Please help me understand "inflammatory arthritis"!

Walkincircles

Hello! This is my first post and it's lovely to join. I am 51 and a mother to 2 children, 14 and 18.

I was diagnosed with inflammatory arthritis last week after years of gradually worsening pain until descending stairs was an embarrassingly flamboyant affair.

Bloods showed elevated rheumatoid factor, positive for ANA (speckled), elevated urate, elevated ALT, elevated ferritin, elevated ESR, elevated C-Reactive protein, and low folate. But because these levels are just over borderline and I'm not presenting as clinically rheumatoid, my consultant is diagnosing “inflammatory arthritis”. He has put me onto hydroxychoroquine, ordered an MRI of my lower back for some reason and I had a steroid injection (120mg of depomedrone) which, in 2 days, took away all the pain - it was incredible.

I see there are many, many types of arthritis.

Will my “inflammatory arthritis” eventually be whittled down to something more specific?

chrisb

Hi @Walkincircles

Welcome the versus arthritis forum.

I see that you are recently diagnosed with inflammatory arthritis. You’ve been put on medication which has given you some pretty instant pain relief. You’d like input from forum members as to whether or not your recent diagnosis is likely to be narrowed down to something more specific.

Hopefully you will receive some useful feedback. In the interim there’s a huge amount of information on our website. Here’s somewhere to start:

I hope you find joining the forum of benefit. Please do join on as many chats as you feel appropriate.

Best Wishes

ChrisB (Moderator)

https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/ https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/treatments/drugs/hydroxychloroquine/

jamieA

Hi @Walkincircles

I had an MRI scan of my lower back when I was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis and I asked the same question. I was told the state of your sacroilliac joint was a pointer to inflammatory arthritis and the type thereof. Here's a good explanation

https://www.arthritis-health.com/blog/types-arthritis-cause-sacroiliac-joint-pain

Walkincircles

Thank you! That explains things :)