Hi y'all... Its a big "maybe". While there may be no external inflammtion there still may be some internal inflammtion. A trained examiner can usually feel what we can't see. Also if you have already damaged the joint from another flare then that damage can continue to get worse even after the inflammtion disappears. For many of us the secondary osterarthritis is as bad or now worse than the actually RA But all in all no visible sweliing from someone who generally exhibits it is a sign of disease activity at a lower level. Hi Lisa, I've never had much swelling. But I do have alot of damage. I've also been in constant pain for over a year. MRI shows the deterioration in my hand joints. Believe me, I've questioned my rd many times since I don't have the swelling that many here have. After my last appointment he held my hands and looked me in the eyes, and gently explained that an MRI is just about as good as orthoscopic surgery and I must except that I do have damage and that I have to stay on my medication. I've been going through this with him for almost a year and it's time I accept it and move on with my life. Hi Lisa, I've never had much swelling. But I do have alot of damage. I've also been in constant pain for over a year. MRI shows the deterioration in my hand joints. Believe me, I've questioned my rd many times since I don't have the swelling that many here have. After my last appointment he held my hands and looked me in the eyes, and gently explained that an MRI is just about as good as orthoscopic surgery and I must except that I do have damage and that I have to stay on my medication. I've been going through this with him for almost a year and it's time I accept it and move on with my life. Hi, My spine is by far the worst affected and you can't really see any swelling as such but recent x-rays have shown deterioration in my sacro-iliac joint. Also when my hands swell it is not massively and sometimes other people don't notice or can't tell the difference but the joints are still damaged... I think it might be a case of the answer to your question being "it depends" - sometimes it might, sometimes it might not!
If there is no swelling, does that mean there is no damage being done?
Well Poo! I was hoping that since I can't really see any swelling that
maybe it was not damaging my joints. Wishful thinking I guess. Thanks
for your reply.
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