rheumatoid arthritis

1. A chronic autoimmune disease with inflammation of the joints and marked deformities;
   Something (possibly a virus) triggers an attack on the synovium by the immune system, which releases cytokines that stimulate an inflammatory reaction that can lead to the destruction of all components of the joint (synset 114210220)
   referred to in: virus - (virology) ultramicroscopic infectious agent that replicates itself only within cells of living hosts; many are pathogenic; a piece of nucleic acid (DNA or RNA) wrapped in a thin coat of protein
   is a type of:

   • arthritis - inflammation of a joint or joints
   • autoimmune disease, autoimmune disorder - any of a large group of diseases characterized by abnormal functioning of the immune system that causes your immune system to produce antibodies against your own tissues
   subtypes:

   • psoriatic arthritis - a form of rheumatoid arthritis usually affecting fingers and toes and associated with psoriasis
   • juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, still's disease - a form of rheumatoid arthritis that affects children; large joints become inflamed and bone growth may be retarded
   same as: atrophic arthritis, rheumatism

Other Searches

• Rhyme: Dillfrog, RhymeZone
• Definition: Wiktionary, Dictionary.com, Wikipedia, Merriam-Webster, WordNet, Power Thesaurus
• Imagery: Google, Flickr, Bing