Why is it so hard for doctors to distinguish if it's Rheumatoid Arthritis or PMR?
Posted , 9 users are following.
I have to wonder why it's so hard for doctors to tell which it is one has, RA or PMR, or can one have both at the same time? I was told I have PMR, but then it was suggested maybe it's now showing up more as RA. It's quite baffling and leaves one wondering what medication one should really be taking! If you have any clarification you can add here it would be helpful, not only for me but I suspect for many of us.
3 likes, 7 replies
constance.de leonard12916
Posted
tina-uk_cwall leonard12916
Posted
but to answer your confusion, yes one can have both conditions at the same time, and can be receiving different medication for each complaint. However, for you, you need to know ASAP so that the correct treatment plan can be started.
hopefully one of the experts will be along soon, to hopefully put us all right! Regards christina
erika59785 leonard12916
Posted
Last year in September I noticed different aches and pains which did not seem like RA flares. My shoulders hurt and my back would hurt when I would sit down and get up for any length of time. When I could not lift my arms over my head, I went to my GP and he said that I have PMR. He put me on a higher amount of Prednisone 15 mg which helped my condition.
However, my rheumy doubted the diagnosis by my GP. He still says I have RA and he says that 15 mg of Prednisone takes care of both ---- the "questionable PMR" and RA.
How come I have RA and absolutely NO joint damage???
I know for sure that I have PMR ---- I feel the PAIN!!
Thought to share my story.
mr_rush leonard12916
Posted
In rheumatology diagnoses are often not black and white. It is easy to say a bone is broken - binary answer - yes / no. In rheumatology we see a lot of shades of grey... diseases that start as one and become something else and diseases that sit between labels.
PMR like onset of RA is very well known particularly in the older population.
Furthermore, regards to the crippling comment - it's not something that is seen commonly these days. There is also increasing evidence that very early & aggressive treatment for RA can basically 'cure' the disease.
Dinah54 leonard12916
Posted
To be fair to the doctors they were never completely convinced I had PMR as I didn't have classic symptoms. Though of course it is possible that I did have PMR initially which then induced inflammatory arthritis.
Of course I would rather have PMR as there is always hope that it will eventually go away - but even if it were rheumatoid arthritis that is definitely not any longer the automatically crippling disease it was once, thanks to the drugs that are now available.
misdiagnose leonard12916
Posted
EileenH leonard12916
Posted
In the RA that happens in younger patients there can be evidence of damage to the joints - this is less common in LORA. You can have patients with RA who have what are called sero-negative or sero-positive blood tests - no straight answer. People with PMR can be either too. There is no 100% identifying blood test or symptoms - so confusion reigns. The "RA negative" means there is no rheumatoid factor to be found in the blood - but that does NOT mean you can't have RA, you can have sero-negative RA.
The "crippling" aspect is seen less these days because patients are treated with DMARDs, disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs which prevent the joint damage - but patients who are not given them still develop joint damage.
And you can have both RA and PMR it would appear.