Positive ana and elevated c reactive protein

Hi Doctor. I am hoping you can maybe help me understand a few things. I am a 23 year old female and I went to my GP 5 weeks ago with joint and muscle pain and weakness and fatigue. She decided to test all the usual and also did other tests as my mother had suffered from SLE.Ireceived some test results back and all my organ function tests and thyroid tests were fine, however she said I had a high level of autoimmune antibodies in my blood and an elevated c-reative protein. I did not understand much and she further explained that my ANA test was positive and they were awaiting the breakdown for this test. I am still waiting for this.  Im still very confused. She also said she would refer me to a rheumatologist. I was hoping that you could explain what all this means and what it could suggest
I am experiencing very bad joint pain in my sholders, wrists and hands. I also have a loss of power in my hands every few days, and my finger tips have been going numb and turning white when cold which can be quite painful. I don't know what to do any more as I don't want to bother my doctor again until we get the further results back but Im worried sick! Please help

[Garth L Nicolson, PhD]

The presence of autoimmune antibodies, anti-nuclear antibodies and elevated CRP indicate a possible autoimmune disease.  Unfortunately, the most often used treatments suppress the immune system rather than look for a possible cause.  When joint pain and loss of mobility and reduced muscle strength are also present, we always suggest that chronic infections could be involved, because certain chronic infections, such as Mycoplasma, Chlamydia, Borrelia, etc., can cause all of the problems that you list and many more.  These infections invade the joints, muscle, vascular system and nerves and cause disruptions in cell function, including the release of cellular antigens that can stimulate the immune system to produce autoantibodies against normal cell structures, the hallmark of autoimmune diseases.  In cases like yours, treatment of chronic infections, if they are involved, almost always yields relief of signs/symptoms, but antimicrobial treatment can take quite a long time.  The reasons for this are that the infections above are generally slow-growing, not very susceptible to treatments like antibiotics, and they hide deep inside tissues where treatments can often be ineffective.  More information can be found on our website, www.immed.org under Autoimmune Diseases and Treatment Considerations.