All questions about Rheumatoid arthritis
Will it get worse? Will they get better?
There's no cure, but early treatment can stop it getting worse, and many people have months or years between flares. Most people can lead full, active lives once it's under control.
Untreated or under-treated, RA can damage joints permanently. The outlook keeps improving as treatments get better. Current European recommendations start disease-modifying treatment as soon as RA is diagnosed, and once someone is in lasting remission, continuing treatment, perhaps at a lower dose, is preferred to stopping, because stopping often brings a flare.
Sources
- NHS: Rheumatoid arthritis, treatment
- National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society (NRAS): What is RA?
- Arthritis UK (formerly Versus Arthritis): Rheumatoid arthritis
- Smolen, Edwards et al.: EULAR recommendations for the management of rheumatoid arthritis, 2025 update (Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases 2026;85:991-1009)
Reviewed 2026-11-09 · next review 2027-11-09