Rheumatoid Arthritis Support Group
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, inflammatory, multisystem, autoimmune disorder. It is a disabling and painful condition which can lead to substantial loss of mobility due to pain and joint destruction. The disease is also systemic in that it often also affects many extra-articular tissues throughout the body including the skin, blood vessels, heart, lungs, and...
I've seen many posts about sero-negative people who were diagnosed after months or years of pain. My question is what was it that finally made your doctor dx you with RA? Were there new symptoms, or did they just run out of other possibilities?
I've had 4 diagnosis so far (1 being sero-neg RA) but it seems like every 2-3 months my rheumy changes his mind. I've always believed it's RA but my rheumy won't commit to that dx. I've tried 2nd opinions but all the other dr's say because of normal labs and no obvious swelling I'm in remission. Nevermind I feel the same or worse now as i have this past year. My rheumy say's he can feel the sponginess in my joints so I keep him because at least he believes me.
I'm hoping for a firm dx soon so I can start medication and hopefully feel better but this waiting is hard.
I've had 4 diagnosis so far (1 being sero-neg RA) but it seems like every 2-3 months my rheumy changes his mind. I've always believed it's RA but my rheumy won't commit to that dx. I've tried 2nd opinions but all the other dr's say because of normal labs and no obvious swelling I'm in remission. Nevermind I feel the same or worse now as i have this past year. My rheumy say's he can feel the sponginess in my joints so I keep him because at least he believes me.
I'm hoping for a firm dx soon so I can start medication and hopefully feel better but this waiting is hard.
As you surely know, many autoimmune diseases are related, and it seems to be more common than not that people develop more than one of these diseases. Not only that, but many of these diseases have overlapping symptoms, and test results are often misleading. It doesn't seem like much of a stretch for someone to make a case that autoimmune diseases might all be different manifestations of a single entity.
Are you being treated for anything? What tests have your doctors ordered? What are the different diagnoses? It seems to me that there should be something that a doctor could zero in one, some treatment that would address one or more of the many diagnoses. If you're not being treated, and you trust your rheumy, ask him what he's waiting for. A year is a long time to keep guessing.
thankfully. First my primary doctor Thought it was RA but rhuemy
confirmed. I had put off going because of no insurance at the time
but as soon as I went he started treatment immediately.
I would get a new RA doc. that understands and knows what is going on.
It was about 6 years of not knowing anything for me. My PCP thought I was just depressed and needed counseling and my Rheumy originally diagnosed me with OA. I guess after seeing the same one for 2 years and telling him that every time I came in to see him, I felt more and more like I'd been hit by a train that got him to test my RF. Came up positive on 9/27/11. Been on Sulfasalazine which is working really well. It's like someone finally listened. My rheumy says positive is positive, it doesn't matter what the RF is (+ or - whatever number), but positive is positive and that's that. Good luck!