Rheumatoid
It took over Twenty years to diagnose my Rheumatoid arthritis it didn't get diagnosed until 2022 every Doctor was going by blood test Because it didn't show up in my blood until I got this Doctor two years ago name Mahamme who got a blood test and it came back that I didn't have it but he try something else he decided to do an MRI on my hands and that's how he discovered that I had Rheumatoid arthritis by than the damage been done my fingers are spreading out especially the baby finger than I ended up with something that in my knuckles in my right hand and my left hand at the upper palm area my skin has split and it's very sore
Hi, and thank you for taking the time to share your experience. I'm very sorry to hear that it took that long for you to be diagnosed, and for a doctor to look at the full picture. I was diagnosed twenty years ago but the signs were all there i.e. bloodwork, joints visible swollen etc. However, I know back then they didn't know a lot that they do now. Even biologics medication prescribed now were just coming on the scene. It's unfortunate, but it shows just how far we have come, and how far more we need to go in treatments, diagnosis, and awareness. I also know many rheumatologists use ultrasound before taking X-rays to diagnose rheumatoid arthritis as many signs of joint damage don't even show up on X-rays. Though not every doctor does this either. From your experience you can probably relate to that too. Some doctors don't look deep into things when they should. I hope you're doing well now. -Effie, team member
Thank you so much for sharing your experience here with us. Just like you, so many of our members have gone undiagnosed for years and have had to suffer greatly because of it. RA itself is hard to diagnosis as the symptoms of it are very similar to other health conditions which makes this such a great issue and need for more advanced testing to avoid this issue. How are you doing currently? Look forward to hearing more from you about your journey. All the best, Latoya (Team Member)
