Convinced I have rheumatoid arthritis- but all blood tests show I don't.

[emor]

Hello
I hope someone can help me please?
I'm 29 and three years ago I was diagnosed with osteoarthrits in my foot. It was painful for weeks, and an x ray confirmed this. I think it is on the other foot too, but I never had that x- rayed. Shortly after, I noticed that I was having pain at the base of my thumb joint, which I understand may indicate osteoarthritis. I was tested for rh. factor and the usual blood tests. I also asked for anti CCP tests- everything has come back normal twice.
I sometimes have terrible aching in my back and hips and the GP I saw recently said that it was not a good idea to x ray me due to my age as so many areas seem to be affected. Over the last 2 weeks, I have had pain in my knuckles of both hands. They feel stiff and warm, but they don't look any different.
I don't know where to turn. Something's not right and I don't know what to suggest next. I feel as though I need an x ray on my hands.
Any opinions please welcome.
Thank you

[carolanivey]

I meant to add that pain, swelling, redness and heat are hallmarks of RA, but they don't necessarily all occur at the same time. :)  

I've had RA since age 5 and am now 51. As you can imagine I've lost count of the x-rays I've had. A rheumie will probably order x-rays, at the very least to have a baseline to compare to another set 6 months to a year from now. Today's xrays are so low dose I honestly don't think a few are going to hurt you.

[carolanivey]

It is not at ALL unusual to test negative for RA. It's called being "sero-negative".  Blood work never tells the whole story; a good rheumatologist will look at a broad range of evidence - blood work, x-rays, possibly an MRI, and most importantly, laying hands and eyes on your sore joints. Whether you're sero-neg or positive, the treatment should be the same.

IMO I don't believe you're being properly diagnosed or treated. Insist on a referral to a rheumatologist; if you're already seeing one, find a better one.

Keep a pain/swelling diary while you're waiting for your appointment. This can be as simple as drawing a stick figure of yourself and labeling joints on a pain scale from 1-10.  You may notice a pattern of when your pain is worse throughout the course of a day, a week, a month, etc. This info can be extremely useful for the rheumie to look at when you're evaluated.

Good luck! [[hug]]