History of Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis is a potentially severe and disabling condition affecting approximately 1% of the world’s population. It is an inflammatory condition which affects synovial cells at its root. The cause is still unknown even though the history of rheumatoid arthritis is far reaching and dates back thousands of years.

The first known traces of rheumatoid arthritis are from around 4500 B.C. although there is more concrete evidence from slightly more recent times. For example, there are written descriptions of symptoms which sound very much like rheumatoid arthritis from around 100 years C.E. The history of rheumatoid arthritis can be difficult to discern clearly but it is important to note that any history at all does, in fact, exist. It allows us to see that rheumatoid arthritis does in fact play a significant part in human history and that, although it affects a minimal percentage of people, it has been around for quite a while.

Other evidence of rheumatoid arthritis throughout history includes skeletal remains which seem to provide rather conclusive evidence of the condition’s existence from thousands of years ago, right up through history and of course to current times. Unfortunately it seems that little if any information on the history of medical treatments for rheumatoid arthritis is available, but of course it is probably of no impact in reality since there has yet to be a cure. Of course, there are some effective treatments which can help to minimize the disturbances caused by rheumatoid arthritis in day to day life.

Another notable in the history of rheumatoid arthritis is some of the extraordinary people who have been able to suffer through their condition and reach great success in their field. For example, Dorothy Hodgkin, who helped to discover the make up of genetic code, developed severe rheumatoid arthritis at the age of 28. However, she went on to garner several historic accomplishments in the scientific community and live a very successful and productive life. August Renoir was another individual who fought through their condition to achieve great success in life. An impressionist painter, Renoir is well known in the art world and many believe that his softer style, which started later in life, was developed as a result of his difficulty with rheumatoid arthritis.

Clearly the history of rheumatoid arthritis goes way back, and it could even be possible that it has been plaguing mankind since humanity’s inception. It is unfortunate that even after such a long period of suffering that there is little knowledge about the causes of rheumatoid arthritis, and we have yet to discover a cure.