Hello,
I am a 32yo male, never smoker, no RA in my familly at all. I have a question to you guys regarding my possible RA. So to start:
I have been camping in woodlands in June/July last year. I have got bitten by 2 tics, no rash or flu like symptoms but at the same time I have developed pain in my left shoulder. It has disappeared and comming back for about 9 months but at a given point it was so severe I could not dress myselft at all. It usually lasted about 3-5 days and then started going to other joints: right shoulder, left elbow, right knee. It was never in two joints at the same time. I had little reddness and swelling in one writst but it disappeared after two days. I got scared and rushed to my PCP. Got blood tests: ESR, CRP autoantibodies, RF, bone profile, all usual stuff. All we OK, ESR wes 6 (limit 15), CRP 1 (limit 5), RF negative. At the same time I had test for boreliosis (Lyme disease) and they have found I was positive, so I have go a month cycle of antibiotics (doxycycline). After 4 days on doxy all joint pains have gone. But after I finished the antibiotics the pains came back. Now they are less severe but basically moved to all joints.
I must add the pains are not that bad - during the last 6 months I have taken only twice 300mg of aspirin, so nothing really terrible. It just feels like a pain lasting for abour 10 seconds (especally in wrists and fingers, abkles) or a little burning (left shoulder). I also have somethnig I would describe "weak muscles". Thay are acctuallt not week but for example barushing my teeth for 5 mins gives me a strange feeling whereas I have no problems with lifting 80 pounds objects at all. Also I must add I have no reddness or swelling at all. When I press the joints and do it according to http://www.capri.scot.nhs.uk/PublicTutorial.htm I do not feel any pain at all. I can even hit my joint with massive force and it does not hurt. Only sometimes when I do not move them, when they are stale I get this strange sharp, short lasting pain.
My joints also crack a lot, it is not painful but I can feel like the bone is from one place to another withing a joint, this is mostly in the ellbows , shoulders, knees and ankles. Does this sound like RA to you? I am supposed to meet my PCP in two weeks time and I do not know what to tell him, should I request an appointment with a rheumatologist? This lack of reddness and swelling is a bit strange. Lyme disease causes arthrits but it is usually in one or few joints and not as many as I have.
Thank you for your advice
Lex
Well RA usually last more than two or three days. Really for any diagnosis for arthritis you should see a rhuematologist. It could be any of a hundred things. Also auto immune stuff does not always show up on a blood test. It is famous for hiding.
I suggest you investigate long term lyme treatment. It is possible that you are still sufferring from the effects of the disease. At this time it is more likely you are sufferring from a form of infectious arthritis than pure RA