Blood Results? ...

[Lilynette]

Okay as some know here I'm 18 and ive been experiencing RA and OA type symptoms for 2 almost 3 months and i examined by a hand surgeon who compared my hand to a RA patient in their 50s he did say he doesn't think i have RA and decided to send me to an rheumatologist with blood work but it came back its all normal.. Could it be too much of an early stage that its misdiagnosed? Is a blood test not clear enough to show RA factor? Could a x ray miss early stage erosion? Know that i did not injure my hand and yes its both hands only my left one is progressing more bc of my what looks like a bone spur on right side of middle finger knuckle and the pull of my tendons.

[Hidden]

Hello Lilynette.

I am not a doctor, my advice to you is to get a 2nd. 3rd, 4th etc opinion. It took me over a year of visiting doctors about my swollen painful feet. I went from a size 8 shoe to a size 12, and still they couldn't figure it out. The 5th opinion from a doctor gave me a blood test and it was positive for RA.

So I am sero-positive because it is in my blood. Sero-negative people do not show it in their blood test.

You are so young to have to deal with this. Please do not allow the medical profession intimidate you because you are asking questions. Doctors are human and they make mistakes. I just don't want you to suffer in the future because of their mistakes. Keep searching for a doctor, and please inform them of seronegative RA.

Take care,

Sue

[jaclyn11305]

Please dont give up get another opinion. It does not always show in blood im one that it doesn't i was just diagnosed in may 16' mine came on really fast and hit just about every joint imaginable so it was easy to diagnose but not everyone is the same. The sonner you are on medicine the better for you so get to a better doctor that will help you. Good luck.

[JEM95 in reply to jaclyn11305]

I'm another seronegative, and had been tested for RA a couple of times in the past and told I didn't have it. My mother and two of her sisters have RA so there is a family history.

I had a new GP who is thankfully very well clued up (her mother has RA) and following a severe flare up about 3 years ago referred me as a priority, and I was diagnosed pretty quickly. Looking back I have suffered for many years at a low level, with occasional more severe flares without really realising it was probably RA.

Keep knocking on doors, don't be fobbed off. The sooner you receive treatment the better.

Good luck x

[sylvi]

You could still have ra,but a blood test doesn't prove that alone. There are other symptoms to ra and you could still have ra and i would reccomend a second opinion which i am sure others have already said on here. Hugs darling.xxxxx

[Lesley_ann]

Hi Lilynette,

Like the other replys you have had even though none of us are doctors we do have lot's of experience, some different but also similarities in most of us.

I became ill in February 2002, with painful right arm,and shoulder which was diagnosed as a pulled muscle. Within 3 weeks it had spread so quickly I was struggling to get dressed by myself. My gp sent me straight to hospital for tests and I was diagnosed with RA within days, but like a lot of others seronegative. So yes persevere with your gps, I would have thought nowdays most doctors were aware of negative blood results in people with RA. I dont know the percentage but I know its quite high to have a negative result.

Wishing you all the best.Linda x

[Mandalou]

Seronegative here too.

My bloods are negative for Rheumatoid Factor and Anti CCP ( Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide.

However because I show symptoms in multiple joints mirrored on both sides plus in my hands , wrists and fingers the Rheumatologists are able to diagnose me with Sero negative RA.

Some people get confused with other tests which show levels of inflammation for example ESR and CRP.

These tests are useful to show you have an inflammatory process occurring in your body but are not diagnostic in themselves.

Being Sero negative when diagnosed initially does not mean you won't become sero positive in time.

People who are diagnosed sero positive initially are sadly I'm afraid more likely ( though not certainly) to develop a more severe manifestation of Rheumatoid disease.

Are you in the UK Lilynette?

[Lilynette in reply to Mandalou]

United States

[Kariss]

Have you considered other diseases? Many inflammatory ones seem to mimic RA. I only mention this because my daughter flat-shared with a girl in her 20's who was being treated for RA. Her diagnosis was partly based on her mother having lupus. The daughter was on methotrexate for a year with no improvement. She was seronegative, endlessly tired, had aching legs and knees and was nauseated all the time with frequent vomiting. Finally she was told she hadn't got RA after all and was sent for other tests. It turned out she was gluten intolerant, went gluten free and within weeks was hugely improved.

When I was first diagnosed myself, I wasn't convinced it was correct, because I was going through the menopause at the same time and my hormones were all over the place - I thought they were causing the swelling, tiredness and aching limbs etc. My doctor was very good and sent me for all the different blood tests including celiac as there are lots of auto immune people in my family. I am also seronegative but time and persistence proved it was RA without a doubt and I started treatment, but it took 2 years to get it right.

Don't give up, ask for more opinions and/or tests to be done because the earlier you can get treatment the less damage to your joints for later life. Be persistent, even if it means changing doctors.

Wishing you good luck and hope you get sorted soon. X

[popsmith1874]

Hi I'm seronegative as well been on mtx,sulfazalasine and hydroxocloroquine since 2014 but no improvement so I'm starting on Benapoloie same as (Embrel) next week hope you get fixed out xxx

[Hidden]

And just to add to all these great replies, there's another form of inflammatory arthritis, Psoriatic Arthritis, and that doesn't have any specific blood tests markers and indeed inflammation doesn't always show up in bloods. Worth asking about regardless of whether you have skin psoriasis but if you do have any skin issues it's definitely one to consider, even if they seem minor. Nails can also be an indicator, I thought my big toenail was just a bit grotty or had a fungal infection but it clinched my Psoriatic Arthritis diagnosis.

[RAinK]

Hiya, I also have a RA diagnosis with blood tests negative for RA & inflammation. My consultant puts 'early stages of inflammatory arthritis' in his letters which leaves it more open, but verbally he says RA. The clincher for me was when I had tried Methotrexate & it did nothing for me, (apart from making me sick, etc), & the consultant said 'is there inflammation there for the Methotrexate to work on?'. He then gave me 2 weeks of the steroid Predisilone, (probably spelt wrong), & a prescription for Sulfasalazine, saying if the steroids make a big difference then the answer is yes & start the Sulfasalazine. Cor! After 10 days of steroids I was almost skipping & had managed to walk upstairs without hauling myself up the banisters. The answer was a clear yes! Now I am 22 months post-diagnosis & my RA is stable - i.e. it still comes & goes & moves round & round the joints, but the slow deterioration has been halted for now. I count myself blessed to have a consultant that does not go by blood tests alone, as my former GP surgery were adamant it could not be RA & only referred me when they had run out of other possibilities. [At the same time as my best mate's GP had happened to notice my hands in passing but, when later told of my diagnosis, said 'I didn't say anything at the time as I assumed you already knew']

[Seenie]

Hi Lilynette

Postle2 posted on this thread last year, and was wondering whether you have any skin issues, but I can't see an answer from you. How is your skin and your nails? Dandruff? Dry or itchy skin? Nail fungus or abnormalities? Scales anywhere? Psoriasis in your family?

Just wondering ...