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Autoimmune condition triggered by West Nile???
I am a 34 year old Mom of 3. I have been experiencing strange unexplained symptoms since the birth of my 2nd child in May of 2008. I was just recently diagnosed in March 2010 with WNV, but was acute in 2003. The Dr's just missed my diagnosis while I was hospitalized in August of 2003. I had a high fever, vomiting, rash, headaches, etc etc. I was released after 5 nights and was able to get back to almost normal fairly quickly. I had some twitches, but other than that and the anxiety over the new twitching I was fine. My Neuro did discover I had several/multiple tiny white spots scattered throughout my brain when he did an MRI/MRA/MRV of my brain back then. He always hypothesized that the "viral illness" had attached my brain and caused these neurological deficits. Well, long story short... I was fine until the birth of my 2nd child in May 2008 when I then subsequently developed dizziness/slight imbalance/tipsy feeling that is constant, fuzzy vision and an area of numbness below my skin in an area of my right calf. Then after having my 3rd child in January (a surprise) I have experienced numbness & cold/sticky sensations on my face, severe dry throat, raw/numb tongue, trouble swallowing, involuntary swallowing at night, the feeling that my teeth in the front of my mouth are loose, flank pain & ulcer on roof of mouth. All of these new symptoms have gradually come on since January. The latest symptoms being weakness/numbness in my upper arms and the sensation of food being caught in my lower front teeth. Yes, very very strange! :) These new symptoms are why my Neuro ordered a spinal tap back in March and discovered the WNV. It is his opinion b/c I only have IGG antibodies and not IGM that the virus could no longer be affecting me. Well, this is the only lab test that has ever come back abnormal and trust me, I have been tested for everything... I believe it has something to do with a Persistent Viral Syndrome or an Autoimmune condition that was triggered by WNV.
I have seen a Rheumy and she ran these labs... Complement C3 & C4, Anti Smith, Anti RNP, Anticardiolipin antibodies, ANA, Double Stranded DNA ABS, Sjogrens AB SS-A & SS-B, Lupus Anticoagulant 31 seconds. The only positive test was the ANA and my ANA Positive Profile was 1:80 Speckled. She felt I didn't currently have an Autoimmune condition based on these lab results. She couldn't explain my symptoms.
Has anyone ever experienced similar symptoms? I am concerned about Connective Tissue Disease or Polymyositis or a combo of some of the "diagnosed" autoimmune conditions. My Neuro doesn't believe I have MS b/c my MRI has been stable since 2003 and my MS panel was negative (O bands, etc etc). He has been monitoring me for over 7 years and doesn't believe I have a progressive demyelinating disease, but he can't explain my new symptoms that pop up after the births of my children.
Any thoughts or recommendations would be greatly appreciated! I am going down the Alternative Med route in addition to the long list of Specialists I see. I will try anything to be the Mom and wife my family deserve.
Lara
Dallas, TX
I have seen a Rheumy and she ran these labs... Complement C3 & C4, Anti Smith, Anti RNP, Anticardiolipin antibodies, ANA, Double Stranded DNA ABS, Sjogrens AB SS-A & SS-B, Lupus Anticoagulant 31 seconds. The only positive test was the ANA and my ANA Positive Profile was 1:80 Speckled. She felt I didn't currently have an Autoimmune condition based on these lab results. She couldn't explain my symptoms.
Has anyone ever experienced similar symptoms? I am concerned about Connective Tissue Disease or Polymyositis or a combo of some of the "diagnosed" autoimmune conditions. My Neuro doesn't believe I have MS b/c my MRI has been stable since 2003 and my MS panel was negative (O bands, etc etc). He has been monitoring me for over 7 years and doesn't believe I have a progressive demyelinating disease, but he can't explain my new symptoms that pop up after the births of my children.
Any thoughts or recommendations would be greatly appreciated! I am going down the Alternative Med route in addition to the long list of Specialists I see. I will try anything to be the Mom and wife my family deserve.
Lara
Dallas, TX
My docs think I had West Nile as well, back in 2009, and I have strange symptoms as well. More than one doctor has suggested I consider a tick-borne illness but so far everything has come back negative, including WNV, though I didn't get a spinal tap. The issue is complicated by the fact that I am severely allergic to latex and have developed a latex-food allergy, which led to two bouts of severe autoimmunity. Here is my story: https://itchylittleworld.com/allergic-reaction-to-latex-womans-story/
I have two thoughts: 1. try going totally organic for a month. It'll be expensive! Then go back to regular foods bought at a regular store and see if your symptoms come back. I am totally organic now and when I eat foods that are non-latexy but that are GMO, my symptoms come back with a vengeance. I can only assume I am reacting to glyphosate (Round Up), because GMO foods are bathed in glyphosate, some of which gets absorbed into the food.
2. Read The Plant Paradox. It is as if Dr. Gundry wrote that book about us, calling us the "canaries" because we are so sensitive, we serve as canaries in the mineshaft, warning others that some thing is wrong. He is a shameless self-promoter, I will admit, but his ideas are sound, I think. He has really, really helped me.
Good luck!
I have two thoughts: 1. try going totally organic for a month. It'll be expensive! Then go back to regular foods bought at a regular store and see if your symptoms come back. I am totally organic now and when I eat foods that are non-latexy but that are GMO, my symptoms come back with a vengeance. I can only assume I am reacting to glyphosate (Round Up), because GMO foods are bathed in glyphosate, some of which gets absorbed into the food.
2. Read The Plant Paradox. It is as if Dr. Gundry wrote that book about us, calling us the "canaries" because we are so sensitive, we serve as canaries in the mineshaft, warning others that some thing is wrong. He is a shameless self-promoter, I will admit, but his ideas are sound, I think. He has really, really helped me.
Good luck!
Maybe a tick borne illness.
Lymes:
fever, headache, chills, severe muscle pain, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, rash, cough, lymphadenopathy (?), arthralgia (?), stiff neck, erythema migrains (?), leukopenia (low WBC), thrombocytopenia (low platelet ?),elevated AST, elevated ALT & anemia
Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever is another possiblity:
all of the above except no stiff neck, no erythema migrains, and no leukopenia.
Fibromyalgia:
muscle pain, morning stiffness, insomnia, musculoskeletal pain, joint pain w/o swelling, fatigue, tingling, pricking or numbness, skin tenderness, light headedness (dizziness), fluid retention, stress or anxiety, poor memory, vocabulary problems, tender points, irritable bowel, chronic headaches, jaw pain, painful menstration, restless leg syndrome
Lymes:
fever, headache, chills, severe muscle pain, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, rash, cough, lymphadenopathy (?), arthralgia (?), stiff neck, erythema migrains (?), leukopenia (low WBC), thrombocytopenia (low platelet ?),elevated AST, elevated ALT & anemia
Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever is another possiblity:
all of the above except no stiff neck, no erythema migrains, and no leukopenia.
Fibromyalgia:
muscle pain, morning stiffness, insomnia, musculoskeletal pain, joint pain w/o swelling, fatigue, tingling, pricking or numbness, skin tenderness, light headedness (dizziness), fluid retention, stress or anxiety, poor memory, vocabulary problems, tender points, irritable bowel, chronic headaches, jaw pain, painful menstration, restless leg syndrome
I messaged with the poster of the CFS post and she said my case doesn't sound like CFS b/c I don't have significant fatigue. Any other ideas... Anyone?
Look at the post marked CFS. I would suggest you message the person who responded to that post. PlatletGal is no longer w/ medhelp.
symptoms of CFS:
fatigue, headache, short-term memory loss, muscle pain, difficulty concentrating, joint pain, depression, abdominal pain, lymph node pain, sore throat, lack of restful sleep, muscle weakness, bitter or metallic taste, balance disturbance, diarrhea, constipation, bloating, panic attacks, eye pain, scratchiness in eyes, blurring of vision, double vision, sensitivity to bright lights, numbness or tingling in extremities, fainting spells, light headedness, dizziness, clumsiness, insomnia, fever or sensation of fever, chills, night sweats, weight gain, allergies, chemical sensitivities, palpitations, shortness of breath, flushing rash of the face and cheeks, swelling of the extremities or eyelids, burning on urination & hair loss.
reported to follow a # of infections like Epstein Barr, Mono, hep C, lyme, etc.
Some believe it is related to autoimmune.
symptoms of CFS:
fatigue, headache, short-term memory loss, muscle pain, difficulty concentrating, joint pain, depression, abdominal pain, lymph node pain, sore throat, lack of restful sleep, muscle weakness, bitter or metallic taste, balance disturbance, diarrhea, constipation, bloating, panic attacks, eye pain, scratchiness in eyes, blurring of vision, double vision, sensitivity to bright lights, numbness or tingling in extremities, fainting spells, light headedness, dizziness, clumsiness, insomnia, fever or sensation of fever, chills, night sweats, weight gain, allergies, chemical sensitivities, palpitations, shortness of breath, flushing rash of the face and cheeks, swelling of the extremities or eyelids, burning on urination & hair loss.
reported to follow a # of infections like Epstein Barr, Mono, hep C, lyme, etc.
Some believe it is related to autoimmune.
Does CFS cause weird teeth sensations, dizziness that is consistently with me, numb spots, etc etc? What labs are run to diagnose CFS?
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