Psoriatic Arthritis help!

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RuthC
RuthC Member Posts: 2
edited 6. Feb 2018, 06:39 in Chat to our Helpline Team archive
Hello! I was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis about 20 years ago when it was mainly confined to pain in my toes/feet as well as terrible fatigue. I have been on various medication over the years and my symptoms have also moved and I have had 'sausage fingers' and pain in my wrists as well. About 9 years ago I was really struggling with the side effects of methotrexate and my symptoms were minimal so I came off it and was ok for quite a long time. I have had grumbling symptoms but nothing that made me think it was worth attempting medication again. But I have recently had different symptoms that my rheumatologist is saying is part of the condition and I am a bit confused about. I have a lot of general joint pain a lot of the time and I am having regular 'flare ups' where my finger joints suddenly get very hot and painful and then when it goes away I am left with ongoing pain in those joints and others, often my wrist, elbow, neck and knees. This seems to be happening about once every week to 10 days now. I feel exhausted a lot of the time and am having neck and shoulder pain as well, which I never really had before. I mentioned fibromyalgia to my rheumatologist, but she has basically said that I have an inflammatory condition and just because I don't have a 'sausage joint' or other visibly swollen joint, which is what I'm used to, it doesn't mean that my arthritis isn't active. She wants me to consider medication (which she always does!) but I'm really unsure. I am getting a GP referral to the gym so I can start looking at my health and fitness as I am really inactive so hopefully that will help.
Could you give me some advice as to whether my new symptoms still sound like psoriatic arthritis to you? I would also really like to know if there is anything other than methotrexate that might help with the type of symptoms I have? Thank you :)

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  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User] Posts: 3,635
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Hello RuthC and welcome to the forums from the moderation team.

    I am very sorry to hear about your diagnosis of Psoriatic Arthritis together with your newer symptoms. If I understand you rightly you are querying whether they are indicative of Psoriatic Arthritis? There are several people who have the condition on here who will be able to tell you how it is for them. In the meantime it might be worth looking at the following links:

    https://www.arthritisresearchuk.org/arthritis-information/conditions/psoriatic-arthritis.aspx

    There are lots of Disease Modifying Anti Rheumatic Drugs available (DMARDS) this information is definitely worth a read (bear in mind not all will be suitable for you of course) Methotrexate is by no means the only drug available:
    https://www.arthritiscare.org.uk/treatments-aids-and-equipment/medication-for-your-arthritis-/disease-modifying-anti-rheumatic-drugs

    Increasing activity is never a bad idea, but if you haven’t been exercising for a while it might be that you would be better starting cautiously. The following link by Arthritis Research UK is about arthritis and exercise:

    https://www.arthritisresearchuk.org/arthritis-information/exercises-to-manage-pain.aspx


    We have a great community here, who have lots of experience of arthritis, I know they will make you very welcome and help in any way they can so do ask away!

    I look forward to seeing you posting in future.

    Best wishes

    Ellen.
  • helpline_team
    helpline_team Posts: 3,490
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Dear RuthC
    I'm sorry to hear about your on-going problems with your arthritis. If you are unsure about the evidence base for your rheumatologist's suggestions you might ask them to demonstrate what monitoring that they do shows where your inflammation is active. Psoriatic arthritis (PSA) can be difficult to identify in inflammatory blood tests, but sometimes they may be able to show you where your numbers are elevated. In other cases there may be particular scans that may show up areas of active inflammation, or where your arthritis has caused joint damage compared with when they first put you on their books.
    There are other drugs apart from methotrexate
    see page 10 of this booklet https://www.arthritisresearchuk.org/arthritis-information/conditions/psoriatic-arthritis.aspx
    If you'd like a chat in confidence about things, why not ring us at the freephone number for the Helpline?
    It's entirely natural to have mixed feelings about long term treatments. We are here if you'd like to explore things while you weigh up the pros and cons.
    Alternatively why not post on the Living with arthritis part of the online community - you'll generally get more replies.
    Very best wishes
    Guy
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