to healthy tissues over infective agents.


There are at least 4 million people suffering from autoimmune diseases in the UK and some suffer from multiple. Internationally, it is currently believed that the prevalence of autoimmune diseases is rising at the rate of 3-9% per year. Researchers believe that environmental triggers are key to this rise.


Lee, who was previously based in Cambridge University, stated that genetics hasn't changed much in recent decades. So something must be changing around the world in a way that is increasing our susceptibility to an autoimmune disorder.


Vinuesa who was located at the Australian National University supported the idea. She cited the changes in food habits that were happening as more countries adopted western-style diets and people bought more fast food.


Vinuesa noted that fast-food dishes contain a few essential ingredients, like fiber. Evidence suggests that this can alter the microbiome of a person that is the collection of microorganisms in our digestive tract. These microorganisms play a important role in controlling a variety of bodily functions.


The changes in our microbiomes can trigger autoimmune disorders, of which there are over 100 different types.


Both researchers emphasized that individual vulnerability was a factor in the development of such illnesses, ailments that also comprise celiac diseases as well as lupus, which triggers swelling and inflammation, and may cause damage to various organs, such as the heart.


"If you don't possess a certain genetic susceptibility, you won't necessarily get an autoimmune disease regardless of how many Big Macs consume," said Vinuesa. "We can do little to slow the growth of fast-food restaurants across the globe. Instead, we are focusing on the genetic factors that trigger autoimmune disorders. We are trying to understand the reasons why certain people are more vulnerable than others. This is the way we intend to solve the problem."


This is made possible due to the advancement of methods that now allow scientists to identify tiny differences in DNA between large numbers of people. In this way, it is possible to determine common genetic patterns among those suffering from Read More an autoimmune disorder.


Lee said that the capacity to sequence huge amounts of DNA has revolutionized everything. We did not have these tools until recently. My research showed that there are about six DNA variations that are involved in the development of inflammatory bowel diseases. Now we know of more than 250.


Lee and Vinuesa are working on such work because they want to know how the genetic pathways function and the underlying causes of the diverse illnesses that doctors are currently studying. Vinuesa claims that it's now apparent that there exist many types of autoimmune conditions such as Lupus. All of them could be caused by different genetic pathways. This could have an adverse impact on your ability to determine the best treatment.


There are a lot of new therapies that are likely to be beneficial but we don't have the appropriate patients. Actually we do not have the information we need to know if they have the same disease. This is the purpose of research into autoimmune diseases. In order to offer the most effective treatment we must be able to classify and categorize patients.


Lee also stated that there are more autoimmune diseases than ever, and new treatments and drugs are urgently needed. It's not possible to treat autoimmune illnesses. This is especially true when young people are trying to finish their education and get their first job, and also have families.


This means that more patients will require regular injections for the rest of their lives. It can be a painful time for patients and also puts an enormous strain on the healthcare system. It is imperative that we find new treatment options that are more efficient and effective.


Rheumatoid is an auto-immune condition. This means that the immune system is attacking healthy tissue. It's not yet known what causes it.


Your immune system normally makes antibodies that fight viruses and bacteria, assisting to fight infection.


If you suffer from rheumatoid arthritis the immune system releases antibodies to the joint's lining and attack the surrounding tissue.


The thin, cell-like layer that covers your joints (synovium), to get inflamed and sore and releases chemicals that can cause harm to the area.


bones

Cartilage, the connective tissue that connects bones.

Tendons - connects muscles to bone

Ligaments - The tissue that connects cartilage to bone

These chemicals can cause rheumatoid joint injury if the condition Click here is not treated. The end result can be irreparable.


There are many theories about the reasons why your immune system attacks joints, such as the possibility of an infection as an trigger. But none of these theories has been proven to be true.

Possible risk factors

There are many factors which can increase your risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis, including:


The genes. There are indications that arthritis rheumatoid may run in families. However, since genes play a tiny part in the condition's development and progression, there's a low risk of the disease being passed to the next generation.

hormones - rheumatoid arthritis is more common in females than males, and this could be due to effects of the hormone estrogen, though this has not been proved

Smoking - Evidence suggests that smokers are more likely to develop rheumatoid arthritis.