WHO: Rheumatoid arthritis affects over 6 million people in Latin America, misconceptions about treatment prevail

The World Health Organization (WHO) has revealed that rheumatoid arthritis affects over 6 million people in the Latin American region. People are not much aware of the disease and know very less about it. Patients with rheumatoid arthritis have misconceptions about the treatment of the disease. 83% of the doctors dealing with the therapeutic area have revealed that patients with rheumatoid arthritis who come to their offices have insufficient or incorrect information on the disease. Over 54% of patients believe that rheumatoid arthritis only affects joints. This is a false belief since this is an autoimmune disease and affects other organs such as the eyes, lungs and heart as well. 35% of patients believe that this disease is a result of stress and bad habits. 38% also believe that if patients change their lifestyle, the disease will disappear. Around 46% of patients have heard of biological drugs and 37% believe that these drugs are safe, which shows the lack of information about medical news for rheumatoid arthritis which may represent a very important role in relation to the quality of life of patients improved.