Kenny's AI Thread

[tattooyu]

Hi everyone. My name is Kenny, and I thought I would introduce myself on this forum. For the past few years I started having vague "episodes" of fatigue, joint/body pain, temperature fluctuations, palpitations, anxiety, etc.

All this started after the death of my first son in 2008 and being diagnosed (now treated) with severe sleep apnea at the same time.

Recently, I got my physician, whom I love, to run hs-CRP and an ANA titer. My hs-CRP is elevated @ 3.3 and ANA titer came back positive @ 1:80 (homogeneous pattern). My Vitamin D also went down from 22 to 14 (mg/dL) even after taking 2,000 IU of D3 daily since March 2011. Going to try the prescription D2 next.

Anyway, I'm getting a referral to a rheumatologist for further exploration. I just hope I can find some relief so I can start living a semi-normal happy life again. In the meantime, she wants me to up my exercise and start taking Omega-3 supplements.

I'm scared but hopeful. Hope it's not something else horrible like lymphoma. <slap> Stop it, Kenny. Stay positive!

[paperbgprinces]

Hello there, Kenny.

Unfortunately your symptoms aren't very specific. There's no one symptom that you have that would point anyone in a specific direction. With the temperature fluctuations, joint pains and fatigue, there may be some sort of thyroid condition. I'm sorry to hear about the loss of your son.

As for your blood tests, your ANA may be positive, but most doctors would consider it negative. My rheumatologist considers an ANA under 1:640 as a negative. Others consider anything under 1:320 negative. So just be prepared for them to dismiss that entirely. Does your CRP have a normal result beside it? At my lab a CRP under 5 is considered negative.

I hope that your rheumatologist will offer some advice. Do your joints ever swell? Or are they just sore? Do you have any rashes? Do you have any muscle pain?

There are so many possibilities, and some of them autoimmune and others not. Sleep apnea can cause fatigue and joint pains.

Good luck, keep positive. I hope they can work out what's going on quickly.

[tattooyu]

I've had two full thyroid panels (w/ antibodies) and both came back negative.

My sleep apnea is under full control (numbers are perfect) with CPAP therapy so it's effectively a non-issue as far as I know.

Specific symptoms? Malar flushing but it's not permanent? Fingernails are curving downward which I never had before. My fingers always seems swollen a bit. Reddish spots on knuckles.

Whatever it is feels like it would be hormonal but that's a purely anecdotal comment.

Thx.

Forgot new blurry vision in left eye. Dry mouth and eyes. Very achy muscles and joint pain. Upper body muscles seem weak.