Abstract
This study determined the prevalence of Rheumatoid arthritis in elderly people that attended pilgrimage center, Elele Rivers state, Nigeria. A total of 200 subjects attending the pilgrimage center were examined for Rhematoid Factor using Latex agglutination method. The data was subjected to statistical analysis using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16.0. A prevalence of 4% was seen in the female subjects within the age bracket of 65-80 years and a prevalence of 1% was seen in the male subjects within the age bracket of 61-70 years. It showed that Rheumatoid arthritis was positive in 5% of the population and negative in 95% of the population, which was statistically significant (p< 0.05). In conclusion, there is a significant increase in the overall prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis in elderly subjects that attend pilgrimage center, Elele. Therefore proper care should be instituted to avoid unnecessary complications associated with this ailment.
Highlights
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic autoimmune inflammatory polyarthritis with articular and extra-articular manifestations [1]
It is positive in 75-85%, but a negative rheumatoid factor (RF) or CCP antibody does not rule out RA, rather, the arthritis is called seronegative, which is in about 15-25% of people with RA [17]
This contrasts with the study by Smolen and his colleagues which showed that rheumatoid arthritis affects between 0.5 and 1% of adults in the developed world with between 5 and 50 per 100,000 people newly developing the condition each year [21]
Summary
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic autoimmune inflammatory polyarthritis with articular and extra-articular manifestations [1]. Rheumatoid Arthritis manifests clinically with joint pain and swelling, significant joint stiffness, constitutional symptoms and impaired quality of life. The onset of Rheumatoid Arthritis is a state of persistent cellular activation leading to autoimmunity and immune complexes in joints and other organs where it manifests. Test for rheumatoid factor (RF) and anti-citrullinated protein antibodies (ACPAs measured as anti-CCP antibodies) are performed when rheumatoid arthritis is suspected [25] It is positive in 75-85%, but a negative RF or CCP antibody does not rule out RA, rather, the arthritis is called seronegative, which is in about 15-25% of people with RA [17]. These pains might not be as a result of rheumatoid arthritis but can be due to other causes or complications. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis in the elderly
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