Diagnosis of lupus?
Please do not give me information that you got from google. I know what lupus is. I know what the symptoms are. I am going to the doctor soon. I'd prefer that you answer only if you have lupus or you are a health care professional.
How is lupus accurately diagnosed? Should I see a rheumatologist to ensure an accurate diagnosis? Does it sound like I may have lupus?
I'm a white 17 yo female. I've been having moderate to severe knee pain and sporadic episodes of breathing problems, pleuritic chest pain, and random joint pain esp. in the hands, wrist and hips for many years.
7 years ago I was diagnosed with lupus with a blood test (not sure what type). Saw a different doc who gave me another blood test (think it was a CBC) and she told me I did not have lupus. Around the same time I was diagnosed with recreational asthma.
I was diagnosed with osgood-schlatters about a year ago. I think this definitely played a role in my knee pain, but I think something else is causing it too. Children usually only have pain from osgoods for a couple of months and I've had pain for well over 7 years. Also, osgood's pain very, VERY rarely continues after the growth plates of the bone are close, but I recently had X-rays done on my knees after a car accident and they showed that my growth plates are already closed, yet I'm still experiencing frequent bouts of pain.
Public Comments
1. Sorry to hear about you pain, I know a little about Lupus, I have a different Auto-Immune disease. However I met a great lady on here, her user name is Mleigh23, and she has Lupus and knows a ton about it. She also started a website about it, WWW.LupusSurvivalGuide.COM, and is really a great resource. You might want to send her an email, I included a link to her profile on here, she should be getting married any day now so her response might be delayed but I am sure she will be glad to help you out.Good Luck!
2. Well diagnosing lupus can be tough. Most of the time the diagnosis is based on physical and historical findings (your symptoms, lab values, etc.)
A CBC can determine whether anemia, a low white count, or a low platelet count, which are common with lupus, are present. There are 11 diagnostic criteria which are used to determine whether somebody is likely to have lupus. If you have at least 4 of the 11, there is a strong chance that you have lupus:
1)A face rash that is butterfly shaped and covers the bridge of the nose and spreads across the cheeks
2)A scaly rash that looks like raised, scaly patches
3)A sun-related rash that appears after exposure to sunlight
4)Mouth sores, which are usually painless
5)Joint pain and swelling that occurs in two or more joints
6)Swelling of the linings around the lungs or the heart
7)Kidney disease
8)A neurological disorder, such as seizures or psychosis
9)Low blood counts, such as low red blood count, low platelet count, or a low white cell count
10)Positive anti-nuclear antibody tests, which indicate that you may have an autoimmune disease
11)Other positive blood tests that may indicate an autoimmune disease
There are a number of blood tests that can be done to determine wheter you have lupus, but none of them are 100% sensitive. The most sensitive is called the Anti-Nuclear Antibody test (ANA). A positive result generally suggets lupus, especially if your symptoms are highly suggestive of lupus.
There are some other common antibody tests that can be used:
Anti-dsDNA
Anti-Sm
Anti-ribosomal P
Anti-RNP
Other blood tests that may be useful are tests that look for general inflammation in the body, like your Sedimentation Rate and/or CRP, both of which may be elevated.
Your C3 and C4 levels may be checked, too. They're usually decreased in patients with lupus.
Based on your symptoms and lab results your doctors may also want to do some imaging tests.
