Posted 1/25/2010 3:59 PM (GMT 0)
Hey everyone! I just wanna share some history with you so you might be able to know how to help me or offer your opinion :) Within the past year I have been diagnosed with RA. My RA factor is negative. My ANA is negative. Most all other tests are negative except an elevated sed rate and CRP and low vitamin D. I have joint pain and fatigue like something awful. I'm questioning the RA diagnosis now because I really don't have the classical symptoms of RA like others I have read about. I have never had a knuckle to swell or have a joint just swell all of the sudden. I have had a little swelling of my wrists and ankles but its more like fluid. This all started in 2006 and I felt like I had the flu without the fever. At that time...the docs thought I had fibromyalgia and treated me as such. The following year I started having joint pain...so I went back to see the doc and my sed rate and CRP were elevated at that time. He still said fibro and I got a second opinion from the only rheumy here in town and he said fibro too! Meanwhile what they were giving me was not helping. I saw another rheumy out of town and he said polyinflammatory arthritis, that is could be RA, lupus, PA, etc. Prednisone helped immediately. I felt so great on them! He also put me on Lodine and that helped too. I followed up with him every couple of months......then I got the redness on my face. Its on my nose and spreads on my cheeks. It doesn't necessary swoop up like a butterfly but it is on my cheekbones and goes down on my face some. It is not under my nose or chin or forehead. I was concerned and made a sooner appointment with the rheumy thinking I was developing the malar rash of lupus. I went there without makeup and he said it was rosacea. I figure he knew what he was saying so I just left it at that and went on about the RA diagnosis and treatment. Then a few months later my insurance changed at work and my rheumy doesn't accept the kind of insurance that it changed to. I was forced to switch to another rheumy which I really did not wanna do. So, I've seen the new one a couple of times and his NP. I had an MRI this past Thursday of my wrist and foot. I have an appointment today and I'm gonna go there without makeup so they can look at the redness of my face. I have read that rosacea and the malar rash are so similar that even docs are wrong about it sometimes. My ANA has always been negative and I have had it checked lots of times! Reading here and on other boards it seems that there are quite of few people who have lupus with a negative ANA. I guess I will go today and talk to them to see what they say. My other rheumy had started me on methotrexate saying that it is used to treat both lupus and RA so which ever one I had then it would help....but I'm thinking it would be great to know what I do have and the methotrexate is not helping with my joint pain and fatigure. My new rheumy believes seronegative RA but I didnt even bring up the rash to him cause I was thinking rosacea like my other rheumy had said. He had all the records too. I've looked at the criteria for lupus and list of 11 things. I have joint pain, fatigue, and this redness but not much else. I've always had headaches and migraines. I also have swollen lymph nodes for about 18 years and had one biopsied showing reactive. BTW, my redness looks almost identical to the pic of the lady on the mayoclinic website. So, I'm gonna go there today without makeup (yikes) and see what they say and get my MRI results. Any thoughts you guys have would be appreciated! :)