Arthritis? Lupus? Poor Circulation?

H

Heidi 4

New member
Hi all,

I have Chronic Venous Insufficiency in my legs. I wear 30-40mmHg compression hose. Within the last few months, my right hand started swelling to where I could not close my fingers. The knuckles feel like they have bands on them. My low back was really bothering me too. So I went to the doctor, they ran xrays of my hand and back and blood work. Hand didn't show anything. Back showed some arthritic changes and narrowing. When I sit down for any time, and go to get back up, I can hardly walk. I have pain in the bottom of my feet, especially on the pads just below my toes. My legs especially in the crease of the knee is so stiff I just hobble. Then after I walk a few steps, it works out. I am on Voltaren(an NSAID) 2x per day. Today, I didn't wear my hose and my legs are killing me. I am not scheduled to go to the Rheumatologist until Sept. 18. I get so tired by the end of the day, I can't get anything done in the evening. When they did blood work, the Rheumatoid Factor and Sed rate were fine. The ANA was positive but not sure if it was significant for Lupus. Anyone have any similar symptoms?
I was just thinking today, I hope it is not the circulation getting worse to the point that I might have to have amputation in the future. My dad had that and they took off 1 leg above the knee. He is gone now, but I know it is in the family.
Thanks,
 
Those "rocks" are swollen toe joints (at the base of the toes, your toe "knuckles"). If you stop Voltaran make sure you replace it with some sort of anti-inflammatory. You don't want to make the inflammation worse.

A foot bath/foot massager is great for that end-of-the-day sore foot pain.

Good luck with your appt! :wave:
 
The pain isn't on my toes-I don't think. It feels like it's on the bottom pad of my foot just below my toes. Could it be my toes?
 
Is the swelling in your hand from edema or arthritis?

Does it sometimes feel like you're walking on marbles? Feet are often effected early in rheumatoid arthritis. Having a normal SED and no RF doesn't mean you don't have RA.

Only about 13% of people with a positive ANA test actually have Lupus. With a high titer positive ANA it could be lots of things - or nothing. There's RA, drug-induced lupus, Sjogren
 
The swelling in my hands, I think is from arthritis. The knuckles feel like they have bands on them. The titer on the ANA I think was 1:30 That's all I know of that. The doctor told me today that the Voltaren I am on can be causing my legs to swell. He said lay off of it a week and see if that makes a difference. Thing is- don't know if my hands will get worse. My appt with Rheumatology is Sept 18th. It can't come too soon.
Thanks!
 
Yes, pain from swollen toe joints, specifically the "knuckle" of the toe, is felt on the bottom of the foot.

Just like on your hands your knuckles are at the bottom of your fingers.
 
ANA titer of 1:30 is usually considered normal.

Hopefully your knuckles will end up being plain old fashioned osteoarthritis and nothing more serious.

Although OA can hurt like heck too!;)



I had liver troubles on Voltaran and had to stop it. Too bad, it worked well. My rheumy told me lots of people have side effects with Voltaran.

Sept is a long time to wait. Call the office and make sure the scheduling people know you want the first available appointment. Just in case someone cancels.
 
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