Rheumatoid Arthritis

Do you have pain, tenderness, swelling or stiffness in your hands, wrists or feet that has lasted for six weeks or longer? In the morning, are your joints stiff for longer than 30 minutes? Is one or both of your knees tender, warm and swollen? You may have more than arthritis — you may have rheumatoid arthritis, a chronic and often very painful autoimmune disease.   With rheumatoid arthritis (RA), the body’s immune system, which normally attacks foreign agents like bacteria and viruses, attacks the joints. This creates chronic inflammation that causes the tissue that lines the inside of joints to thicken, causing swelling and sometimes excruciating pain in and around the joints.   Small joints in the hands, feet, wrists, elbows, knees and