madamkitty

I was dx with RA in 1999, I've been treated with almost every drug used in the treatment forit. I've proven to be VERY drug sensitive and have scars on my face and arms from one allergic reation that nearly killed me. The rhuemy I've been seeing for two years put me on Remicade and I started getting huge welts all over my body after the 3rd treatment. Them he wanted me to try Humeria and I admitted my fear of needles and that I didn't think I could give myself a shot unless it was a life or death situation. He then took me off of all meds except naprosyn and sent me to a pain management doctor. He now says he doesn't think I have RA but instead I must have an autoimmune disease with arthritic tendencies. He's done no other kinds of test to prove this diagnosis and does nothing to treat my fibromyalgia that he diagnoised. I've finally had enough of him and I'm going for a second opinion with another Rhuemy in November. What kind of test shoul I ask for to be diagnoised with and autoimmune disease? What is the ANA I keep reading about. I do know my sed rate and RA factor stay extremely high and has since I was first dxed. I don't always have nodules, and then only on my elbos. My joints are constantly swelling and always hurt. I've been given an epidural in my lower spine because of 2 bulging disk. My pain management doc has also found I have arthritis in my spine and the beginning of scoleosis (sp). He sent me for orthoscopic surgery on my right knee after finding that the inflamation was cripling me, while in surgery, the surgeon fixed a torn ligament, and stretched tendon, drained a cyst and reset my knee cap where it's supposed to be instead of off to the left. I had the surgery in July and I'm already started having pain again in the knee, not to the extent of what it was tho. I am also bi-polar so I get treated like I'm a hypercondriact and that it's all in my head by a lot of doctors. I hate that. This Rhuemy put me out of work in Nov 05, because my legs swelled from the knees down to twice their size and I could barely walk. But when I went and got an advocate to start my paperwork for disability he started putting in my records that I was getting better. In direct contrast to what my pain management doctor is saying. From the first time my pain management doc say me he told me I would never be able to work again because the problems I'm having are dengenerative. Thankfully he put that in His records too. I'm more concerned with the autoimmune disease at this point.Any ideas?