New MEMBER needing advice

Jamez2008

Hi.
I have had pain in my left index finger knuckle for about a year now it is in my right index finger knuckle and in my little finger knuckle and lower joint on the little finger.

I also have had for a year lesions on my skin which they say was Ring worm but have not cleared up with various creams and tablets. I am having an mri and seeing dermatologist soon. Worried about RA as will effect my business I have built. Any advice appreciated

[Deleted User]

Welcome to Arthritis Care Forums, Jamez2008, from the moderation team.

It’s horrible when something is ‘wrong’ but we can’t get any answers quickly. There is nothing worse in my opinion that fear of the unknown especially as you have your own business.

It is good that you have an MRI booked as well as a dermatology appointment. I hope this means that your Doctor can find out what is going on for you sooner rather than later.

This link leads you to information about diagnosis of Rheumatoid Arthritis. Even if the diagnosis does turn out to be Rheumatoid Arthritis there are many treatments available:

https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/conditions/rheumatoid-arthritis/

If you think it might help do please give our helpline a call on 0808 520 0520

I look forward to seeing you posting on the boards.

Best wishes


Ellen

stickywicket

Hello James and welcome from me too.

As Mod Ellen says, the hardest thing is waiting and not knowing. I have RA (and OA) and mine started in my fingers which is quite 'usual'. But it wasn't just pain:it was also overwhelming fatigue and a 'fluey' feeling.

You are having an MRI which is a very good thing and I hope it will provide some answers for you. Hang on in there. And, if we can help in any way, just ask.

Jamez2008

Thank you so much that does help a lot just some slight advice. I just read online and scare myself to death.

I don't have any other symptoms I'm still working a physical job outside its just the joint pain in a few joints in my hand that are inflamed.

Its just very frustrating as been waiting a year and it is slightly worse now as its another finger.

I'm just hoping it's not arthuritus and something else as I do window cleaning with poles all day all weather's for about 3 years now and also gutter vacuum with aluminium poles which also is a lot of strain. In the past when I was younger I played no end of computer games and typing also to friends online. Maybe related. I have thought and read about every possible scenario. I did read online RA can effect organs and cause blindness etc. I just made myself even more terrified as life was going so well until this but I'm just trying to carry on working and taking the pain.

My blood test said not celiac disease as my dad's brother and sister both had this and I thought maybe...

dreamdaisy

Hello, I have an auto-immune arthritis called psoriatic arthritis, it is one of the three hundred or so auto-immune inflammatory conditions so often ruling things out is what takes the time. I was born with auto-immune nonsense (eczema) and developed asthma aged seven so this was was no great surprise. It affects all my fingers but the condition is well-controlled by the medication I take. Pain is another issue but I am used to it now, it's been going on since 1997. Osteoarthritis was diagnosed in 2011 so I have done the double, get in!

I think it is far harder when the pain is localised to just one or two places, it demands more attention for that reason. You are working outdoors in all weathers so I hope you are wearing gloves to protect and support your joints. If you wish to read online then stick to reputable sites, I have never bothered 'researching' my conditions because other people are not me, they do not have my attitudes, experiences etc., I listen to my doctors and talk to people on here who all get it because they've got it. DD

stickywicket

I don't envy you your task of trying to reconcile possible arthritis and your job. I wonder if there are any steps you can take to try to minimise the effects of cold and damp. Would gloves be possible for at least part of the time.

Try not to scare yourself The internet is a very scary place, medically speaking. Stick to trusted sites such as us and NHS. It is true that RA can, occasionally, affect internal organs but that's rare. I've had it since I was 15 (I'm now 72) and it's not happened to me. However, do ensure that everyone dealing with you is aware of the coeliac genetic link. Autoimmune conditions, such as RA and coeliac, can have a genetic factor ie if someone in the family has one autoimmune condition other family members may be (only MAY BE) more susceptible to other autoimmune conditions. It's a lottery.

Jamez2008

I do wear gloves now as before my hands got covered in black from the carbon poles being wet.

Had mri last night felt quite dizzy afterwards for couple of hours.

My fingers are very stiff waking up this morning and inflamed

dreamdaisy

Soak them in a bowl of warm water laced with Epsom salts and flex them gently as though playing a piano. I routinely go through a series of stretching exercises in bed before I get up, focusing on my toes, legs, arms and fingers. DD

stickywicket

Oh dear! I've not heard of anyone getting after-effects from an MRI scan before but I guess there's always a first time.

How are things now? Have your hands got back to normal (even though normal isn't great)? And has the dizziness stopped? It must be so difficult in your line of work especially now as it gets colder.

Jamez2008

Hiya yes no dizzyness after MRI, i read it can effect the fluid in your ears.

UPDATE:

Today i went to see the Dermatologist regarding my "ringworm" that i had many creams for and tablets !

Apparently they had diagnosed wrong and they said it is Psorisis apparently but still have not done a biopsy so seems a bit guess work to me.

Anyway he tells me oh i see you have been diagnosed with sero negative arthritis. Im like really i didnt even know because ive not had my appointment with the consultant yet about the results.

So now im full of questions will i need to take that horrible medication i have read about it. will it get worse. etc etc

He told me nothing just worried me even more as i dont know if i will be able to continue in my line of work.

Also i dont know if this type is rhematoid or not?

I did read that if the RF is not found in the blood but you have symptoms such as mine that class it as seronegative, which again sounds like guess work if it came back negative for arthuritis how can they be sure that it is not something else.

I did read that rhematoid could effect organs etc so i was obviously also very worried about that, now i feel like i am left in the dark lol

dreamdaisy

It is very confusing, isn't it? I'll have a bash at trying to make it clearer.

Rheumatoid arthritis us one of the auto-immune inflammatory conditions but there are many, many more. The immune system is the body's way of defending us from infection, when we fall ill with a cold a or a bug the immune system swings into action to knock the infection on the head. It can mis-fire, however, leading the body to over-react to triggers meaning the body attacks itself. I was born with eczema (an auto-immune disorder) which meant my skin reacted to Vitamin C causing very dry skin which split and severe rashes. Psoriais is caused by the immune system mis-firing, instead of the skin renewing itself every thirty or so days it does it in three or four, causing raised lumps which can be itchy but are certainly unsightly. The trouble with skin rashes is they all look very similar so an accurate diagnosis can be difficult.

When rheumatoid factor is found in the blood diagnosis is sero-positive rheumatoid arthritis, but different kinds of inflammation can be caused by an over-active immune system without rheumatoid factor being present. RA inflammation occurs within the joints, with psoriatic arthritis it tends to be inflammation around the places where the muscles are attached to the bones, so in a different area. Rheumatoid factor is not present so someone might be classified as having a sero-negative form of RA just as a label, especially if their skin is clear (mine was for years, I controlled the eczema through diet and my psoriasis did not appear until 2006).

I am very tired now (I am not well at the moment) so I will stop and hopefully come back later. I hope this has been helpful. DD

stickywicket

I hope DD has sorted out the confusion re RA, PsA and a sero-positive or sero-negative rheumatoid factor. If you've any questions do ask, though and we'll try to answer. If you have any autoimmune form of arthritis, though, you will need to take 'that horrible medication'. We all do and, actually, for most of us, it's not so horrible. I'm on two and I have no problems with them. They slow down the progress of the disease. They don't necessarily stop it in its tracks though, if you get lucky, they might.

The blood tests don't 'come back negative for arthritis'. They come back showing a high or negative rheumatoid factor. That's only one of the tests. They don't judge by that alone. Believe me, if they diagnose you with RA or PsA or any other autoimmune type of arthritis, it's because you have it.

Jamez2008

Hello again.

Update:

Doctor called me and said that I need another MRI scan as they scanned my wrist and not my knuckles.

I also got diagnosed with psorisis as before they thought it was ringworm for a whole year.

The skin doctor said I hear you have been diagnosed with sero negative arthuritis.

I said oh really I didn't even know.

He apparently read the letter wrong and didn't tell me that is a Possible diagnosis not for certain.

So maybe I have psoriatic arthuritis or zero negative who knows but it was just my index finger knuckle this Jan. Now it's the opposite one and my little finger both joints. And wierd my my toe has a funny sensation occasionally not sure if this is connected.

I saw your tv advert looks brilliant hopefully more can be done as people think this is just a thing with old age and it ruins people's lives and business and financial.

dreamdaisy

PsA is a sero-negative kind so yes, you have an anti-immune arthritis, the same one as me. I have very little skin trouble but do have an ointment called Dovobet (which my GP prescribes) and that helps my skin when the psoriasis appears. Coal tar preparations are said to be good for psoriatic skin too, when it comes on my scalp I use a stinky stinky shampoo which gets rid of it.

I agree with you about the new TV campaign but, truth be told, the disease has been doing this for years, it's nothing new to us old hands but the ads are. There are five times as many people with arthritis in the UK than have cancer but ours is not a 'special' disease because it does not have the potential to end lives. It merely ruins them. DD

Jamez2008

I see I have the shampoo works well I used before on my scalp years ago but never bad joints until this year.

Soon they will diagnose prob psa and hopefully the medication will stop it progressing so I can work.

I did try the bowl of hot water and salt and naproxen etc but doesn't do much.

My first joint was warm for months with inflammation now it's normal and cool again. How strange.

I read on Google when I found out it can destroy organs and eye sight etc so I was very scared wish I never read online.

dreamdaisy

Auto-immune arthritis is a law unto itself. When the disease is active it causes hot and swollen joints, when it's not the joints cool but the inflammation can remain. It's a little like a tap, it can be turned on and off but what turns it on is the mystery. The meds are the things that don't turn it off as such but they stop the 'water' (disease activity) from flowing.

Being old-school (Iremember a world without the internet and telly with only two channels) I have never 'researched' my disease on-line. I do not see the point. The internet in general is not a reliable source of any kind of information, reliable sites are hard work to read and understand whereas the scare stories of those who don't know what they're talking about register far too easily. Yes, rheumatoid arthritis can affect the heart and lungs but there it again it might not. PsA though? I haven't a clue, if it does it does and I will deal with that if I get to it. The point of the meds is to stop this kind of thing from happening. When I first started going to rheumatology the joint deformation on some people was horrendous, now fifteen years on it's gone, I am the one who stands out because I need walking aids.

The hot water etc. indeed does not do much, in truth not much does. :roll: You are in your very early days and I know if won't seem like it to you but this quick diagnosis is a good thing. The sooner you begin the meds the better the outcome should be: at least you shouldn't end up like me. DD