Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) affects around 514,000 Australians, yet there is no known cure and many people living with the condition do not respond well to treatment. Some patients do not respond to any treatment and for them, life with the condition can be a constant battle with pain.

However, researchers in Ireland think they may have the answer and believe their new study will lead the way to earlier intervention and treatment for thousands of people living with the condition.

In a world first, the team demonstrated how a specific white blood cell subtype is present in the joints of both RA patients and those at risk of RA, finding that the cells can attack the immune system and lead to Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Explaining their results in the Medical Express, researchers from Dublin’s Trinity College wrote that, “these findings identify the presence of an early bacterial cell/gene signature that shapes the RA joint inflammatory environment and represents a unique opportunity for early diagnosis and therapeutic intervention. ”

Wanting to better understand the inflammation site in RA sufferers the team split participants into three groups, one with RA patients, another with patients at risk of RA, and a third control group with no signs of the condition.

Scientists then studied the white blood cells (or macrophages) in the connective tissue (or synovium) lining the inner surface of the participants’ joints.

In healthy individuals, macrophages stimulate the action of other immune system cells, but for reasons we still do not understand they sometimes develop a pro-inflammatory status and release proteins that can cause cartilage and bone destruction.

Identifying the cell’s signature in participants with RA and those at risk of RA “represents a unique opportunity for early diagnosis and treatment.”

“Researchers identified that the pro-inflammatory status of these macrophages is maintained by specific signaling and metabolic pathways within the joint, the targeting of which may induce resolution of inflammation,” researchers wrote.

“Importantly, the team identified that these changes in the macrophage status occurred pre-disease onset.”

The findings offer hope for people who live with the disease and those who care for them and while a cure may be years away, there are some tools to make your life easier.

If you have RA, once-simple tasks like buttoning your shirt or opening a jar can become an ordeal. However, these easy-to-use RA gadgets and devices can come to the rescue.

Discussed below are some of the most helpful innovations to assist with the most important aspects of daily life:

• Dressing Aids
  Putting on clothes can become a pain with arthritic fingers, but devices such as zipper pulls and button hooks make the task much easier. Extension tools are available to help you pull on socks, slip on shoes, and even slide on bracelets. In addition, many items of clothing are available with Velcro fasteners, and elastic shoelaces let you turn lace-up shoes into snug slip-ons.

• Exercise Video Games
  Video game systems that use cameras or handheld gadgets to track gamers’ movements can be a double boon to those with rheumatoid arthritis. According to Maura Daly Iversen, PT, DPT, MPH, a professor and chair of the physical therapy department at North-Eastern University in Boston. The video games allow patients to work on stability, strength, and range of motion while they’re also having fun.

• Personal Hygiene Aids
  Grooming tools such as razors, toothbrushes, nail trimmers, tweezers, hair dryers, and electric shavers are now available with features such as large or long handles and big buttons to make them easier for people with RA to use.

• Gear for Yard and House-work
  Look for garden hoses with thick connector sleeves that make them easy to attach and gardening shears that have built-in gears for heavy cutting work. For housework, ergonomic tools and appliances, from vacuums to wrenches, have been designed to reduce stress and anxiety, strain on wrists, forearms, and elbows.
• Mobility Aids for the Car
  Many tools are available to help you drive safely. These include seat belt handles to help you buckle up, slides and swivels so you can ease yourself behind the wheel, support handles for getting out of the car, and panoramic rear-view mirrors to reduce the need to turn your head. Wide key holders make it easier to turn on the ignition, and special gas cap openers will help when it’s time to fill up.

IMPORTANT LEGAL INFO This article is of a general nature and FYI only, because it doesn’t take into account your personal health requirements or existing medical conditions. That means it’s not personalised health advice and shouldn’t be relied upon as if it is. Before making a health-related decision, you should work out if the info is appropriate for your situation and get professional medical advice.