Anyone been diagnosed with polyarthritis in beginining?

sennacharib

I am currently diagnosed with polyarthritis and going back to rheumatology in September for what she considered a group diagnosis. She strongly suspects Rheumatoid arthritis in several joints ( mostly hands, MCP joints, wrists, ankles, elbows and shoulders) although my rheumatiod factor and ANA are negative, so I am just waiting. I am on DMARDS currently Plaquenil and Adcal for bone and stomach protection and in the letter I recieved from her she said maybe methetrexate or sulphasizine ( spelling lol) for the long term depending on my luver as my enzymes are high. I also suffer from degenerative disc disease where 4 discs in my lumbar spine have severely degenerated over the last 10 years, so I take tramadol, diazepam for that. Just curious if anyone else has been in this position and what the outcome was? Thanks in advance x

sennacharib

P.S. forgot to mention I have been on steriods too, and am now reducing them from 30mg down to 5mg over a 12 week period...currently on 20mg a day. This has helped greatly with pain and stiffness although since reducing to 20mg the pain is returning in my joints.

I appreciate any views, thanks x

dreamdaisy

I am afraid I cannot help at all: sero-negative versions of this dross are not unknown, indeed I have one of those with the PA that bothers me. I have been on injected meth for a while now and have very little trouble with it, I have taken sulph at the maximum dose for over nine years now, I have also had five and a half years on steroids and am now devoting this year to giving them up: I am now down to 4.5 mgs and yes, wondering why I am bothering but the long-term health risks are not worth the benefit they give (or so I keep telling myself). I hope your rheumatologist is able to come up with a diagnosis but this disease is not an easy one to pin down: in total I had seven years without a definition, then I was given a tentative one of 'inflammatory arthritis' in 2003, then a definitive one of PA (psoriatic arthritis) in OCtober 2006 a mere 9.5 years after it all started! I now have OA too. I wish you well. DD

sennacharib

Thankyou daisy for taking the time to reply

I am sorry to hear it has taken you so long to have a firm diagnosis, I too have OA in my hands, feet and spine, so I know how uncomfortable and painful it can be.

Big Hugs!!

I hope your feeling well today hun. Take care xx

frogmorton

Hi Sennacharib

Oh yes we get allsorts of different diagnoses and labels....

those of us 'unlucky' enough to have nothing to show in the bloods....but have the pain the exhaustion and the swelling

You are totally not alone. Lots of labels. No real answer, but the meds regime they are suggesting sounds about right don't you think?

Love

Toni xx

sennacharib

I think so Toni, yes. I do not want any type of arthritis, obviously, but It looks like there is something going on and she seemed pretty certain just on that very first visit, whereas normally they dont always say at that point. M inflammation markers are not that high compared to some I have read about on here, mine seem positively LOW! LOL...But I will wait and see, my swelling has not gone down much but pain has been better than before starting the prednisolone, so hoping it isnt creeping back at too much of an alarming rate ( fingers crossed!)

What type of arthritis do you have/suspect? And what drugs are you currently taking?

Hope your feeling well today.

Hugs xx

kellerman

Morning all,
I have just come across this post. Dreamdaisy you had to wait all that time for an answer as to what you had.
I have my 1st appointment with rheumy in October and was actually expecting to know the answers then. Looks like I may be disappointed.
This is my main gripe, because I don't know. It looks like possibly no definate answers may be forthcoming, unless I get some one who's pysic.
Obviously I'm expecting too much.
Only taking co codamol for pain as GP won't give me anything else until I've seen rheumy.
What a start to Monday morning. Wish I hadn't read this now!!!!!!
Take care everyone and at least the sun is shining.
May

keith1971

Kellerman, I was diagnosed with PA on my first visit to the rheumatologist last year.

Some are better than others at recognising symptoms.

I don't think DD's case is typical for everyone.

Don't worry, you'll get answers.

silverbirch

Hello SC, I was diagnosed with Polyarthritis 3 years ago, I had been suffering pain in my joints for several years befor that but the GP at my practice just kept saying I had arthritis and giving me pain killers.

After about 2 years I went to another doctor at the same practice and he was very shocked that I hadn't had a blood test in all that time, he made an appointment for me and the results came back and my ESA was over 100, I was then sent to Wrightington Hospital who specialise in bone disease and told at first it was OA, and 6 months down the line R.A.

I was on Methatrexate tablets for three weeks but then started vomiting very badly and was taken of them and put on Sulfacelasine ( sic) 2 days on them and I was even more sick.

Now I am on Quinoric 200 mg, no problem with these, allthough I still get regular flare-ups.

Tomorrow I have another appointment with the Rheumy nurse, she wants to put me on the Methatrexate injections but the side affects frighten me, so I think I will decline.

Hope you are feeling better today.

dreamdaisy

Please consider having the injected meth, silverbirch, it can be a very different story to the tablet stuff. The liquid is more powerful than the tablets so a smaller dose can be very beneficial and the digestive system is by-passed. I have been on injected meth for a long while now, I can't remember when I started it but I think it could be as far back as 2008, or even 07. It can work, and work very well indeed. I wish you well. DD

silverbirch

Thanks DD, I will will up the pro's and cons tomorrow, I have noticed a lot of people on here are on Methatrexate so maybe I'm being stupid.

dreamdaisy

No, you're not being silly. These are nasty meds and they can do all sortsa nasty things to one but just because they can doesn't mean they will. One of the points of the constant monitoring is to nip anything nasty in the bud, that's how I found out that summat was going wrong with one of my meds - I, however, felt fine. I have had a lifetime of taking meds for stuff, I never consider side effects: what matters is taking a med that might help. Life should be tolerable, that is what the meds try to achieve. DD

silverbirch

Thanks DD, the thing that bothers me also is the fact that you have to go to the hospital on the same day every week for the injection, I don't know how long this is for thoughh so another question I need to ask tomorrow, since your reply I am coming round to the idea though, I am just fed up at the moment of feeling so tired and weak and hoping the flare ups go away for a while.

magenta

Hiya,

I was told I probably had polyarthritis about 12yrs ago. I've had pain/inflammation in various places but especially my back and fingers/hands since I was 16 (I'm now 42). I've been told all sorts. I'm supposed to have sero-neg arthritis, depending on which rhuemy I see-I've seen nearly a dozen! Never had DMARDs as 'you can't treat that the same as RA'. I now have OA in my jaw and neck with suspected in my shoulders/feet/hands and wrists.

Looks like you have a good rhuemy there and I hope they can get you sorted with the right meds.

Magenta x

dreamdaisy

Hi silverbirch, (my apologies, sennacharib, we've hijacked your thread! :oops: ) Yup, I went to hospital once a week for years and a right old bore it was. Now I do my own which makes life a deal more convenient. I also had monthly bloods for a few years, now I am down to six-weekly (supposedly that is, I, however, have taken the executive decision to go every two, I have reached the limits of my patience for the time being!) DD

silverbirch

Thanks Magenta

DD, I am back home from the hospital and the rhuemy nurse saaid I should try taking two hydroxycloroquine tablets a day instead of one, I have to take one in the morning and one after tea, she said it will keep the inflamation away so going to pop downstairs now and have the second one, hope this works.

dreamdaisy

Oh I hope so too. I have never tried hydroxy, let's hope it's the one for you. DD

sennacharib

Just came across all replies here dreamdaisy lol...no worries, you didnt hijack the thread

Always good to hear other peoples experiences and it always helps others , so please dont worry

Hugs to dreamdaisy and everyone who replied, thankyou so much - hugs to all.

Love senna xxxxx