Hi, I've had pain in the joints of my hands and feet for 4 months that effect my ability to grip and walk normally. The doc has done one lot of blood tests but the only one that came back abnormal was the RF one. he said 'it could be a red herring' and sent me for more tests but these are taking weeks to come back, in the mean time I'm in pain and exhausted. He's not convinced I have RA because the pain isn't accompanied with 'enough' swelling but all I want him to do is help discover what I do have as I can't carry on like this without knowing what I'm meant to do. Do other have symptoms like these, have others suffered like this too? Please help, feel really lonely right now
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No doc hasn't referred me yet, he doesn't seem to think its RA because he thinks there should be more swelling to accompany the pain, but he hasn't even examined my hands and feet, only done blood tests.
It's hard to explain to my boss and people at work, they don't understand and I'm struggling to keep up at work.
Thanks for replying so quickly
Thanks for your post to Helplines. One option is to go back to the GP and ask him/her to examine you and talk you through their thoughts on your condition. You've not mentioned your age or any contributing factors, but body weight, your general health, lifestyle and family history are all relevant.
As osteoarthritis (OA) is a much more common problem than RA, it's often worth checking this option out first. Examination can often do that, but x-ray can be needed in some cases. Best self management for OA is weight loss, and plenty of exercise.
If you'd like some support, you are welcome to ring us and email [email protected] with your name and address if you'd like an information pack.
I hope we can help further.
Guy
I am a forum member not a member of the helpline team but when I saw your post I felt I had to reply. I have had RA for nearly 16 years but I only usually have minimal joint swelling and, at the beginning even though I could hardly walk due to the pain in my feet, my blood tests were normal other than rheumatoid factor. Although there are lots of us out there with RA, it is not actually that common so a GP might only come across one or two cases in their entire career (if at all) so may well only be familiar with a "textbook" definition of RA if that makes sense.
RA and other types of inflammatory arthritis can be difficult to diagnose and can only be properly diagnosed by a rheumatologist. Blood test results are only an indication and are not sufficient on their own to diagnose or rule out RA. So my advice would be to ask (or insist if need be) that your GP refers you to a rheumatologist for further specialist investigations. In the meantime hopefully your GP has prescribed some anti-inflammatory drugs and/or painkillers to try to give you some relief.
The question of swelling comes up quite often on the forum and there are people who, like me, get very little swelling even when inflammation levels are high. If you repost your message on the Living with Arthritis forum I think you will get some helpful replies.
Good luck.
Thinking of you. Love TIllyx