# Rheumatoid arthritis

<mark style="color:$danger;">**This Editorial Guide is used for Education Purposes Only. It is used in the Authoring Courses and Certifications. It is based on the January 2026 Editorial Guide.**</mark>

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a multisystem, inflammatory, autoimmune disorder; the exact etiology is unknown. RA is a disease primarily of the joints and is clinically known as an 'arthritis' although extra-articular manifestations occur. Extra-articular features include nodules, carditis and pericarditis, vasculitis, lung disorders, and other manifestations.

69896004 |Rheumatoid arthritis (disorder)| remains a primitive concept in SNOMED CT and must be stated as a parent (IS A relationship) for all rheumatoid arthritis concepts.

For example,

201776007 |Rheumatoid arthritis of sacroiliac joint (disorder)|

<figure><img src="https://3063935683-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FSZh4aZdgpviXMYp37bCy%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-aa60627a8a854600fb3ce9b2f65378537faed7f9%2Fimage%20(131).png?alt=media" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="https://github.com/SNOMED-Documents/snomed-editorial-guide/blob/main/authoring/clinical-finding-and-disorder/images/174690543.png" alt=""><figcaption><p>Figure. Stated view of 201776007 |Rheumatoid arthritis of sacroiliac joint (disorder)|</p></figcaption></figure>

Example of extra-articular rheumatoid manifestation,

28880005 |Rheumatoid arthritis with carditis (disorder)|

<figure><img src="https://3063935683-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FSZh4aZdgpviXMYp37bCy%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-ef8108d998a20006a976c6749af690dee97177a5%2Fimage%20(132).png?alt=media" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="https://github.com/SNOMED-Documents/snomed-editorial-guide/blob/main/authoring/clinical-finding-and-disorder/images/174690542.png" alt=""><figcaption><p>Figure: Stated view of 28880005 |Rheumatoid arthritis with carditis (disorder)|</p></figcaption></figure>

{% hint style="info" %}
410795001 |Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (disorder)| has been inactivated with an inactivation reason of *Outdated* with a target replacement of 410502007 |Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (disorder)|. Subtypes of Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (disorder) are now modeled to reflect the up-to-date classification of this disorder.
{% endhint %}

<a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScTmbZIf0UEQwYDkY27EEWBkaiYkHSbR0_9DmFrMLXoQLyL7Q/viewform?usp=pp_url&#x26;entry.1767247133=SCT+Editorial+Guide&#x26;entry.670899847=Rheumatoid%20arthritis" class="button primary">Provide Feedback</a>


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.snomed.org/education/snomed-ct-education-editorial-guide/readme/authoring/domain-specific-modeling/clinical-finding-and-disorder/clinical-finding-and-disorder-modeling/specific-clinical-finding-and-disorder-modeling/rheumatoid-arthritis.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.