Re: Does this sound like RA? New member...

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 5/18/2010 5:18:37 P.M. Central Daylight Time,

s@... writes:

A month ago, after sitting in the car all day, I started having severe

pain in my knee. I had an enlarged node in that armpit also. That night I was

in agony and used anti-inflammatories and an ice pack, which helped. Over a

week or two the knee gradually improved, and then my feet began to hurt,

on the inside bony part near the arch. Mornings are the worst, where I

hobble around like an old lady (I'm 37). One foot is worse than the other and I

feel it all day, though the first few hours in the morning are definitely

the worst. At the start of the foot pain in my left foot I also had an

enlarged node in the left armpit. My feet have been hurting the past two weeks,

and last week I started waking up also with stiff, sore wrists - the right

one being far worse. This stiffness lasts until mid-afternoon. My doc did

blood tests but only the Rheumatoid Factor test showed anything - I scored

20 (under 14 is normal according to this lab). My appt with the rheumy isn't

until next week so I'm hoping someone here could let me know if this does

sound like RA or not....? >>

It sounds like my RA did before I was diagnosed, but even my rheumatologist

couldn't tell for sure what I had until he ran the blood work. In fact, he

was surprised that the Dx was RA. He thought it was going to PMR.

dd

[Guest guest]

Thanks for responding - do you mind telling me what your blood results were? I

think my GP thinks they should be higher if I had RA. But he's not my normal GP

and I don't think he was very good. I don't want to have RA, but I would like to

know for sure. My eyes have been feeling dry and grainy the last few days

too.... I'm not sure if that's because I have been reading about it and am too

suggestible, or if it's something unrelated.

Soni

>

> It sounds like my RA did before I was diagnosed, but even my rheumatologist

> couldn't tell for sure what I had until he ran the blood work. In fact, he

> was surprised that the Dx was RA. He thought it was going to PMR.

>

> dd

>

[Guest guest]

Did the doctor do any other blood work besides Rheumatoid Factor? The

C-Reactive Protein test would show if you had inflammation anywhere.

Other tests give other valuable information. There is such a thing as

seronegative RA, though, where it doesn't show up in the blood work.

Your symptoms do sound like RA to me. I don't know about those

enlarged nodules, though.

Is it a rheumatologist that you're seeing? If not, you should get an

appointment with one.

I hope you get some answers soon.

Sue

On May 18, 2010, at 6:14 PM, Tali wrote:

> Hello. I'm glad to have found this group. I thought I had already

> posted my intro but haven't seen it so here I go again.

>

> Could you tell me if the following sounds like RA to you?

>

> A month ago, after sitting in the car all day, I started having

> severe pain in my knee. I had an enlarged node in that armpit also.

> That night I was in agony and used anti-inflammatories and an ice

> pack, which helped. Over a week or two the knee gradually improved,

> and then my feet began to hurt, on the inside bony part near the

> arch. Mornings are the worst, where I hobble around like an old lady

> (I'm 37). One foot is worse than the other and I feel it all day,

> though the first few hours in the morning are definitely the worst.

> At the start of the foot pain in my left foot I also had an enlarged

> node in the left armpit. My feet have been hurting the past two

> weeks, and last week I started waking up also with stiff, sore

> wrists - the right one being far worse. This stiffness lasts until

> mid-afternoon. My doc did blood tests but only the Rheumatoid Factor

> test showed anything - I scored 20 (under 14 is normal according to

> this lab). My appt with the rheumy isn't until next week so I'm

> hoping someone here could let me know if this does sound like RA or

> not....?

>

> Thanks,

> Soni

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks Sue, yes, I was tested for lupus, anti-CCP, uric acid, serum c-reactive

protein, anti-nuclear antibodies, and sed rate. Only the RA Factor was out of

the ordinary. I have an appointment with a rheumy next week.

Soni

>

> Did the doctor do any other blood work besides Rheumatoid Factor? The

> C-Reactive Protein test would show if you had inflammation anywhere.

> Other tests give other valuable information. There is such a thing as

> seronegative RA, though, where it doesn't show up in the blood work.

>

> Your symptoms do sound like RA to me. I don't know about those

> enlarged nodules, though.

>

> Is it a rheumatologist that you're seeing? If not, you should get an

> appointment with one.

>

> I hope you get some answers soon.

>

> Sue

[Guest guest]

Hi Soni and welcome, my RF was 20 in 1998 and I think the only thing that was

elevated was my CRP showing inflammation. My ESR was borderline but when they

looked again in 2006, I had " converted " to a classic RA profile. I am also anti

CCP + which is considered a hard marker for RA. Sometimes it takes a while for

labs to turn + so there might be some watching and waiting, although your doc

should treat your symptoms aggressively to protect your joints. I did pred and

NSAIDs before formally being diagnosed and switched to Enbrel. Kate F

Sent from my iPhone

On May 18, 2010, at 6:27 PM, marysue <marysue@...> wrote:

Did the doctor do any other blood work besides Rheumatoid Factor? The

C-Reactive Protein test would show if you had inflammation anywhere.

Other tests give other valuable information. There is such a thing as

seronegative RA, though, where it doesn't show up in the blood work.

Your symptoms do sound like RA to me. I don't know about those

enlarged nodules, though.

Is it a rheumatologist that you're seeing? If not, you should get an

appointment with one.

I hope you get some answers soon.

Sue

On May 18, 2010, at 6:14 PM, Tali wrote:

> Hello. I'm glad to have found this group. I thought I had already

> posted my intro but haven't seen it so here I go again.

>

> Could you tell me if the following sounds like RA to you?

>

> A month ago, after sitting in the car all day, I started having

> severe pain in my knee. I had an enlarged node in that armpit also.

> That night I was in agony and used anti-inflammatories and an ice

> pack, which helped. Over a week or two the knee gradually improved,

> and then my feet began to hurt, on the inside bony part near the

> arch. Mornings are the worst, where I hobble around like an old lady

> (I'm 37). One foot is worse than the other and I feel it all day,

> though the first few hours in the morning are definitely the worst.

> At the start of the foot pain in my left foot I also had an enlarged

> node in the left armpit. My feet have been hurting the past two

> weeks, and last week I started waking up also with stiff, sore

> wrists - the right one being far worse. This stiffness lasts until

> mid-afternoon. My doc did blood tests but only the Rheumatoid Factor

> test showed anything - I scored 20 (under 14 is normal according to

> this lab). My appt with the rheumy isn't until next week so I'm

> hoping someone here could let me know if this does sound like RA or

> not....?

>

> Thanks,

> Soni

>

[Guest guest]

> > Thanks for the welcome, Kate. I have a 2-yr-old daughter who I'm still

breastfeeding and we are trying to have another... hopefully if I need to take

drugs they'll be safe for breastfeeding/pregnancy (if that happens). I guess I

just like black/white decisions... I think I'll be frustrated if the doctor

says, 'Maybe you have it, we won't know for a year or two'... but from the

research I've done, yes, it seems you can prevent a lot of joint damage if you

commence drugs in the first 2 years of symptoms. I may just have to stop

breastfeeding in order to take them. I want to prevent damage if possible!

> >

> > Soni

> >

> >

>> > >

>> > > Hi Soni and welcome, my RF was 20 in 1998 and I think the only thing that

was elevated was my CRP showing inflammation. My ESR was borderline but when

they looked again in 2006, I had " converted " to a classic RA profile. I am also

anti CCP + which is considered a hard marker for RA. Sometimes it takes a while

for labs to turn + so there might be some watching and waiting, although your

doc should treat your symptoms aggressively to protect your joints. I did pred

and NSAIDs before formally being diagnosed and switched to Enbrel. Kate F

>> > >