I have been to the Rheumatologist and Neurologist at OSU. My ANA blood test was 1:1280 speckled, nucleolar. All other tests for RA and Lupus came back negative. I have had surgery to sever the illio sacro nerve in the right hip region. I have tingling and numbness in both legs at the knee down. I have weakness and muscle pain, muscle knots and spasms frequently. It is at the point where I have been through many tests, blood, MRI, CATSCAN, and nerve tests. I have trembling, slight shaking in hands. I am sure I am leaving something out, so if you need a question answered, please just ask. The RA doctor has me taking Plaqunil (spelling?), which has not been helping me at all. I have joint pain, but mostly fatigue of the arms, legs, and hips. Any similarities? Any ideas?
Why are they giving you plaquinil before they know whats wrong. Surely they would diagnose an auto immune problem first, may be a second opinion, any inhereted diseases in the family, pays to look back to see what relatives have had in the past. Makes it easier for the doctors.
What was your Dr's reasoning for prescribing plaquenil, which can take a while to start working? You don't mention if your CRP and/or SED rate was abnormal. I do want to also mention that many times, labs can be negative for autoimmune diseases and are just part of the diagnostic picture. There is even such a thing as undifferentiated connective tissue disease. Did your Dr mention that he/she suspects something going on? I can say that if that is so, early treatment is is a rare and wonderful thing, even if it does take several months to appear to be working. As far as lupus goes, the fine folks on the lupus board have stickied the diagnostic criteria for that and APS, I believe. Many of these AI diseases have similar symptoms such as joint pain, crushing fatigue, etc. but can be treated. Were you also tested for Scl-70, RNP, and the rest, as a followup to the positive ANA? Do you have rashes or are you sun sensitive? All these things can help paint a clinical picture for the Dr. Do you have a specific question, like about the titre or pattern? I also wanted to mention that plaquenil is usually the first and lowest tier (as it were) of drugs commonly Rx's for autoimmune diseases and many people do just fine on it without the need of more drugs. Symptom treatment is more important than the name of these diseases sometimes, especially in the beginning, in my opinion, but I am just a patient. I will also caution you that the internet is full of doom and gloom, and misinformation.
Last edited by luca689; 02-28-2012 at 10:41 AM.
Reason: gramar
Thank you for replying. I am not quite sure which other blood tests they took. All I know is that it was a lot. The last five days, my legs and arms have hurt so bad that I can barely manage to walk or raise my arms. I go to see my RA on the 6th to try to get more answers. Both my mother and sister (who is 10 years younger) have RA. The rhuematologist put me on Plaqunil because my ANA was done specifically by a specialist where they separate the blood during the test. She said there is definitely a possibility of RA at an early stage but the blood tests at this point do not show it. The weakness in my body though tells me something else is going on, not just joint pain. It seems to be more in my muscles than joints. I do not have sun sensitivity except in my eyes, and I do not get rashes, but I do have itchiness all over my body. My maternal grandmother had Reynaud's Syndrome. As far as my father's side, I do not know much. He was not part of my life. I do know cancer runs rampart in that side of the family though. I think I answered your questions. Again thank you for replying. I will post again once I see my Rheumatologist.
