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Questions posted in the
Neurology and Neurosurgery Forum have been answered by doctors from The Cleveland Clinic Foundation.
Question Title: Autoimmune hepatitis/LupusForum: Neurology Forum
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I just read something about autoimmune hepatitis and got very scared. I have occassional stabbing pain under my right rib area that developed 9 months ago. It comes and goes, along with a burning sensaion in the general area but sometimes stays for days. I also developed other symptoms 3 months ago... buzzing sensation in left hand in foot, burning/numbness in right calf, twitches, constant sore throat. ome symptoms linger, some come and go and some have disappeared completely. I'm wondering, could this be lupus (as my brain MRI was fine) and is there a connection between lupus and autoimmune hepatitis, and how serious is autoimmune hepatitis? = Many of the symptoms you describe are nonspecific, that is, not particular to any disease process. Your doctor can engage in a systematic check for disorders such as hepatitis (easy to demonstrate with certain lab tests) and lupus (sometimes not so easy). Neurologists try to decide first WHERE symptoms are coming from (brain, spinal cord, nerves, etc) before attempting to diagnose WHAT the process is that leads to the symptoms. This discipline keeps an experienced neurologist from missing things he/she shouldn't, and from looking for too many diseases that aren't there. Of course, with diseases such as lupus and autoimmune hepatitis, a neurologist is usually only peripherally if at all involved. The appropriate specialist is a rheumatologist. I guess the take home message is: if you have symptoms that are frightening or bothersome to you, then it is important to see a doctor. If such symptoms are meaningful, that will be discovered. If all is well, you will rest a lot easier. I hope this helps. CCF MD mdf.
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