Rheumatoid arthritis research - is there an answer?

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Rheumatoid arthritis research is making fast progress

Rheumatoid arthritis research is being carried out all over the world. Both the NIH, the Arthritis Foundation and other private bodies are conducting ongoing studies to try and expand our understanding of what causes this disease and how best to treat it.

At the moment rheumatoid arthritis has no recognized cure. However, scientists are working to solve that problem through extensive rheumatoid arthritis research.  There are several organizations around the globe that are pursuing this research in hopes of uncovering not just a cure for rheumatoid arthritis, but also preventive measures that “at risk” people can take to ensure the disease doesn’t develop in the first place.

Probably the major focus of rheumatoid arthritis research performed today centres around the human immune system. What causes it to target healthy tissue and attempt to destroy it? What typically happens is the white blood cells attack the membranes of the joints (synovium), believing them to be invading organisms.  This results in inflammation and pain in the joints and the eventual destruction of joint cartilage.

Research is also taking place by the North American Rheumatoid Arthritis Consortium concerning genetic links to the disease. Does rheumatoid arthritis get passed down from one generation to the next? In the 1970s the behavior of a certain a gene called the “tumour necrosis factor”, was thought to influence people’s susceptibility of developing rheumatoid arthritis. Although not everyone with this marker develops the disease, it can mean increased risk and a more severe case of RA.

Another valid question scientists are attempting to answer is what role does gender play in the disease, given that more females are developing rheumatoid arthritis. It has been estimated that of all sufferers of this disease, approximately 70% are females. Although rheumatoid arthritis is not considered gender specific, that result must have some meaning.

Rheumatoid arthritis research shows that hormones have an effect on the progress of the disease. Often when a woman becomes pregnant, she will find her symptoms improve and the disease may even go into remission. This shows quite definitely that hormones have a large role in the progress of rheumatoid arthritis and may answer the question of why more women than men succumb to the complaint.

There is also a body of scientists that firmly reject the idea that the immune system causes rheumatoid arthritis. They consider the disease is brought on by bacterial or even viral infections. Indeed there is a good deal of rheumatoid arthritis research which shows this to be possible. Just one example is those infected with the  Epstein-Bar virus may be at increased risk of developing   rheumatoid arthritis. However this has not been proven beyond any doubt.

To conclude, scientists and the medical community are doing their best to find an answer to this problem and sufferers can be confident that the future will bring new treatments to bring relief. The main problem is that most of the rheumatoid arthritis research is being done by those organizations with deep pockets, namely the drug companies.

While this has to be a good thing, we mustn’t forget that drug companies are businesses that are run at a profit and will always put their own interests first. There is also research going on which targets natural treatments, however the money is not as plentiful for these studies. You can help by participating in any clinical trials being run in your area. You will help these privately run organizations as well as yourself through their rheumatoid arthritis research.