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Arthritis or lupas or infection? Please Help!!

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Rheumatoid Arthritis
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Posted 12/17/2008 11:31 PM (GMT 0)

This started 1 week ago and has not let up one bit. Acute onset...

Please help me. Im a 30yo male with a significant history of Crohns disease. Is this Arthritis or something more serious?

Crohns -  diagnosed 2005. Small bowel resection in 2008. Been on and off prednisone since 2005. Most recent use of PRED was October 2008. Approx 2 months ago. Ive taken Humira for 2 months with last dose in October as well. I was taken off Humira due to rash on face, and numbness on face.

The only drugs Ive been taking since October is Low Dose Naltrexone, Zoloft, Klonopin. Thats it.

My Crohns is great, but now..........

1. Im being tortured!! I am having the WORST pain in my life in my joints. I cant take Pain Killers due to LDN,  I cant take NASIDS due to Crohns.

2. This joint pain has effected every joint in my body but only effects 1-2 joints at a time... 

3. The pain is ALWAYS worse at the end of the day and through out the night. It is Extremely painful during the night and I cannot sleep at all.

4. By the morning the pain is almost gone, then by afternoon it comes back IN A DIFFERENT SET OF JOINTS. This is really freaking me out.

5. There does not appear to be redness or swelling but it feels like my knee will explode with pressure.

6. Ive had this in my Jaw, hips, knees, ankles, wrists, toes, and fingers.

This is ruining my life. I just lay in pain all day without being able to interact with my family

Posted 12/17/2008 11:40 PM (GMT 0)
I think you probably have some arthritis associated with CD. When you stopped the pred and Humira, the inflammation began to rear its head. I suggest you get yourself evaluated by a rheumatologist. Also, has anyone tested you for possible drug-induced lupus? I had BAD joint problems from the lupus. Get yourself evaluated.
Posted 12/18/2008 12:59 AM (GMT 0)
Ides, Im assuming your AVN is pred related? I just had an MRI done of my hips which showed Extensive AVN of both hips.
Posted 12/19/2008 3:49 AM (GMT 0)
Hey Redspot,

 

AI diseases SUCK when it comes to overlapping symptoms.  They all mimick each other.  I know your pain and frustration....

 

I have Lupus and Fibromyalgia.  They mimick each other too.  But by reading your symptom list, I don't think it's Lupus.  Here's why..  IF it was Lupus, your joints would be red and swollen. The pain would also not move around the body so quickly.  Lupus arthritis tends to find a comfy place and stay there... Then move to a new joint a few weeks or months down the road. Also, if it was Lupus, the pain would be there day and night. Not better in the morning and worse in the evening.  It's constant.

 

Fibromyalgia on the other hand will present joint pain that travels around quickly. Even from minute to minute, it can move around and drive a person insane. shocked There is no redness, and usually no swelling visible.  The pain that you feel is actually the muscles, tendons and ligaments that surround each joint.  Not inside the joint itself. Fibromyalgia is not arthritic and not inflammatory.  It's a pain sensory overload disorder.

 

To have this pain in your jaw is CLASSIC Fibromyalgia.  It's usually the first joint to get painful. The other locations you mentioned like the knees, hips, ankles, wrists, toes, fingers, are all very common places for Fibro to affect.  How do your feet feel?  Do you have pain in your heels when you walk or stand? 

 

Fibromyalgia often presents itself with AI diseases.  It's very common.  Fibro isn't dangerous or damaging to the joints.  It's just pain, and it stinks!!!

 

I'm not saying you have Fibro. I'm not a doctor, but you should tell your rheumy about your symptoms.  They can do a physical exam to see if you have any of the "tender points" that are involved in Fibro. There are no blood tests for it. If they suspect Lupus it gets more complex because the tests for Lupus are the same as for Chrons. 

I wish you all the best,

Ginny 

Posted 12/21/2008 12:16 AM (GMT 0)
I'm going to echo what everyone else has said-I know you probably let a GI treat your Chron's as so many people with Chron's do-but now you are haveing other autoimmune symptoms and you need to see a rhuematologist.
No one else has the level of training and experience that a good rhuematologist has. What you describe could be lupus which is very dangerous if not treated correctly, inflamitory arthritis-which can range from a nusance to very damaging or fibro or many other things. Please see a rhuemy.
Posted 2/15/2009 12:03 AM (GMT 0)
Sounds exactly like what I have/ had

I noticed pains in late 2007, and in January I had the exact symptoms you're describing.

I have crohns

Luckilly I was on Remicade? as I got my next infusion late january 2008, all the pains disappeared by the next day.

It was so bad, I couldn't open a jar or walk up stairs, even having dinner was a chore.

And the pain changed location every few days.

I had developed a reaction to the Remicade, or so I was told, that January was the Last remicade I was allowed to have.

Months later, after blood test, after more blood tests I was allowed to go on Humira.

All through this I was getting these pains. The pains were more active after doing tasks. Driving 60 Miles a day to work would cause major pains by the end of the week, I was taking the max allowable pain pills nder perscription, just to get into and out of work.

I eventually went out sick, I' out nearly a year now and the pains still resurface after activities. I had to drive the 60 miles (30 each way into town) three time last week, by the 3rd day the pains were noticeably worse.

I got an appoint with my rheumy and was told I either have enteropathic Arthritis, arthralgic, or Lupus secondary to Anti TNF.

I don't really know wher I'm going from here

Posted 2/15/2009 12:43 AM (GMT 0)
Magnetic - I'm glad your are seeing a rheumy. Rheumys are the best specialists to sort out the arthritis related problems. I reacted to Remicade at about 2.5 yrs, went to Humira, had a severe reation after 2.5 months. I developed lupus in addition to the spondyloarthropathy that I already had. The way I could tell that the joint pain was different was because my joints swelled and became very inflamed.

If you have lupus, they usually start with Plaquenil to help relieve the symptoms. If you aren't on something like Imuran or methotrexate, they will likely give you that if you have enteropathic arthritis.
Posted 2/15/2009 12:53 AM (GMT 0)
I'm on the methotrexate (had bad reactions to imuran), but no talk of any medication for the lupus type symptoms.
Just on pain pills and the rst of the crohns medications, including humira
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