Hello just wondered if any one could help me , I have had bad wrist pain for nearly 7 weeks i cant lift anything heavy or twist my hands i have no swelling that i can see I have had blood tests that have showed ecr not right and vit d deficiency
I have been to the dr every week for the last 7 weeks and they will not do any thing for me , I asked for a x ray and referral to hospital to see a specialist I asked for steroids or pain injection, I have been taking co codomol and just started vit d
I really can not take much more of the pain as its now in my feet at the top , i am trying to hold down a job and look after my grandchild
My last resort is now get a private referral I could really cry with the pain I can't sleep and pain terrible when I wake up
Thanks debbie
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Debbie20
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I'd ask your GP directly why they aren't considering RA, and why you can't be referred to rheumatology to rule that out (or in). If your ESR is raised, then that suggests inflammation somewhere (though not necessarily in your hands).
Have you another GP you could see at your practice? Seven visits in as many weeks is crazy with no positive answers. If your blood test showed an abnormal ECR result, did he/she not explain what "not right" meant? This means as earthwitch says inflammation is present. It does sound as though they're not taking you & your symptoms seriously if they're just prescribing co-codamol & Vit D & as you're now having pain in your feet to my mind it means it's more active. If you've seen more than the one GP, do you have a good relationship with any of the practice nurses? If you do, have a word & see what they say.
I think you just need to be extremely firm and explain to them that you know a bit about RA and you have learned that having a raised ESR means there is inflammation and you would like to be referred forthwith. With RA the window of opportunity is not that long before it can do permanent damage and they should at least be giving you anti-inflammatory drugs as well as Co-Codimol as well as referring you asap. You shouldn't have to go private but sometimes it seems to be the only way for people to make progress as quickly as they need to. My RA started in my wrists and knees and was totally debilitating so I can relate to how much this is affecting your daily life. Your GP should as well if you are forceful enough. Good luck - Twitchy
I can only echo what nomoreheels and earthwitch have said. How does your GP expect you to work and look after a child with so much pain and probably very little sleep too. I hope you get a better response at your next appointment.
I once met someone who'd just had their first appointment with a rheumy and had been told that severe Vitamin D deficiency might just possibly be the cause of her inflammatory arthritis symptoms. She was about to start a course of Vitamin D supplement with a view to seeing whether or not that resolved her problems, with conventional inflammatory arthritis drugs being the next step if necessary. I don't think I've heard of this link elsewhere so this is by no means 'solid' information, but maybe you might want to discuss this slight possibility with your doctor.
Having said that, it sounds as if your GP isn't being especially helpful and in your shoes I'd press for a referral to a rheumatologist, as others have said. Even with glaring inflammatory arthritis symptoms I found that my GP dragged his feet, I had to be very persistent. What I do know for sure is that early intervention in inflammatory arthritis is strongly recommended by NICE and is the received wisdom on the subject. I don't see how your GP can argue with that. It's much, much better to be checked over by a rheumatologist in order to 'catch' the disease early than to take the wait and see approach. You're asking for maybe 20 minutes of their time, for goodness' sake - grrr! Take a deep breath and go for it determinedly - you're not alone in needing to steel yourself for a bit of a struggle just when you least feel like it, unfortunately it's the same old story again & again. But when you get some answers, and hopefully helpful treatment, it's so worth it. Good luck.
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