[Surgical treatment of rheumatoid polyarthritis]

Surgical treatment of rheumatoid arthritis aims to suppress pain, correct deformities, and restore function. This treatment should be adapted to each patient on the basis of clinical and radiographic criteria, with priority given to surgical treatment of the lower limbs. In the early stages, conservative surgery is called for (tenosynovectomy, joint synovectomy) and in later stages, palliative surgery (arthrodesis, prosthesis).