juvenile rheumatoid arthritis

[tracievh]

Sorry for the long post and sketchy details but my story stems back almost 20 years and its hard for me to remember the exact details.

I was diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis when I was 18 years old; when I was struck with almost debilitating pain in my joints of the knees, wrists, and ankles. I remember I could not even turn the steering wheel of a car. I also remember as child, around the ages of 8-10, I had terrible pain, especially in the mornings, in my ankles. My parents thought I was making it up. I just dealt with it but I recall it was very painful and I had trouble walking until after an hour or so.

Back to 18 years old. After seeing a arthritis DR. locally and then a specialist in JRA ( who was going to start giving me gold shots??), they both agreed it was JRA. I know that I had lots of blood work done and certain tests showed very elevated levels, which pointed to RA. Sorry for not knowing exactly what those tests were.

I was placed on Plaquinel (SP?) About two weeks later, my local DR. said I tested positive for Lymes disease. It was all the rage back then, the big lymes disease scare…So I had to take penicillin intravenously for about a week or so.

The pain became less and less prior to being told I had lymes disease. Then about a month or so after the penicillin treatment, I had little to no pain. Just joint discomfort and pain in my ankles in the mornings.

I am now 38 years old. Over the years I have had general symptoms of arthritis, but nothing like the time when I was 18. Recently, I have begun to have pain in my ankles again in the mornings, terrible joint stiffness, and a bone density scan showed osteopenia.  

I have often wondered if the DR. got it right; lymes or JRA? And would either of those diseases leave me with arthritis in my later years?

[tracievh]

I should mention that no 'bulls eye mark was ever found on me.

[Dr Vinod]

Most but not all patients with Lyme disease will develop the characteristic bulls-eye rash.
The EM rash, which does not occur in all cases, is considered sufficient to establish a diagnosis of Lyme disease even when serologic blood tests are negative.

[Dr Vinod]

Lyme disease is diagnosed clinically based on symptoms, objective physical findings (such as erythema migrans, facial palsy, or arthritis), a history of possible exposure to infected ticks, as well as serological blood tests.
Most but not all patients with Lyme disease will develop the characteristic bulls-eye rash.
The EM rash, which does not occur in all cases, is considered sufficient to establish a diagnosis of Lyme disease even when serologic blood tests are negative.

After several months, untreated or inadequately treated patients may go on to develop severe and chronic symptoms that affect many parts of the body, including the brain, nerves, eyes, joints and heart.
Lyme arthritis usually affects the knees. In a minority of patients arthritis can occur in other joints, including the ankles, elbows, wrist, hips, and shoulders. Pain is often mild or moderate, usually with swelling at the involved joint.

So you have to recollect the diagnosis how it was done 20 years ago and do you have any other symptoms other than arthritis presently?
As you responded to Pencillin you can conclude that it was Lyme's disease.
Present complication has to be diagnosed between  long term effects of Lyme or RA.

Go for Rheumatoid Factor, RF test, and see an Orthopaedician for clinically testing other major signs of RA. If you do not have RA signs and you also have some other associated organs involved along with your joints/arthritis you can conclude it to be long term complication of Lyme's.

JRA would never respond to antibiotics.

Take care and come back to us on further queries!