Shooting pain in legs and knees
September 21, 2009 - 5:34pm
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I been having this problem for years after I gave birth to my daughter... I was driving in my car and all of a sudden I got a sharp pain up my legs and knees it was so painful I almost crashed the car. My rhuematoid factor test was high. I went to a rhumatoligst and came up negative... I did have a MRI done which showed a bulging disk and facet arthritis of the spine... Lately I wake up very stiff in the morning hard for me to walk and also pain in my hands and fingers now...The doctors did x rays but could not figure out what was wrong with my legs and knees... I just started getting the pain in my hands and fingers very painful... The last time I went to the rhumatolist he just told me sometimes you get pains....
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Hi, Brittany, and welcome to EmpowHer. Thank you so much for your question.
I'm a little confused as to the timeline. You say you have been having this problem for years, after your daughter was born. Is that when you had the tests for your legs and knees?
And it's just recently that the pain has spread to your fingers and hands, is that right? Are they the same kind of shooting pains that you have in your legs and knees?
Did you have any treatment or physical therapy for the bulging disc and arthritis?
Is the doctor helping with any pain management?
After my daughter was born I went for the test and they could not find anything. Couple of years ago I went for blood test and my rhumatoid factor test was high so my doctor suggested to go see a rhumatologist. I went and he did test and came up negative. Then pain in my fingers and hands just started....The pain in my hands and fingers is different from the pain in my legs and knees.
Brittany14,
Argh. It's so difficult when we know something isn't exactly right but doctors don't seem to be able to figure it out.
What is the pain in your hands and fingers like? Is it a dull, throbbing pain or sharp pain? Is it worse in the mornings or in the evenings? And you have it in both hands equally? Does it seem to be the joints themselves that hurt, or something else?
Sounds like it may be time for you to see the rheumatologist again, in light of your new symptoms. Did you like the one you went to before? Do you feel that he was interested in you and wanted to get to the bottom of things?
Thank you Diane for getting back to me. The pain in my hands and fingers is more like a sore feeling it hurts when I pick something up. It seems like the pain in my knees is in my joints very painful sometimes its not a cronic pain. The pain happens when I am sitting driving walking up the stairs... I had x rays done a few years ago on my knees and nothing showed up... The rhumatologist did a blood test and nothing showed up... I was not happy with him... The Orthopedic I went to a few years ago took xrays and nothing came up....Its very frustrating... It is very painful and times....The rhumatoid factor test does the necessarily mean you have rhumatoid arthritis???? Thanks for your help
Anon, that's a great question, and one that isn't the simplest to answer. The RF test looks for an elevated amount of rheumatoid factor (antibodies) in your blood. High levels of RF in your blood can mean you have RA or Sjogren's Syndrome (but not always). Some healthy people have RF in their blood without having RA, and some people with autoimmune conditions can have normal levels of RF in their blood.
Clear as mud, isn't it? I know. Maybe this will help some, it's the Mayo Clinic's explanation of the test. Be sure to click on the links to the left, which tell you why it's done, what to expect, and results:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/rheumatoid-factor/MY00241
Can you tell if it's actually the JOINTS in your hand that are hurting?
I would suggest starting over, since it has been a few years and you have new symptoms. Do you have a regular family doctor or even an ob/gyn you trust who might recommend you to another specialist?