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Inflammatory Arthritis after gallbladder removal

In the last six months I have had joint pain in my hands, feet, ankles, knees, lower back, so bad that some days I can barely walk, or even grasp anything with my hands. I was referred to a rheumatologist who ran all the tests - RA, lupus, etc, which all came back negative. I was put on prednisone for a week and noticed dramatic improvement. Therefore my rheumatologist says it is definitely an inflammatory arthritis. I am now on Lodine, and Sulfasalazine. They seem to be helping somewhat. I haven't been on the sulfasalazine long enough to receive the full effects. I am so discouraged that I do not know what is causing this. All we know is it is inflammatory. I am only 23 yrs old and am very discouraged to have this kind of joint pain at such a young age. I also had my gallbladder removed earlier this year and am also wondering if the two could be tied together? Any input is appreciated.
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Avatar universal
I know this is an old post, but how much doxy are you taking, and did you have any knee pain? I had my gallbladder out and developed pain in my muscles and joints right after that. I also gained a lot of weight (30lbs) as well. My d has neuro Lyme and co-infections, and I thought possibly I had it as well. I have Sjögren's syndrome, and sometimes I just get the 41 band. I had the 58 band recently. I've been getting hyaluronic acid shots in the knee, bec I had a terrible fall in April. ll the pain got much worse. They found severe osteoarthritis, a sprained neck, fractured nose,  and I had a torn meniscus in my knee among other injuries. My lower back and muscles are all inflamed. It's so hard to cope. I have doxy 50mg, as I can't tolerate 100mg at once. I'm thinking of giving it a try. Are you still taking the doxy? Thanks and I hope you're doing well.
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Avatar universal
I have had arthritis for 10+ years, but thought it was osteoarthritis, even though I am only 40. I had my gallbladder removed in May. I am now experiencing pain in my fingers and toes, along with the pain I already had in both hips and back. Now I am wondering if this could be RA? I also have SVT and TMJ.
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Avatar universal
in January 2012 i was told my gallbladder had to come out
march it was scheduled.
may i was diagnosed with RA
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1353650 tn?1429463374
Hi, I had my gall bladder removed two years ago do to inflammation. Six months after I developed terrible pain in my body but not in my joints. My rheumatologist said my R-factor was 66 and it was likely I would develop rheumatoid arthritis and wanted me to start taking anti-depressants, immune suppressants and pain meds. I turned down his diagnosis and decided to go the more natural route. I changed my diet and started taking certain supplements. I went to an endocrinologist and all she found was that I had reactive hypoglycemia and possible hypothyroid. She thought I was developing hypothyroidism because I had inflammation of the thyroid. I also have inflammation of my eyes causing severe dry eyes. I also have irritable bladder and chronic constipation that is also possibly caused by inflammation. I then went to a lyme specialist. He went over my symptoms and tested me for lyme disease. The test came back negative. He wanted to start me on doxycycline to see if this helped my condition. Prior to seeing the lyme specialist I started having more pain in my hands and feet. I also have terrible muscle pain I think because of inflammation in the body. The doxycycline has helped take away the terrible pain in my hands and feet. It has also helped with my reactive hypoglycemia. The reason I am telling you this is because you need to think of possibly being treated with doxycycline for your condition. It has helped me greatly. I may or may not have lyme it really doesn't matter. The treatment is helping. I recently had a bad flare of inflammation do to a herx heimer reaction. You should look up antibiotic treatment for rheumatoid issues. My husband is currently under treatment for lyme disease and I am waiting for a positive result to also get the same kind of treatment. For now I am sticking with the doxy because it is preventing my condition from becoming worse. You should look into this before it is to late. Lyme specialist will prescribe antibiotics for symptoms of lyme disease and that is why I went to one. One thing doxycycline does is protect your joints from inflammation. Doctors that think outside the box believe the RA is caused by microscopic bacteria and doxycycline should be taking for a long duration to cure it. Hope this helps.
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1193998 tn?1265117597
Hi there,

I've had RA (rheumatoid arthritis, another name for your inflammatory arthritis) since age 5 and I've seen infants as young as 6 months old with it. You are not alone!

I don't know if your gall bladder removal had anything to so with the onset of your symptoms. Sometimes the stress of surgery or an injury or a major illness can trigger our immune systems into overdrive, and for some reason (no one knows why) it mistakes our joint tissue for the "enemy". The result is pain, swelling and eventually, cartilage and bone damage. My RA started after a common childhood illness triggered my immune system. RA runs in my family, so my mother knew what was happening. However others have no history of RA in their families (however if you ask questions, you might find related diseases).

RA can affect other parts of your body too, so make sure you're seeing an eye specialist regularly to check for silent eye inflammation.

You're also not unusual in that you have what's known as "sero-negative" RA. Many, MANY patients never test positive for Rh factor. A good rheumie will look at a broad range of evidence, not just blood work. It sounds like you have a good one!

There are a wide range of medications available now that not only treat the symptoms, but greatly slow down the progression of the disease. Prednisone should only be used as a stop-gap until the disease-modifying drugs kick in. Short-term, you're probably already experiencing side effects like "moon face", weight gain, insomnia, etc. Long-term, chronic use of prednisone leads to all sorts of more serious problems - bone death, osteoporosis, diabetes to name a few. I try to stay away from it as long as I'm even minimally functional, as I've already experienced bone death and low bone density.

It may take some time to find the right combination of medications for you, which may involve a frustrating amount of trial and error. Everyone is different, so what works for one patient doesn't necessarily work for another. Therefore it's very important not to compare yourself with other patients who seem to be doing better or worse.

For what it's worth, I've done all the "normal" stuff in my life - college, marriage, kids, job. It isn't always easy, but it can be done. It may seem like your life is over, but it doesn't have to be. It may be different from what you envisioned, but with the right meds on board you're going to do fine. [[hug]]

There are a large number of message boards for "creakies" like us out there. I urge you to explore and find one where you feel at home!
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