Psoriatic arthritis or Fibromyalgia???

[legs22]

Hello, I have not had a diagnosis yet of fibromyalgia, but im being treated for it for 6 month, as previously treated for psoriatic arthritis. Im very confused as my symptoms are very similar to each illness. Has anyone else faced this and can share any advice? Much appreciated, Helen x

[Badbessie]

In reply to your question my wife as both. Her blood tests have never been positive. She was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis as she had some of the more classic symptoms such as the swelling to her second and third toes on her left foot. Over a period of years she as had numerous other tests as some of her symptoms could not be explained by PSA alone. She was then diagnosed with hypermobilty syndrome. Again some symptoms could not be explained by that so after everything else had been ruled she was diagnosed with fibromyalgia. It can be very confusing as fibromyalgia can mimic so many other conditions. Sadly it is a matter of elimination of conditions and this can take some time.

[legs22 in reply to Badbessie]

Thank you, yes it is very confusing. I see my Rheumatologist in 6 month. I suppose i take it from there.

[Hazel_Angelstar Administrator FMA UK Staff]

Before I got my fibromyalgia diagnosis, psoriatic arthritis was being considered, along with zero-negative arthritis because I had the symptoms but not the expected blood results . They later decided I didn't have either, but still didn't know what was causing my symptoms x

[Midori in reply to Hazel_Angelstar]

I believe there is a genetic link with Psoriatic Arthritis. My mother had it, and I'm beginning to get scaly areas in my scalp, which is where it mainly showed on Mum. It was briefly mooted to me as a possibility, but never followed up.

[Hazel_Angelstar Administrator FMA UK Staff in reply to Midori]

I only had psoriasis in my scalp/face ... However a different doctor later diagnosed it as sebbhorraic dermatitis

My Grampa had psoriasis but I don't think anyone else in family has it xxd

[Midori in reply to Hazel_Angelstar]

Thanks , I was told there was a genetic link by my GP, itmaybe either, The patches are quite itchy and painful.

[legs22 in reply to Midori]

I have psoriasis patches on every joint of my body and my hands look liked they have been burnt. It is genetic as my Auntie on my mothers side has it and also my brother. But they only have out breaks then it clears up. The only medication that works and my psoriasis clears is methotrexate. Soon as i was took off it my psoriasis came back ten fold! Both sides of my family have arthritis too. But for me, The only symptom i dont suffer from is inflamation of the joints, My bloods keep coming back negative, I do have swelling when i 1st wake up, then after 5 to 10 mins it goes. But i do suffer with painful joints x

[amberly87]

Legs22,

I have used Health Unlocked for quite some time, but I have not been on recently. I just saw your post and although it’s old I wanted to make sure and reply. I am 33 and have had chronic pain and headaches since I was about 15-16. I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia at the age of 19, but I always felt there was something else wrong. At the age of 30 I saw a rheumatologist who said he believed I had Psoriatic Arthritis, but upon inspecting me he determined I have both; based on my research and experience I found that the diseases are commonly found coexisting. I can tell you that I agree in regards to the two conditions being difficult to distinguish, especially if you have enthesitis (inflammation where tendons or ligaments meet the bone); I have always had a lot of my worse pain where I would tell doctors “The muscle meets bone”, for instance where the top of my neck meets the base of my skull and along my shoulder blades. In my opinion the enthesitis mimics fibro because it can make you very tender. However, over the past few years I’ve come to find a few ways to distinguish the two. One way is that the psoriatic arthritis is typically at sites of enthesitis, pain or swelling in or around joints and in the muscles around those joints due to the affected joints not doing their “job” and the muscles trying to pick up the extra work. The fibromyalgia, on the other hand, never involves swelling and is only tenderness. For example, my psoriatic arthritis doesn’t affect my calves/ lower leg area, but it’s one of the most tender parts of my body, so I know that pain is fibro pain. It has taken me years of logging my symptoms to distinguish the two diseases and sometimes I’m still unsure. Also, in regards to treatments, I have yet to find a treatment that works to control either condition, so don’t think a failed treatment diminishes the idea that you have a condition. Like a lot of the other comments said, with PsA and fibro a lot of the process is the elimination of other diseases which takes some time. For 15 years I saw doctor after doctor who said my labs were all fine and they saw nothing wrong, treated me like my pain was a mental manifestation or acted as though I was only seeking pain medication. As depressing as this was, I knew something was wrong and I wasn’t going to give up until I had an answer. It took over 1-1/2 decades, and while I feel there are more undiagnosed issues I have, I have the first of many answers. Because PsA and fibro don’t show up on labs or other tests the diagnoses can take some time, but it’s worth the battle. I would highly recommend journaling your symptoms and triggers (either on paper or there are medical/pain journals available in app stores for your phone). Doing this helped me identify triggers for my different types of pain (weather, stress, hormones, etc) as well as what was hurting and where; knowing this can help you align what you’re experiencing and draw parallels between your conditions and the suggested diseases, as well as find symptoms that perhaps don’t align with either disease to discuss with your doctor. Good luck in your fight and stay positive...I have to remind myself daily of my outlook on my conditions that really helps me through and that is “Someone has to go through this because the world can’t be perfect and if God thinks I’m strong enough to handle it then my greatest curse is ultimately the greatest compliment.”