الفهرس 
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Abstract
This study was carried out in Rheumatology and Rehabilitation department, Faculty of Medicine, Zagazig University, on forty five (45) subjects divided into 2 groups:
1- GROUP I (Rheumatoid Arthritis Group):
It included thirty (30) individuals, suffering from RA, diagnosed according to the 1987 The american rheumatism association criteria (ARA) (Arnett et al., 1988).
They were 3 males and 27 females, their ages ranged from (28 – 64) years with a mean value ± SD (48 ± 10.96) years and the duration of the disease ranged from (1 – 26) years.
The 1987 revised ARA criteria for the classification of rheumatoid arthritis (Arnett et al., 1988).
1-Morning stiffness: Morning stiffness in and around the joints, lasting at least one hour before maximal improvement.
2-Arthritis of three or more joint areas: At least three joint areas simultaneously have had soft tissue swelling or fluid (not bony overgrowth alone) observed by a physician. The 14 possible areas are right or left proximal interphalangeal joint (PIP), metacarpophalangeal joint (MCP), wrist, elbow, knee, ankle, and metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joints.
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