What you need to know about Rheumatoid Vasculitis What is Rheumatoid Vasculitis?
Vasculitis is a condition in which blood vessels become inflamed. When blood vessels become inflamed, they may become weakened, become thickened and increase in size, or become narrowed, sometimes to the point of stopping blood flow. The blood vessels most often involved are arteries which bring blood to the skin, nerves and internal organs. Small veins can also be involved. If inflammation is severe, tissues that are nourished by the blood vessel can be damaged when blood flow decreases. Because large blood vessels nourish larger quantities of tissue, the larger the involved vessel, the more likely serious tissue damage may occur. For this reason, the size of the blood vessel involved influences the amount of damage from rheumatoid vasculitis. What are the sizes of blood vessels involved in Rheumatoid Vasculitis? Both small and medium sized arteries can be involved in rheumatoid vasculitis. When the small arteries and veins which nourish the skin of the finger tips and skin around the
