Being investigated for arthritis

atracattus

Hi there folks,

I'm new to this forum, and new to the idea that I could have some form of arthritis. I'm a 32 year old male, with a wife and small child. I'm fairly active (having a 3 year old boy I have to be!) For the last year or so I've been getting joint pain. It started with my knees, then progressed to my feet, ankles, elbows, back and now to some fingers. I have developed a bone-like growth on the 2nd knuckle of one of my fingers which is painful to touch and move. It is frustrating in the mornings, when I get out of bed I struggle to get upright, and moving around for the first hour or so of the day is becoming increasingly uncomfortable. I also find that if I stay in the same position for more than half an hour or so I start to seize up, so I am constantly having to move about and change positions to stop this. I don't sleep the night through anymore, I will sleep for 2-3 hours or so then wake up and get up to move around for a while so the pain eases. I tend to go back to bed again for another 3 hours or so, then wake up stiff and in pain again. It is worse in cold and damp weather. But I just put this down to needing more exercise or to past injuries. It never crossed my mind that at my age I could be having early symptoms of arthritis.

So, after being pestered by my wife to see the doc for months, I finally got an appointment and saw my GP today. She asked me if I have a family history of rheumatoid arthritis, which I do, my father who is in his early 60s was diagnosed a couple of years ago, and two of my grandparents were crippled with rheumatoid and osteoarthritis. She immediately told me I should have come to see her earlier and has given me forms for rheumatoid factor blood tests along side a full blood screening.

So, I went on-line and started to look up the illness. I found that so much of what I read I could identify with, and it has scared the heck out of me. If it starts now what will I be like when I reach old age? Does what I say sound familiar to anyone, or am I just being paranoid and my GP acting on the side of caution?

lindalegs

Hi Atracattus and welcome to the forum,

I'm so sorry you're in pain and you're bound to be worried until you get the results of your bloods.

I want to reassure you really and say that even if you have got some form of arthritis it may not be aggressive and once you're on medication which suits you it should under control fairly rapidly. The drugs and treatment we have nowadays do help to slow down the disease and the destruction of the joints so they will help prevent the deformities associated with the illness.

I started with RA when I was 27 with a new born baby and a 2 year old and my body seized up over a period of three weeks. I'm 54 now, my sons are adults, I'm in the same marriage and have/am having a wonderful time. I am riddled with the disease and I have the deformities and problems relating to my joints' restricted mobility but I still lead a full life.

Lovely things do happen when you have arthritis, it may seem like the end of the world but it isn't we just have to find different ways and follow different paths to what we once intended to do.

Any questions please ask and I hope you haven't got arthur but we're here if you need us.

Luv,

stickywicket

It does sound familiar, attracatus. That doesn't mean to say you have RA but it certainly could be. Luckily your GP is on the ball so you won't have the awful long period of indecision that many get. If the bloods confirm her theory then you'll be referred to a rheumatologist who will prescribe some disease modifying meds to get it under control.

It's a lot to take in and of course you will be worried but, hopefully, the meds will work quickly and things will start looking up. I hope you have some pain relief in the meantime.

Arthritis and a 3 yr old is not an easy option (I did it, twice, many years ago) but there's nothing like a toddler for getting you motivated when you least feel like it.

If you have questions, do ask and don't google. There's a lot of scary stuff out there and not all of it is accurate. Between us, on here, we have a fair bit of knowledge and we're a very friendly, supportive lot.

What will you be like when you reach old age? Who knows? Who ever knows, whether or not they have arthritis? I've had RA since I was 15, I'm now 65. I can still walk, though not too far. I have a few new joints and two lovely grandsons. And I'm happy. I hope you will be too.

Hey, and next time, listen to your wife

atracattus

Thanks for your comments and for listening to my worries guys, it has put me at ease somewhat. It just came as a bit of a surprise. I have other major health problems already and really don't want to have to contend with yet another big one. Just the thought of it sends shivers. I think it's why I have been putting off going to see my GP.

stickywicket wrote:

Hey, and next time, listen to your wife

Hehe, that's what she's been saying for years :oops:

valval

atracattus wrote:

Thanks for your comments and for listening to my worries guys, it has put me at ease somewhat. It just came as a bit of a surprise. I have other major health problems already and really don't want to have to contend with yet another big one. Just the thought of it sends shivers. I think it's why I have been putting off going to see my GP.




well to be honest what ever it is you are already copeing with it but with out the help of medication so if it is and with treatment you should feel so much better and it will help stop dammage to joints good luck val

stickywicket

How are you feeling today, atracattus?

Folara

Heya atracattus and welcome to the forum.

Lots of lovely people on here going through the same or very similar experiences as yourself, so lots of support and helpful advice.

Fols x

mig

We women are usually right you know.Mig

lindalegs

As Val says Atracattus you are already dealing with it and all the blood test results will do is put a label on it ................or not.

Sorry to hear you have other major health problems too, let's hope you haven't got arthur in any shape or form.

Enjoy your little one.

Luv,

tjt6768

hello matey. Welcome to the forum.
How's things today?
Hope that whatever the results are that you get some good treatment soon.
This forum is a great place for advice etc so make yourself at home.
WE need more Blokes.. These wimmin folks are getting a bit out of hand lol

hileena111

Welcome to the forum.
Sorry you have poss arthritis but its been said if you're coping now without medication think what you'll be like when you get a regime sorted out.
I'vegot OA so cant comment on RA. I know i cant sit for any length of time without getting stiff....cant walk very far either....Its a matter of "hitting a happy medium"
When you do get medication sorted......I find that if I take my paracetamol before I get ready.....by the time I'm about to get showered and dressed I feel up to it and not as stiff.
Everyone finds their own ways.
As for Toni......Ignore him
He would be lost without us Right Tony??????
Love
Hileena

atracattus

Hi again folks. I'm feeling a more positive today, thanks to your lovely comments and for sleeping on it. It's a lovely warm and dry day too! My wife has been suggesting that I look for an old folks home to go to :roll: I'm not sure they take in at 32 lol

I've been thinking about exactly when I started to notice the aches and stiffness increasing. It was about the time I had to stop taking NSAIDs due to stomach ulceration. I had been taking narproxen for over 10 years alongside tramadol to cope with trigemminal neuralgia and cluster headaches and migraines, as well as long term back problems caused by an injury in 2004. I think that because I regularly take tramadol and paracetamol, as well as neuralgia suppressant medication, and anticonvulsant medication for my epilepsy it has helped mask the aches. I guess it's probably how I've been dealing the problem, using medication I am already on.

On Monday I'll go to get my bloods done, so it's then another week I guess until I have results. I'm nervous, but not as much as I was thanks to reassurance from you folks, that if it does turn out to be arthritis I'm not going to turn into my Grandad overnight! I'm actually more nervous of not getting a diagnosis of some sort. Uncertainty is not a factor I like to deal with. To be honest, the other possibilities I have read about are not particularly pleasant either. I don't really know where I want this thing to go, apart from away

lindalegs

atracattus wrote:

..................................... I don't really know where I want this thing to go, apart from away

Gee whiz, don't we all

Good luck for Monday.

Luv,

stickywicket

Atracattus, I like your wife Would she ask if they'd take my old man too, please?

I think you might well be right in your assessment that you started noticing the pains after coming off NSAIDS. They would have masked any problem.

None of us like uncertainty but, although I'm not a doc, I think I can safely say you will not turn into your grandad . There are much better meds around now than there was in his day.

barbara12

Hi atracattus
And a warm welcome from me
I am sorry you had to find us, but just by talking to us lot will help tremendously.
Has for googling things , yes its will scare the life out of you, it the same with the leaflets in the meds, my goodness it put you off taking them.
It could be any form of arthritis, so Im afraid its a waiting game, I know you say your GPs were crippled by RA, but with today meds things can be so different.
And the good news you are getting seen to straight away, this is good, it took me nearly two years to get blood test.
Wishing you well with everything x

hileena111

Hi again
If you were taking naproxen or any anti inflammatories on a regular basis you should have been prescribed a stomach protector...eg omneprozol or one similar.
I take naproxen, paracetamol and anti convulsant meds as well.,,,,,,,I knew nothing about stomach protectors until I read it on the forum and then I had to ask my GP for some and he prescribed some for me {I've changed GP's since}

The anti convulsants I've been taking for about 62 or 3 years :shock:
It was discovered when I was a toddler and I'm now 66.

Good luck with it all ....As you say diagnosis is the main thing....if you know whats wrong then you can start to deal with it.....its the not knowing thats the problem

Love
Hileena

tjt6768

hileena mi dear, I wouldn't change any of you wimmin folks on here lol..
You're not a bad bunch I guess

atracattus

barbara12 wrote:

And the good news you are getting seen to straight away, this is good, it took me nearly two years to get blood test.

I do have a wonderful GP, I couldn't wish for a better one! Only trouble is she's very popular and it can be a nightmare just getting to see her.

hileena111 wrote:

If you were taking naproxen or any anti inflammatories on a regular basis you should have been prescribed a stomach protector...eg omneprozol or one similar. I take naproxen, paracetamol and anti convulsant meds as well.,,,,,,,I knew nothing about stomach protectors until I read it on the forum and then I had to ask my GP for some and he prescribed some for me

I knew nothing of stomach protectors until I developed an ulcer. Not one doctor ever mentioned it, and I saw a lot of different doctors in that time period due to moving house regularly (the curse of renting.) It was too late once we settled down and bought our current home as the ulcer was already formed, and when I spoke my current GP about the stomach pains she gave me gaviscon and lanzoprazole, and referred me to a gastro straight away. She's an awesome GP, it could have perforated if not for her. But I've been advised by my gastro to never take NSAIDs again.

One thing I've been wondering (probably a dumb question, but I'm through with googling, it's depressing) is whether OA can be diagnosed through blood tests as well as RA. And to what extent can the 2 be related? I know my Gran has both RA and OA, can one be caused by the other?

kellerman

Hi And welcome, For reasons possibly financial stomach protecters are not mentioned in certain areas of the country. I had to ask for them.
As for bloods showing OA....no I wouldn't think anything except a scan would. Even xrays are not very good. I hope you get sorted out soon and stay with us there is some very useful information on here. May

stickywicket

My gut feeling was also that OA can't be diagnosed via bloods. Kellerman knows better than I and she clearly thinks so too.

I think the only relationship between RA & OA is that, if RA goes on long enough, untreated, then OA sets in. This happened to me as, back in the dark ages when I was first diagnosed, there were no DMARDS so it was just anti-inflamms and the occasional foray into steroids. (The anti-inflamms wrecked my stomach too.) However, I now have 2 new knees and two new hips and those bits are good

I think there are some unlucky people who develop OA (maybe as a result of a former injury) and then, coincidentally, get RA too but I don't think OA ever leads to RA.

hileena111

Hi
I dont think OA can be diagnosed through blood tests. I've got OA but not RA
I dont think it necessarily leads to RA ...hopefully not

Love
Hileena

atracattus

Hello again folks, i thought i'd update. I got my RF results back today, which are thankfully normal. I didn't think they would show much as i don't have the heat and swelling associated with RA, just the pain. And the pain in my knees, feet, ankles and back is certainly getting worse.

So I guess now that it is unlikely to be RA that leaves OA as a possibility? But now i have to wait another week before i see my GP again to see where we go from here. I feel relieved but also frustrated that i don't yet have an answer.

I had a chat with my Gran about her OA which was enlightening. She told me it started in her foot when her big toe started to point sideways causing other toes to bunch up and become mis-shapen. So i showed her my foot, which has exactly the same issue. My toes on my right foot look like the have been hit with a large hammer, all bent outwards or bunched up overlapping. I guess this something i should show my doctor? I also get grinding and clicking noises and sensations (not like cracking knuckles, more like sticks or bones knocking up against each other) when i flex the joints. Do many people with OS also get stiffness and pain in the morning, or wake up in pain in the middle of the night and have to move about for a while before going back to bed?

Does this sound more like OA, or could it be some other ailment? Sorry for all the questions, I just want to make sure I'm saying the right things and not wasting my doctors time.

dreamdaisy

Hello, thanks for the update. You should indeed show the GP your foot/feet as that will give them a clearer picture of what is going on with you. My joints click, creak and crack all the time thanks to the OA in my knees and ankles: I have that as a result of the joint damage caused by my auto-immune arthritis, lucky ol' me won the arthritis lottery!

OA is diagnosed by Xray as that shows the erosion. Blood tests are used for the auto-immune types, which present differently. There can be inflammation with OA (quite a few on here take an anti-inflammatory to help with matters) but usually it's a matter of treating it with pain dullers and exercise.

Any form of arthritis is rubbish to have but at least you won't be on the harsh meds that us auto-types can have - I reckon that is a very small and heavily disguised blessing! Good luck with the GP, please let us know what they say. Take care. DD