Arthritis pain causes workers to take 40 sick days a year

It revealed that rheumatoid arthritis sufferers take six times more sick days than their healthier colleagues. So debilitated by the agonising symptoms, one in seven is forced to give up

work altogether a year after diagnosis, the British Society for Rheumatology said. Three-quarters of cases are diagnosed in people of working age. Now a new campaign from the society says

that arthritis is not an inevitable part of ageing and if people get diagnosed and treated in a crucial “12-week window”, they can carry on doing “simple tasks” for longer. The NHS estimates

that the condition, which causes pain and swelling in the joints, affects around 700,000 people in the UK. The society has launched its new Simple Tasks campaign to highlight the

“significant effects” of conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis. Professor Simon Bowman, president of the society, said: “There is considerable evidence that if people are treated within 12

weeks of rheumatoid arthritis symptom onset, it dramatically reduces the likelihood of long-term damage. “Treating patients with these conditions early can enable people to continue doing

the things that are important to them such as keeping a job, remaining independent, raising their children.” There are 20,000 new cases of rheumatoid arthritis diagnosed each year. It is a

long-term, chronic condition caused by the immune system attacking the lining of the joints. Meanwhile, a survey by the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society and 2020Health of 2,000

rheumatoid arthritis sufferers found 89 per cent experience chronic fatigue as well as the better-known symptoms of pain and swelling.