http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/revb/respiratory/parvo_b19.ht m
I found this because my son has this right now...he's fine, but I found the adult symptoms interesting and thought I would pass it along.
"bump"When they did my initial screen, that was one of the things they said I'd had. That, & mono. I missed the mono entirely. I think I was in college - there was a time when I was always tired. Never went to the doctor. They said neither one caused my RA, though.No, I didnt get that this was a cause for RA, but I see know why some doctors dont want to make a dx of RA when the blood work is negative. There are other illnesses out there that can cause similar symptoms, but I bet they dont test for these. They figure they will wait for six months and see what happens. Knowing to ask for tests for things like Lyme disease, and this human Parvovirus may help docs eliminate or rule out illnesses faster and get them to the correct dx sooner.
I thought it was interesting that you get the rash on the face (like lupus) and the bilateral joint pain (like RA).