Is it only Sjogren's

[BRENDA55]

I was recently diagnosed with  Sjogren's Syndrome and Fibromyalgia.  I have white matter brain lesions and positive lip biopsy.  Most of my labs come back as normal.  No oligalclonal bands, normal eeg, and nerve conduction tests.  My symptoms are muscle spasms, knife pain in legs, pins and needle sensation in hands and feet, severe fatigue, dry mouth and eyes,rashes, kidney pain ( feels like passing a stone), GERD, cold clammy sweats, dizziness, uncontrollable sweating at times.  

A friend has MS and says that many of my symptoms sound like hers.  Could I have MS as well?  I in miserable pain 90% of time and need some ideas for dealing with it.

[jason80]

Thanks for your reply. Do they perform the lip biopsy because your bloodwork was inconclusive? I've done all of the usual bloodwork, ANA, Sed rate, etc., and all of it is low/normal. I'm wondering how much the doctors rely on bloodwork vs. clinical diagnosis vs. other.

[BRENDA55]

I was diagnosed with SWjogren's primarily with a positive lip biopsy.  A salivary gland was removed from inside my lip.  white blood cells (neutrophils) were found in very high numbers.  The biopsy report called it a focus 2.  This is diagnostic for Sjogren's.  My immune system is attacking my salivary glands and other moisture producing glands.  Hope this helps with your diagnosis.

[cudagirl]

I too was recently diagnosed with Sjogren's and mine is a piggy back to Lupus.  There are 2 types primary and secondary....secondary being a piggy back.  If yours is not a primary disease, then it could be coming in on something else like Lupus or MS.  I would push for further testing, and ask your DR for your test results.  Most people with this disease have a lot of pain.  I am sorry you are experiencing that part of it.  I have to take 2 different type of pain medication to control it. I suffer with extreme pain and fatigue.  It really stinks sometimes.  Be careful with natural meds...they are great, fantastic, but some of them can increase your immune system, and that is not what you need.  Are you on steriods right now?
Pam

[jason80]

Sorry to hear your symptoms, they are in common with several other illnesses. It seems that many root causes can give rise to similar symptoms.

If I had a firm dx, then I would probably not look too much for other possibilities. I think the larger issue is whether or not one believes their dx, given the inherent uncertainty.  I would be curious to hear how you were given this dx, since this one has come up on my list of possibilities too.

Thanks,
Jason