I have a question. Seeing how I've been diagnosed with SLE for 9 or more years now you'd think I'd know the answer to this question. Funny thing is, I've never asked my rheumy..that is why this is a dumb question lol. Almost allof my symptoms are joint pain. My question is, is there actual joint damage over time? I thought I read somewhere a long time ago that there really isn't any permanent damage in the joints like with RA. Does anyone know if that's true? I mean, I would think if your joints were attacked for years there would be SOME kind of cumulative damage wouldn't there?
My rheumy told me it does not damage the joints like arthritis. What I thought he said was that Lupus is a connective tissue disease. I have the joint aches and the very sensitive skin.
Watoozie, That's how I understand it, too: that in lupus, joints do NOT erode as they do in RA. However, I do know people with Ro-lupus (SCLE) who've had shoulder bone spurs that required surgery...
Vee (I have the SCLE "subset", too---and lousy shoulders...)
I have joint pain, at different times, in pretty much EVERY joint. It's mostly in my hands but at other times in my knees, my shoulders (especially in the morning), my hips, my feet, even in my lower back (hip area), wrists and even ankles and feet.
