I have been having a number of different symptoms since Oct, 2005, which include.......
> Over-all blahh feeling
> Fatigued
> Ringing in my ears, especially at night
> Tired feeling in my legs (no weakness)
> Muscle twitching and some muscle pains in calves and forearms
> Some joint pains in hands, knees
> Stiffness in my ankles
> Dull, droaning pain in my lower back (non-muscular)
> Heart-burn (5-6 days a week)
> Pains in my front neck muscles & below tongue
> Troubled breathing (5-10 minutes, to 2-4 hours)
> Trouble swallowing (slight)
It's these last 3 symptoms that give me the most anxiety. My ANA levels have come back HIGH twice at 1280, with a homogeneus pattern & ESR of 13 (good). However, my ANA came back normal last week, along with negative ds-DNS, ss-DNS, and RF. I have my 1st Rhumie appointment on Feb.1st to see what the heck is going on.
To those of you with a Dx of SLE or another autoimmune disease of some sort, have you experienced symptoms of troubled breathing and/or trouble swallowing? I know these autoimmune diseases have 100's of symptoms. Thanks for your input.
Very high ANA's are often seen in Sjogren's syndrome, which can occur "standalone" or in conjunction with lupus. Some of its symptoms are dry mouth, joint pain, dry lungs, gastritis, thick blood, possibly even SCLE rashes (SCLE = subacute cutaneous lupus), and fatigue. (I'm quoting from my lupus hardcover here = the one by Dr. Daniel Wallace. There are several out there by Dr. Robert Lahita, also very useful and thorough.)
The autoantibody most correlated with Sjogren's is *anti-Ro*---as opposed to the ones you noted (anti-ss-DNA, anti-ds-DNA, and RF). It's seen in about 70% of Sjogren's---but also in about 30% of those with SLE.
I know several women with Sjogren's, and I also know two women firsthand (including myself) with positive anti-Ro in conjunction with the SCLE "subset" of systemic lupus. So give a holler if you want...
But your rheumie appt. is obviously what counts the most here, so I hope you get established quickly and move quickly towards some useful findings. Good luck and best wishes, Vee
