i have swollen knees & pain & stiffness in all my joints?

Question

I have swollen knees off & on for years.Now all my joints get stiff & ach.My doctor thinks i have psorrises arthritis but took a blood test & i haf xrays & it showed nothing.what do i have & what can i do?i'm suffering.I'm only 42

Answer 1

The swelling sounds like on onset of Rheumatism and your doctor should have seen this right away. Whether it showed up on X-Rays or not, he should have known. See an internal medicine specialist or a Rheumatologist, they'll take care of you.
Try ice packs on the worst places and see if that helps.

Sometimes it takes a deep scan three d to see the soft tissue areas and what's going on. The doctor should have these done if nothing showed up the first time around.

Answer 2

It does sound like a strong possibility. Your symptoms do sound typical of inflammatory arthritis. You should speak to your doctor about the dose of Prednisone you are on. It's a very potent anti-inflammatory with some serious side effects. It can cause osteoporosis, glaucoma and weight gain. Not all joints swell visibly. I have arthritis in my toes, knees, hips, sacroiliac joints, shoulders, wrists and fingers and I only ever have visible swelling and heat in my knees and fingers. The rheumatoid factor test does help, but it's not the final decider. Many healthy people test positive for the RF test and 70-80% of people with RA have a negative one. Have you had the anti-CCP test? This is far more specific to RA. If it's positive, there's a 99% chance it's positive because you have RA. If it's negative, it doesn't rule anything out. Have you had your ESR and CRP measured? These test for inflammation in the blood. It doesn't mean the inflammation is in your joints and a normal ESR or CRP doesn't mean you have no inflammation. The problem with autoimmune inflammatory arthritic conditions is that they overlap a lot. Rheumatoid Arthritis is a possibility, but so is Ankylosing Spondylitis, Psoriatic Arthritis, Lupus (unlikely because of your ANA), Sarcoid, Reactive Arthritis, Sjogren's Syndrome, Mixed Connective Tissue Disease and many more. Most of these conditions have some overlapping features. I'd talk to your doctor about coming off the Prednisone before your first appointment. Prednisone will mask your symptoms and if your rheumatologist can see you with lots of swelling, it'll make it a lot easier! Good luck. ....

Answer 3

Hi Myrna, a negative test for types of arthritis do not entirely rule out the disease, there are many people who are diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis, or other forms without positive blood work.

Sometimes it can be a challenge to get a proper diagnosis and it can take some time. I recommend you continue to visit the doctor until you know exactly what is wrong.

In the meantime there is much you can do for yourself to improve the pain and stiffness. if you are interested.

I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis, suffered badly and the medications did not help much. After trying many things I found ways to improve my health and today am proud to say I live comfortably, without medication.

For more information http://www.LivingWithRheumatoidArthritis.com

Answer 4

It totally sounds like arthritis to me. He may have thought you had psoriatic arthritis which is a form of rheumatoid arthritis caused by psoriasis. They worry more about these types because they cause more damage and deformation of joints than other types but you may have a different form. There are 120 different kinds of arthritis. 42 is not young for arthritis.

Answer 5

Make an appointment to see a Rheumatologist. I am suprised your doc didn't already tell you to do this. If your doc has not been aggressive about finding out what is wrong consider changing docs besides seeing the Rheumatologist

Answer 6

you would be amazed at the problems that stress may cause!