Which symptom is characteristic of rheumatoid arthritis?

• A. More joint pain at rest, stiffness, abnormal fingers (swan)
• B. Pain Only When Moving
• C. Fever and Weight Loss
• D. Pain in the Big Toe

Answer: (A)

In rheumatoid arthritis, the hallmark is inflammatory involvement of the small joints, especially in the hands, with persistent stiffness after periods of rest and swelling from chronic synovitis. The described pattern—more joint pain at rest with stiffness and a finger deformity like swan neck—captures that inflammatory, chronic process and the common hand deformity RA can produce. Pain that only occurs with movement points away from RA and toward mechanical causes, while toe pain or systemic signs like fever and weight loss can occur in various conditions but aren’t as characteristic of RA. So the combination of prolonged stiffness after rest and the typical finger deformity best signals rheumatoid arthritis.