Re: lab work results, docs appt tomorrow

[Guest guest]

It seems to be a very long process to get diagnosed with seronegative RA or

atleast in my case. Yet, the only negative things in my labs are the ANA and

RA. I have elevated Sed, CRP, Westgren. My diagnosis at one clinic of the

hospital says seronegative, yet in rheumatology says unspecified connective

tissue disease which makes me think it could progress to something else besides

the RA. My doctors have been treating me for the past 2 years with meds, but I

spent 1.5 to 2 years with symptoms being shuffled back and forth between sports

med and ortho doc. They both said it was inflammatory. So then rheumatology

began treating it. My feet have never bothered me until the past few weeks.

Monday I couldn't stand or walk on them they felt like bricks. I spoke to a

nurse and she laughed saying what a cute description. The doctor never did call

me back and I dont go back until June. I empathize with you completely! I hope

this doctor is able to start you on some

medications to help:)

ambermich@... wrote: I go back to my RA doc

tomorrow but I did not get to do my lab work or

xrays.....I just got my lab work from my general doc......

my blood counts were normal, my chemistry was normal, thyroid was normal

ana w reflex neg (last ana was positive)

hs crp hi at 5.7 which is above the high range

westgreen sed rate was high at 33 (norm is 0 - 20)

vit d low at 7 (norm 30-60)

rheumatoid ractor >20 which is negative

creatine kinase ws negative, has to do with muscles?

i am very surprise my RA factor is negative, I fit all the signs and

symptoms very well. So now I guess I wait and see what she thinks of these test

and

probably have more done. I am frustrated my feet and hands are killing me now

I am back to work full swing......I have been taking more and more pain

pills, which I try to avoid and save for emergencies.....how do they diagnosis

ra

that is seronegative? or is it more of a guess?

amber

**************Need a new ride? Check out the largest site for U.S. used car

listings at AOL Autos.

(http://autos.aol.com/used?NCID=aolcmp00300000002851)

[Guest guest]

Hi Amber,

All my blood test show negative for RA, but the Dr had a good eye and

sent me for an MRI, he said the RA lit up like a Christmas tree. HE also

said there are a lot of cases where theRA factor is always negative but its

found by scans.

Heidi M

On Thu, Apr 24, 2008 at 1:06 PM, stephanie <stephieann2@...> wrote:

> It seems to be a very long process to get diagnosed with seronegative RA

> or atleast in my case. Yet, the only negative things in my labs are the ANA

> and RA. I have elevated Sed, CRP, Westgren. My diagnosis at one clinic of

> the hospital says seronegative, yet in rheumatology says unspecified

> connective tissue disease which makes me think it could progress to

> something else besides the RA. My doctors have been treating me for the past

> 2 years with meds, but I spent 1.5 to 2 years with symptoms being shuffled

> back and forth between sports med and ortho doc. They both said it was

> inflammatory. So then rheumatology began treating it. My feet have never

> bothered me until the past few weeks. Monday I couldn't stand or walk on

> them they felt like bricks. I spoke to a nurse and she laughed saying what a

> cute description. The doctor never did call me back and I dont go back until

> June. I empathize with you completely! I hope this doctor is able to start

> you on some

> medications to help:)

>

> ambermich@... <ambermich%40aol.com> wrote: I go back to my RA doc

> tomorrow but I did not get to do my lab work or

> xrays.....I just got my lab work from my general doc......

>

> my blood counts were normal, my chemistry was normal, thyroid was normal

>

> ana w reflex neg (last ana was positive)

>

> hs crp hi at 5.7 which is above the high range

>

> westgreen sed rate was high at 33 (norm is 0 - 20)

>

> vit d low at 7 (norm 30-60)

>

> rheumatoid ractor >20 which is negative

>

> creatine kinase ws negative, has to do with muscles?

>

> i am very surprise my RA factor is negative, I fit all the signs and

> symptoms very well. So now I guess I wait and see what she thinks of these

> test and

> probably have more done. I am frustrated my feet and hands are killing me

> now

> I am back to work full swing......I have been taking more and more pain

> pills, which I try to avoid and save for emergencies.....how do they

> diagnosis ra

> that is seronegative? or is it more of a guess?

>

> amber

>

> **************Need a new ride? Check out the largest site for U.S. used car

>

> listings at AOL Autos.

> (http://autos.aol.com/used?NCID=aolcmp00300000002851)

>

>

[Guest guest]

>.....how do they diagnosis ra

> that is seronegative? or is it more of a guess?

>

> amber

No, but is is harder and may take a bit longer. My rheummy says if it

looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it's a

duck. If the symptoms of RA are there and they cannot be accounted

for by any other means, then RA should probably be treated. Even my

sed rates are normal but all my pain, weakness and fatigue are

classic RA, so he was quite comfortable diagnosing my RA. My doc had

first tested for everything it seemed, ruling out things like lupus,

lukemea, lyme and all sorts of other crap that doesn't start with " l "

LOL. After that, I was first put on Plaquinel, a lightweight in the

fight really, but after a few weeks on it my system started rejecting

it so I had to stop. Since the next step up is more intense drugs

with more possible side effects, he put me on a 6 day dose pack of

steroids to just see if I would respond to them. I did and felt

better than I ever have since this all started, I was my old self. So

we knew my symptoms were inflammatory in nature and not a long term

virus or such - another vote for RA. It was a frustrating process but

really I am so lucky, I have a great doc and we seem to be on top of

this early on so I am hopeful for my future controlling this awful

beast. But my doc has said that he won't even bother testing my sed

rate anymore, since it simply isn't indicative of disease activity in

me. If it was, it'd be nice to monitor as a measure of how well meds

are working, but oh well. My hands can be so bad that I cannot grip a

pen tight enough to write my name, but my rf factor is negative and

sed rate normal. Such is the beast sometimes. The key is to rule out

everything else, and then if the symptoms are still there, to start

treating them. It's not a guess really, but a process of elimination

when you are seronegative.

HTH,

[Guest guest]

, where do you live? I am absolutely certain I have RA but the

rhuemy I tired in another state didn't treat me for it very much except to give

me mobic and pain killers because tests ran negative. But I sit here with all

the symptoms and watching inflamtion in my joints etc. I need to find a dr

now that I am living in a different state. I'm now in Shreveport Louisana.

Peace.

~carol

**************Need a new ride? Check out the largest site for U.S. used car

listings at AOL Autos.

(http://autos.aol.com/used?NCID=aolcmp00300000002851)

[Guest guest]

>

> , where do you live?

Sorry Carol - not close to you at all. I am in the northwest suburbs of

Chicago. But here's hoping you will find a good doc. Just keep trying

till you do - it's too important to give up!

[Guest guest]

Hi Carol, I am new to this group, so I am not sure that I'm doing

this correctly. So bear with me, and feel free to offer posting

help, etiquette, etc. I was just dx'd this winter with RA,

seronegative as some others are. Rheumy saw mine in symptoms, plus

very high sed rate, low RBC, high platelet count, plus responding

well to the prednisone. I am currestly on MTX, pednisone, folic

acid, etc.

My advice to you about a dr,is try to find a large

arthritis research center, one with multiple drs, if these is one in

your area. They see more cases, and in general have more experience

with difficult to diagnose cases. They also have more esperience

treating OA, if that is what it turns out to be. I travel an hr and

a half to mine, but ITS WWORTH IT! Because I had been told by my drs

for several years that I had OA and was treated with NSAIDS. But it

didn't make sense to me. Because in OA, joints wear out, one or two

joints at a time. My whole body was affected, and it came on me all

at once. I also had the fatigue, which wouldn't be an OA symptom. I

am so grateful I found my dr when I did.

Good luck to all of you in the arthritis struggle!

Marti

-

-- In , Grace4me97@... wrote:

>

> , where do you live? I am absolutely certain I have RA

but the

> rhuemy I tired in another state didn't treat me for it very much

except to give

> me mobic and pain killers because tests ran negative. But I sit

here with all

> the symptoms and watching inflamtion in my joints etc. I need to

find a dr

> now that I am living in a different state. I'm now in Shreveport

Louisana.

>

> Peace.

> ~carol

>

>

>

> **************Need a new ride? Check out the largest site for U.S.

used car

> listings at AOL Autos.

> (http://autos.aol.com/used?NCID=aolcmp00300000002851)

>

>

>