Rheumatoid Arthritis
A chronic autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the lining of the joints, typically causing symmetrical pain, swelling and morning stiffness in the small joints of the hands and feet.
Is this what you are experiencing?
Joint pain that lasts more than six weeks, comes with swelling, or is worse after rest than after activity is worth a specialist opinion. That pattern points towards inflammatory arthritis — rheumatoid, psoriatic, reactive or crystal — rather than wear and tear, and the two are treated in completely different ways.
What symptoms should prompt an assessment?
You do not need to have every symptom below — and having one does not mean you have a particular disease. These are the patterns that commonly lead to a rheumatology consultation:
- Painful, swollen, warm or tender joints.
- Morning stiffness or stiffness after sitting or resting.
- Pain affecting the small joints of the hands, wrists or feet.
- Several joints becoming painful or swollen at the same time.
- Reduced movement or difficulty walking, gripping or completing daily tasks.
- Repeated episodes of sudden, severe redness and swelling, especially in the big toe, foot, ankle or knee.
- Joint symptoms occurring alongside psoriasis, a recent infection or inflammatory bowel disease.
Which conditions does this cover?
Psoriatic Arthritis
An inflammatory arthritis that can occur in people with psoriasis, affecting joints, tendons, the spine, and sometimes causing swelling of entire fingers or toes.
Reactive Arthritis
Joint inflammation that develops after an infection elsewhere in the body, most often affecting the knees, ankles or feet.
Enteropathic Arthritis
Arthritis associated with inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis), involving the joints or spine.
Gout
A crystal arthritis caused by high uric acid levels, producing sudden, intensely painful attacks of redness and swelling — classically in the big toe.
How is it diagnosed and treated?
Dr. Ashish Baweja combines a detailed clinical assessment with targeted investigations — blood tests and inflammatory markers, imaging, and where relevant procedures such as joint aspiration, nail fold capillaroscopy or biopsy — to reach an accurate diagnosis. Treatment plans follow current international (EULAR/ACR) guidelines and are personalised to your condition, lifestyle and goals, with an emphasis on achieving long-term remission and protecting quality of life.
This page is general information to help guide a consultation. It is not a diagnosis.
Book your consultation
Consult Dr. Ashish Baweja at the Institute of Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology, Medanta – The Medicity, Gurugram.