I went to my rheumatologist and she told me that RA never affects the DPI joints ( the most distal joints on your fingers) i have a lot of pain and swelling in these joints tho. Does anyone else have these joints affected and did your RD say anything about that being out of the ordinary . Just curious for your input. My fingers look like sausages when I flare. I have never heard that it doesn't affect those joints. I can have weird shooting pains in those joints when I flare. It is interesting that your RD said and I am going to ask mine about it.
I have JRA and don't have much trouble with those joints - on the other hand (no pun intended
PS - they're hard, like bone(because it is bone), not soft like a swollen RA joint.
Hi,
Psoriatic arthritis can affect these joints - maybe you should check it out with your Dr?
My RD said the same thing! Mine have been really bad too
She just says, boy you really have osteo in those. I never had osteo in them until I got RA in all the others, but okay....
I've had JRA in *every* finger joint since I was about 3. Three year olds don't get OA, so I'm pretty sure my docs knew what they were talking about. I still have issues, however they're not as bad as when I was little. When I flare, my entire finger swells, including sections of my palm, actually. It seems silly to me that they would say "well you can have RA anywhere but *THERE*" After all, there's cartilage there, right? That's really all it takes. So it makes sense to me.Having rheumatoid does make you more susceptable to OA - it's wear-n-tear arthritis and what rips up joints better than RA?
Katie - Now that you mention it, I do remember my rheumy saying that juvenile differs from RA in that it, "loves the little joints".
This is from the Merck Manual . . .
| Differential Features of the Hand in Rheumatoid Arthritis and Osteoarthritis | ||
|
Criteria |
Rheumatoid Arthritis |
Osteoarthritis |
|
Character of swelling |
Synovial, capsular, soft tissue; bony only in late stages |
Bony with irregular spurs; occasional soft cysts |
|
Tenderness |
Usual |
None or mild except during occasional acute onset |
|
Distal interphalangeal involvement |
Not usual, except in thumb |
Usual |
|
Proximal interphalangeal involvement |
Usual |
Frequent |
|
Metacarpophalangeal involvement |
Usual |
Unusual |
|
Wrist involvement |
Usual or common |
Rare, except in base of thumb metacarpal-carpal joint |
My DPI joints are absolutely affected. They're not the worst of my problem, by far, but definitely an issue. Actually, last summer I mildly injured those joints on my right fingers: I was swimming, and I jammed them against the wall of the pool. Since then, they've been some of my most troublesome joints, and they've also developed Rheumatoid Nodules on them. I'm convinced that these joints, which would normally have been bad, were made worse by the injury.
I've never heard of what your Rheumy said: I'm going to ask mine at my next visit, just to see what he says. Very interesting!
Katie, you're still a kid....I mean, I am WAY older than you are A WHOLE YEAR. Haha Alright. I'm gettin tired of everyone picking on me for being 23.... :| Thanks for your replies. Maybe my rheumy has no clue what shes talking about, very reassuring. its like dude its a joint who cares it hurts fix it.