Kickas.org Forums Ankylosing Spondylitis General Discussion #1 AS Web Support Group New issues

I've had a few strange new issues. Started out with a sore toe that became swollen and real painful. To the point it was hard to walk. Had to keep off my feet and no shoes for a few days. Doc originally put me through 2 courses of antibiotics. Didn't work so they went to a gout medication and the swelling and pain slowed. Still tender but better.

A few weeks later my elbow started to hurt. Did a little bit of labor and the next day I couldn't move my arm. I am besides my self. The doc thinks it's gout and I will get tests this week. Now my thumb knuckle hurts like a deep bruise and is stiff. All my other aches and pains are normal but these seem to be a step up.

I still don't really have a diagnosis but I am HLA-B27 positive and have really had an increase in symptoms in the last year and a half. I feel like I am in a downward spiral. I am going to try diet modifications to see if that helps. I was Gluten Free for a few years but I was still gf when this all started.

Does anyone else have terrible elbow pain or swollen toes? My to was almost twice the size as normal and red. I could feel it throbbing. The pain feels like it's deep down in the bones.

I also have some kind of sore on the back of my neck that won't go away and is getting larger. It feels hard and scales and hurts. This is getting to the point that it interferes with my daily life constantly.

I have been on sulfasalazine for 6 months now and I thought it worked well at first but it isn't helping much now. I need to go back to my rheumatologist. I was just started on a cpap. The pain in my hips was so bad that I couldn't sleep on my side anymore. Now when I sleep it's on my back with a pillow under my knees but that has caused me to snore and have breathing difficulties. I had a sleep study done and they said I had severe apnea.

The hits just keep commuting! I think the sleep issues are from the pain meds but what do I know.

Anyone else relate to this? Sure is frustrating to not really have a diagnosis. The doc told me the next step would be a biologic medication. I have to admit that the sulfasalazine has helped with my hips. I haven't had an injection since I started it.

Thanks for listening.

Gman

I have had those symptoms while trying to find out what was causing them. Note Dr at the time diagnosed condition as gout. 10 years later discovered I had AS. Good luck Note symptoms did not last for a long time and it has been years since I have experienced them.

Hello, Gman:

Regret antibiotics, unless they are combined with NSD and specific to Klebsiella pneumoniae, can make things much worse.

I don't know if allopurinol can have any effect against AS, but Your symptoms are more similar to AS than gout. In the process of making sausage digits sometimes the inflammation in toes becomes severe enough to notice.

I have (had) both AS and gout; the latter due to kidney issues mostly associated with prolonged use of NSAIDs.

Diet is key in AS and it is all about the starch--Ketogenic and Paleo diets can help quite a bit and there is a lot more great information about these, but the best information is in Carol Sinclair's book "The IBS Low-Starch Diet."

I won't predict Your uric acid levels, but this is definitive for gout.

HEALTH,
John

Wasn't gout....numbers were good. Increased my sulfasalazine and added Meloxicam. No luck, elbow is worse still. My arm is almost useless.

I don't know if this is related but I keep getting sores in my mouth and after about a week bone like fragments come out of my lower jaw.

My extended release medication has been pulled from the market. Took me a year to find something that worked well.....now drug users have ruined it for me. Anyone else use opana?

My other foot is starting to act up now. Is it strange that this moves all around? My hips haven't really hurt since I started the sulfasalazine.

Thanks to everyone who posts. It's nice to hear from others that have like experiences.