help please

[Lena85]

In feb last year I felt like I had had the flu for a month. one night I had a chocolate ice-cream and as I was eating it all I could taste was metal, 5 seconds later I started vomiting nonstop. I got severe pain on my left side and felt like it was the worst pain of my entire life. I was rushed to hospital. They did blood tests and found a white cell count of 21. My kidney function was below 60.

* for a month after discharge my symptoms got worse, antibiotics did not help. I got high fevers, my blood pressure was measured at the doc to be 160 on top. My heart palpitations were extreme and I would wake up drenched in sweat with severe nausea, shaking badly and wanting to vomit.  

I  went back on the gluten in April as the only food I could tolerate was bread and fruit ice blocks. my fevers went away after a course of flagyl (5th antibiotic they tried).

* I saw a gastro who gave me an endoscopy and colonoscopy and found only blastocystis a parasite that doesn't usually cause such severe problems. I was treated with 5 weeks worth of antibiotics and the parasite tests came back negative.

* since this incident I have been extremely sick, here is a summary of my symptoms

*  severe consistent nausea - especially with bowel movements
* heart palpitations
* stabbing pain on left side and sore rib cage
* chest/neck pain
*constant sore throat
*dizziness
* constant urge to poo
* fatigue
* mood swings
* entire body aches  
* always feeling hot
* fevers between 37.5 and 38 that come and go for 2 or 4 days and then go away/chills
* sore lymph glands, thighs and breasts  
* sensation of chest on fire with nausea
* headaches  
* 18 kilo weight loss
* stomach cramps

Thank you,
Lena

[Lena85]

Hi David, You are right,  I started to feel anxiety as a result of being ill for so long and so my doctor put me on lexapro. This has pretty much eliminated all my anxiety and is a remarkable drug I must say.

I hoped that my illness was JUST anxiety and that the lexapro would make the nausea go away, but nothing has changed.

Which auto-immune diseases do you suggest I should test for?

Do you know of any uncommon illnesses that my doctor may not have thought of?

You're idea of attending a major medical center is great, Thank you for the suggestion!

Thank you for your help!

[David Tinkelman, M.D.]

I can imagine that, with being sick for a year with symptoms related to almost every part of your body, you must be miserable, not to mention the anxiety that comes with wondering what is going on.  Given your symptoms and the objective findings of an abnormal white blood count, major weight loss and reduced kidney function, there appears to be no question that you are suffering from some type of multi-system disease, perhaps one that falls into the category of auto-immune diseases.

I surmise that your doctors have done their best to determine the cause of your illness, without success.  That is not surprising to me as what you describe is strongly suggestive of a relatively uncommon disease of a type that often defies attempts at diagnosis.

Your disease appears to be quite serious, perhaps even life-threatening.  I strongly suggest that you and your doctors arrange for a second opinion at a major medical center such as the Mayo Clinic, the Cleveland Clinic or at any of a number of major academic medical centers such as the University of Pennsylvania, the Harvard Medical Center, any of the University Medical Centers in New York City, the University of Texas or any of the University of California medical centers, preferably in Los Angeles or San Francisco and that your initial evaluation be with a specialist in the Department of Rheumatology.

I urge you to proceed in an urgent fashion to find a medical institution capable of establishing a diagnosis and recommending effective therapy.

Good luck