| OCR Text |
Show Rheumatoid arthritis potentially most serious of rheumatic type When il comesT I mile of operation . ' vehicle more expIS' supermarket Shopp , News, Russell, . j Rheumatoid arthritis is potentially po-tentially the most serious of the major forms of rheumatic diseases, says Today's Health Guide, the American Medical Association's manual of health information for the American family. Rheumatoid arthritis characteristically charac-teristically occurs in attacks of pain and swelling in the joints, weakness, fatigue, and stiffness, especially in the mornings. mor-nings. The attacks may last for weeks, months or. years, but usually the intensity of the disease fluctuates. The disease varies in severity from time to time, seldom completely com-pletely disappearing, though a few people have recovered completely. com-pletely. A small percentage of patients have severe, steadily-worsening steadily-worsening arthritis that finally results in crippling and deformity. deform-ity. The best treatment usually and joint function and prevent gradual onset of deformity. Proper balance of rest and exercise ex-ercise is the keynote. Warm or hot tub baths once or twice daily are helpful. Hot towels wrung out of hot water, applied to the joints and then wrapped in plastic sheets provide pro-vide muscle relaxation. Infrared lamps are sometimes useful. Drug treatment is often prescribed pres-cribed by the physician. The family members of the patient with rheumatoid arthritis arthri-tis are his most important allies. al-lies. They should be trained in home care and instructed in special techniques of treatment. They should understand the nature na-ture of the disease and participate partic-ipate in theoverall treatment program. All power is inherent in the people. Thomas Jefferson includes a variety of different methods and techniques. Rest is a cardinal principle of management man-agement and is usually prescribed pre-scribed as a number of hours per day. Details of rest are outlined by the physician. The bed should be firm; pillows under un-der the knees or back should be avoided. The feet should be supported by a footboard. The bed is easier to get in and out of if blocks six to eight inches in height are placed under the casters. Rest is alternated with exercises ex-ercises and activity. Prescription Prescrip-tion of the proper balance is the physician's responsibility. Specific exercises are prescribed, prescrib-ed, among which are muscle strengthening exercises Joint deformity can be prevented or made less severe by daily putting put-ting the joints through a full range of motion. If pain lasts for more than 15 to 20 minutes after exercise, it has been too much. Rest is necessary to reduce joint inflamation but exercise is required also to retain muscle |
