Fetal Programming in Rheumatoid Arthritis

Abstract

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, systemic, inflammatory, autoimmune disease mainly affecting synovial tissues, which can lead to severe morbidity and progressive joint destruction resulting in deformations and disability. Other important outcomes include extra-articular features and comorbidities, like vasculitis, cardiac disease and infections. RA affects approximately 1% of the adult population and each year, 5 to 50 per 100.000 persons develop this condition. Women are affected two to three times more often than men. The age of onset in women is usually between 40 and 50 years, but it often affects women of childbearing age.