Prognostic value of the type of onset of rheumatoid arthritis.

The type of onset in 235 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) was acute in 69, subacute in 55, and gradual in 111 patients. The radiological destruction of the hands and feet after 7 years from the beginning of the disease was the same in all patient groups. Thus the nature of the onset of RA seems not to have any significant influence on the outcome of the arthritis.