You are working in a busy outpatient client and performing assessment on a new patient. The patient reports pain and morning stiffness in the bilateral hands. You see what looks like large nodules on the knuckles, swan-neck deformity of the fingers, and ulnar deviation of the fingers as well. What is your patient's MOST LIKELY diagnosis?

A. This is primarily associated with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE), not Rheumatoid Arthritis. While some RA patients may have skin changes, a malar rash is not a typical manifestation of RA.
B. Morning stiffness is a hallmark symptom of Rheumatoid Arthritis. Patients often experience stiffness in their joints after periods of inactivity, particularly in the morning, which typically lasts for at least 30 minutes and can improve with movement.
C. Swan neck deformities are specific joint deformities seen in RA, where there is hyperextension of the proximal interphalangeal joints and flexion of the distal interphalangeal joints. This is a common feature in advanced cases of RA.
D. : RA typically presents with symmetrical joint involvement. This means that if one side is affected, the opposite side is likely to be similarly affected, leading to bilateral joint deformities.
E. While joint pain can occur at rest, RA is more characterized by pain and stiffness during periods of inactivity and improvement with movement. However, as the disease progresses, patients may experience pain even at rest.

A. PT (Prothrombin Time) and INR (International Normalized Ratio) are tests primarily used to evaluate blood coagulation and the effectiveness of anticoagulant therapy. While they can provide some insight into a patient's overall health, they are not specific indicators of inflammation.
B. CRP is a protein produced by the liver in response to inflammation. It is a well-established marker for detecting acute inflammation and is commonly used in clinical settings to assess inflammatory conditions.
C. ESR measures how quickly red blood cells settle at the bottom of a test tube. An elevated ESR is a classic indicator of inflammation in the body and is commonly used in diagnosing various inflammatory conditions.
D. Procalcitonin is a biomarker that can indicate bacterial infections and systemic inflammation. It is increasingly used in clinical practice to assess the severity of infection and inflammation, particularly in cases of sepsis.