Reactive Arthritis

Hello,

I am new to this forum,I think it was one of many I came upon trying to diagnose myself last year.

I am 51 years old and female so I do not meet the typical "common" patients that get reactive arthritis I've researched.

I had C-Diff and, what I felt like I was deathly sick, before being diagnosed with it from a colonoscopy after being sick for a month.A stool specimen incomplete in error for C Diff after 10 day wait by the lab and another negative.A trip to the hospital for dehydration,not eating solids for a month and I mean nothing staying in.By the time I had the colonoscopy pretty sick.Numerous lesions all over the colon.The next day woke up with what I thought pink eye and my left knee painful and swollen.I have RA so didn't think too much about it.A few days later right eye pink and knee was unbearable swollen larger than normally and right ankle pain with some swelling.By the following week both the size of an elephant and could not bare to move off the bed.I had a fever as well ,went to primary Dr.wanted to do flu test for joint pain and fever .🙄I refused it and more less told her to aspirate it for culture.

In meantime the pain was unbearable,felt like my circulation was being cut off.Went to orthopedic surgeon that thought it was sepsis since the nucleated cells were so elevated he sent me to a infectious disease Dr.that was a no go with diagnosis.Follow up to gastroenterologist and he didn't have a clue except told me I had elephantitus and laughed,referred me to a RA Dr.who couldn't see me for over a month,his assistant didn't have an answer when I called back to see if he could make a call to get in earlier .I continued to research on my own and called a list of Dr.s that could not see a new pt.for over a month.When I finally found the right RA Dr.she knew immediately what it was.She aspirated it and it was bleeding into the joint.I then had a list of multiple symptoms from inflammation to right ankle,left knee,Achilles heel,membrane of the eyes,lower back.She put me on oral steroids and injections in a course of 7 months along with Sulfasalazine.Broke out in a rash with sulfa,and cannot take anymore steroids to now I have osteopenia(very thin bones)due to steroids.

I am now on Methatrexate,I thought this was doing the trick but now the inflammation has shifted to the left ankle and the left heel pain is now a problem.I apologize for such a long post but this has been on going for a year and a month now .I would appreciate any advice or feed back.

Thank you,

Angela

0 Reply

Hello angela this is the first time l have heard of this manner of being infected with RA , l have lived with my R A ( rieters ) while being in the us marines and have lived with it for 50 years it has been in a sleep for the most part for 35 years with just a small fare up having reached 70 years old it came back with great pain in the S1 L5 area of my spine attacking for some 6 months now the report from this is not great with having had a recend MRI l do have some pain in my sholder and hand put the back sitiuation is the worse when the RA came back was tired for  2-months didn't want to get out of bed no energy at all have been taking 50 MG of minicin seems to help but have a concern with taking this as it is hard on the human liver as I am retired its gives me a break living with the health problem l sincerely wish well in experencing relive, Roy

How many DMARDS have you tried, are you taking associated  BIOLOGICS

BOB