childhood tonsilitis and RA??

karinak

Hello all, Strange thing happened to me while buying ibroprufen over counter in the pharmacy dept in Tescos...........He asked what i wanted them for and i explained, he then asked me if i had suffered from tonsilitis at the age around 8/9, in which i had and my adenoids were removed as a result of. He then went on to say that there was a connection between tonsilitis in childhood and developing RA at a later date!.
Has anyone heard this before as i found this to be quite bizarre?
Karina x

woodbon

Hi, No, not tonsilitis. I thought it was one of those things that is unknown at the present. There are types of arthritis that can follow illness, I think. Someone will be along who knows more about this than me. I may well be wrong :oops: .
Love Sue

joyful164

I had tonsillilitis from the age of 4 and they were always bad at the time of all the children's ailments, especially when I had measles at 4 1/2. I had tonscillitis quite frequently right up to the age of 23 when I had quinzies and was extremely ill. Since then, nothing. My adopted parents would not let me have them out, ever. Said they were there for a purpose.

joyful

page35

Hi
dont think i ever had tonsilitis(not that bad anyway) and i have RA, but OH has had tonsilitis for years, he was in isolation in hospital with it once as his throat swelled so much. and he doesnt have arthur.
lots of people think they know something about arthur, a yoga teacher tryed to make me feel that it was my own fault i got RA :roll:
page

lindalegs

page35 wrote:

Hi
dont think i ever had tonsilitis(not that bad anyway) and i have RA, but OH has had tonsilitis for years, he was in isolation in hospital with it once as his throat swelled so much. and he doesnt have arthur.
lots of people think they know something about arthur, a yoga teacher tryed to make me feel that it was my own fault i got RA :roll:
page

Your yoga teacher is just a twit Page :x unhelpful comments by other folk just make me so angry :x :x

Luv Legs

lindalegs

I didn't have tonsilitis as a child and I have RA.

From what I understand we have the faulty gene and certain factors can trigger it off from a virus to hormones to accidents or massive stress - so realistically I would think we can all select one of the factors above and connect it to the onset of our arthritis. For me it was the hormone swing after childbirth :roll:

Luv Legs

woodbon

Hi, Thinking about it, if people had RA after tonsolitis, their would be a lot more RA cases around, as most children tend to get something of the kind. I did, but I have OA. I remeber the doc saying to Mum that if I had it again or didn't get better quickly, I would have to have my tonsols out; being the coward I am, I was up the next day and never complained of a sore throat again! :roll:
Love Sue

karinak

scottishlass wrote:

Tonsillitis can be caused by a Streptococcil infection(strep B throat)This can result in reactive arthritis(but never heard of it resulting in rheumatoid arthritis)...funny enough tho,my RA symptoms started aprox 5months after i had my tonsils removed(aged 44)Rheumatologist said its just coincidence and no connection,but his registrar took note of it cos she said the cause is unknown and therefore anything is worth investigating.
i did a google search and came up with this very interesting article from St Marys hospital London,it gives a case history of a patient with reactive arthritis and recurrent tonsillitis,The patients arthritis was "cured" following a tonsillectomy,The dr also mentions that studies have shown that patients with rheumatoid arthritis found there symptoms less severe after tonsillectomy(not routinely as a treatment for RA,but as treatment for recurrent tonsillitis in patients who also had RA)very interesting realy.

http://www.grandrounds-e-med.com/articles/gr050004.pdf

just realised ive blown my own theory of tonsillectomy causing my RA...going by this study having my tonsils out shouldve reduced my chances of getting RA and not caused me to develope it.

Thanks for very interesting information Anne, I had my adenoids out but not tonsils, think my RA was triggered because facing the menopaus and have been having very heavy painful almost labour like periods...........I think I am just trying to blame someone or something!, but moved all my sons things from his flat yesterday up and down flights of stairs and home again.In fact not had much of a rest apart from 1 and half hour drive home in which had to keep changing hands on wheel, finally sitting down around 9.30 pm!.I thought thats it i will have a bad tommorow but feeling pretty good and hands are manageble :P
Take care Karina

woodbon

Hi, I've just remembered something. My Mum had Scartet Fever and then Rheumatic Fever when she was in her teens. It left her with a slightly damaged heart valve and arthritis came along when she was in her 30s, I think.
I don't know if this is anything to do with the subject, but scarlet fever and tonsilitis are quite similar, with scarlett fever effecting the throat very badly and you often get the Strep throat with Scarlet fever I think. I'd forgotten all that, untill reading this post.
Love Sue

frogmorton

woodbon wrote:

Hi, I've just remembered something. My Mum had Scartet Fever and then Rheumatic Fever when she was in her teens. It left her with a slightly damaged heart valve and arthritis came along when she was in her 30s, I think.
I don't know if this is anything to do with the subject, but scarlet fever and tonsilitis are quite similar, with scarlett fever effecting the throat very badly and you often get the Strep throat with Scarlet fever I think. I'd forgotten all that, untill reading this post.
Love Sue

Hey Sue
My mum had rheumatic fever as a child and had mitral valve stenosis. She had OA in her 30's. all very interesting eh?
Toni x

skezier

Hi,
I had tonsillitis up to my mid 20's but I also had anything else possible to catch but maybe its conected. x

Hey Page,

Big seconding what Legs said, a total fool and it certainly wasn't your fault. x

fayrose

I certainly suffered from recurring tonsillitis in childhood and was diagnosed with RA in my mid 30's.
Having said that, I know quite a few who have had tonsillitis and not developed RA. BUT there are several viruses that result in tonsillitis-like symptoms and maybe some of those have a connection to whatever fires RA up. :?
Interesting all these things and worth investigating surely?

clairc

Hi!

I'm Clair, I'm new here.

I don't know about a link between tonsilitis and RA but I've just been diagnosed with post streptococcal reactive arthritis after having a strep throat infection.

I've had ME since I was a teenager, I had many bouts of tonsilitis and had MR relapses similar episodes to the reactive arthritis I have now. I'm wondering if I've had reative arthritis all along?

It's difficult trying to make sense of everything. I've had next to no information about the condition from the doctors I've seen. I don't think the doctors know that much about it themselves!

*Clair*

livinglegend

karinak wrote:

I think I am just trying to blame someone or something! Karina

I think we all consider 'Why me?' and search our lives for reasons which seem to fit.

However, as RA is an autoimmune disease, then it can appear at any age and any gender without explanation. It just strikes at random rather than any personal attributable 'reason'.

Joseph 8)