In many women with RA, disease activity improves substantially during pregnancy. However, some women’s RA flares or remains active during pregnancy. It is often necessary to change or modify treatment of RA during pregnancy to control flares and/or to minimize the risks of some RA treatments to the developing fetus.

If you are a woman with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), the best time to consider RA treatments during pregnancy is before you conceive. Data about the safety of any medications during pregnancy is limited and hard to obtain. Some RA treatments are known to be harmful to a developing baby. Meet with your doctors (an obstetrician and rheumatologist) before you conceive to talk about your treatment options. Some medications should be discontinued months before you try to conceive. In pregnancy, choosing medications is very much a case of weighing benefits and risks, both to the mother and her unborn child.

You should stop using nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDs, before you become pregnant. NSAIDs can be used with caution in pregnancy during the second trimester up until about 30 weeks. After that, NSAIDs should be discontinued. Generally, short-acting NSAIDs, like ibuprofen or diclofenac, are used rather than long-acting NSAIDs.

Treatment is usually a multifaceted program of medications, occupational or physical therapy, and regular exercise. Sometimes surgery is used to correct joint damage. Early, aggressive treatment is key to good results. And with today’s treatments, joint damage can be slowed or stopped in many cases.

As part of your rheumatoid arthritis treatment, your doctor will probably prescribe a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID). These medications reduce pain and inflammation but do not slow progression of RA. Therefore, people with moderate to severe RA often require additional medications to prevent further joint damage.

Although anyone can get rheumatoid arthritis, women with RA outnumber men by three to one. Many women with rheumatoid arthritis are diagnosed in their 20s and 30s, just when marriage and family start to take life’s center stage.

With pain, fatigue, and medication side effects to consider, there’s no question rheumatoid arthritis makes family planning more complicated. But RA doesn’t have to put your dreams of having a family out of reach, experts tell WebMD. If you’re thinking about starting a family while living with rheumatoid arthritis, consider these tips.

If you’ve recently been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis — or have a loved one who has — you’re likely to have a host of questions. Let’s start with the basics: risk factors, symptoms, and treatments. Rheumatoid arthritis, also known as RA, affects more than two million Americans; it’s three times more likely in women than men and strikes patients of all ages and races. Symptoms range from mild to severe, with varying degrees of inflammation, swelling, pain, and damage in the joints. While there is no known cause, there are numerous treatments — from medications to lifestyle modifications — to help ease day-to-day living.

The symptoms of RA vary from person to person and can mimic those of other inflammatory joint conditions, sometimes making the diagnosis difficult. So how can you know if the signs are pointing toward rheumatoid arthritis? One of the unique features of the disease is that it involves the small joints; for example, of the hands or the feet. And the pain is symmetrical — if it affects the first finger on the right hand, it usually will affect the same finger on the left side.

The decision to undergo a rheumatoid pregnancy requires careful consideration and planning. Fortunately, for most women with arthritis, pregnancy leads to healthy babies. But will you be able to care for an infant and, later, an active toddler and child? Do you have a supportive partner and family members who can help?

Another necessary consideration is your medications. Some medications, such as methotrexate, leflunomide (Arava) or mycophenolate mofetil (CellCept), clearly cause birth defects and should always be avoided during pregnancy. For most medicines, like aspirin, the risks are less clear.