Želmíra Macejová, Ivan Rybár
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease of joint with various extraarticular manifestations. RA affects at least twice as many women as men, its peak onset is in young adults and premenopausal women. Joint disease is characterised by chronic inflammation initiated and maintained via autoimmune mechanisms. Ethiology of RA is multifactorial, including endogenous factor like genetic predisposition, hormonal status, and reaction of T and B lymhocytes. Clinical evaluation documents polyarticular involvement with pain and morning stiffness, sometimes with extra-articular features. The treatment consists of pharmacological and non-pharmacological modalities and its objective is the remission. Besides traditional DMARDs there are better options available, mainly biological therapy.