Joint Damage.... | Arthritis Information

 

I was just wondering how long it took for joint damage to show up?  Is t here anyone out there that doesn't have joint damage after several years?  Thanks.no joint damage...7 years and counting!  MTX...Humira...and now Enbrel.

Wow, that' awesome Alan!  Great question and looking forward to more responses.  I have some slight damage in my right foot, 2 1/2 years after dx, but I think I had RA for at least 5 years prior to my dx. I'm curious Alan. In all these years what can you tell me about the pain you experience? When I have pain I'm always afraid damage is happening. I'm only in to this 15 months so I haven't had an xrays since my baseline and I don't have visible damage. With MTX only the pain and stiffness flared at least once a month...sometimes severe enough to limit range of motion quite a bit, especially my shoulders and hands.  Humira was better but still occasional flares.  When Humira quit working it was pretty awful for a couple of months (last summer)...just ask my wife!  So far my experience with enbrel has been the best...some stiffness and soreness mostly in the morning, fading by afternoon.  No flares so far (4 months).  I'm taking Arava with the Enbrel now.  I should have said that I do have some bone erosions from the first year before the MTX kicked in but the damage has not progressed. Thanks Alan! That is very comforting to know. Pain does not equate damage.

Yes, it's possible to have RA for years and not have joint deformities. That's me.

 

I had about a 9-10 month period of symptoms before going to the doctor when my husband said he was afraid I had MS. I kept thinking that after my bad flu, I was being a baby, although nothing I tried helped, so it shocked me into the possibility that there could actually be an explanation for my altered lifestyle. After that, my labwork was so bad and symptoms consistent with RA, that I was diagnosed quickly. My first RA drug was Plaquenil, 7 years ago. Over the years, some are good, some are bad, although since I was switched to Methotrexate, which took 8-9months to finally kick-in, I do not need help dressing, eating, opening doors, etc.  But I do have some limitations ie doing things that require fingers to close or grip, so I drop things, and like fingers, my hips and feet are painful & stiff and I have horrible, utter fatigue midday that sends me to bed. Life's a  challenge.

 

The great news is that despite all that, I do not have joint deformities!  Dr says they are seeing more and more RA patients like that thanks to the DMARDs and Biologicals.... drugs invented to prevent deformities or at least stop them from getting worse. I sure appreciate it.  Nice to have good news.

CathyM

I have been dx with RA for just over a year, and while I had RA-like pain in my feet for years, there is no damage.  But there is damage in my jaw, where I have had pain for years. I've never had x-rays so I dont know. But remember, pain does not mean damage necessarily. Someone can be in a great deal of pain and show very little damage on x-ray. Vice versa, one can have minimal pain in a greatly damaged joint.
Copyright ArthritisInsight.com