It's me again. Last week the Dr. called and told my daughter that my thyroid and iron tests came out okay and he would call when the others test came in. I got home from work yesterday and it was Nurse Betty on my answering machine and she said "Hi, you came back with a positive ANA so you need to see a rheumatologist and we have a couple here or you can go to Missoula."
Well I called right clinic right back, nurse Betty was gone for the day and Dr. Coughlin is an Internist so I need to see Dr. Diegal or go to Missoula, right like I am going to a dr. 150 miles away every month on winter roads! I don't think so.
So, I am going to the local guy, which I don't want to b/c he is my husbands dr. and I thought he was a little abrasive and "pat me on my little head" annoyed when I went with hubby and asked questions. Hubby thinks he is great cause he hunts birds and hates tree huggers, that makes him a stellar dr......husbands!
Oh yeah, back to that ANA, scared the crud outa me when I googled it and Lupus popped up everywhere, and then a bunch of other autoimmune things. Needless to say I am going to call Nurse Betty this morning, I want her to fax me a copy of that blood work so I can at least post some numbers here and have you'all pitch me some ideas, I have to wait five weeks otherwise for some answers.
Dr. Diegal doesn't believe in pain meds b/c people become addicted, well he and I are going to lock horns then, I have been on my meds for a couple of years and tweaked to get where I am comfortable and can go to work and function. I think it would be fair to say I depend on them to get through my day,but I don't yet feel the need to burglarize homes, dr. shop or anything else to get through my day. This is going to be such fun.
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I would have that ANA retested before you do anything too involved as there are sometimes lab errors involved in testing blood. Why would you have to lock horns with the rheumotologist? Dont you already get what you need for pain from another doctor?

Repeat
 

This is a major rule: DO NOT GET ANY BIG WORKUPS FOR ANY DISEASE; DO NOT GET TREATMENTS, UNTIL THE LAB TEST IS REPEATED.

ANA's can be elevated for all sorts of reasons, and the elevation can be minor. Please have them repeat it before embarking upon anything.

I have seen people here get referred to specialists for an abnormal test that was not repeated, and it's just not smart. I just had abnormal "anti-phospholipid antibodies". When repeated, they were normal. They can be abnormal when the body is dealing with some inflammation somewhere.

The thing to do about the ANA, before seeing a rheumatologist, is to repeat it, with an ESR (sed rate), CRP (cardiac inflammation) and complement C3 (autoimmune inflammation). If there are abnormal tests among these, then it's time for a rheumie. Can you get your doctor to do these first?

Also, it's time to request your own copies of all your labs. You know that many of us recommend this, and that it's certainly worthwhile to keep a looseleaf of your own tests, and more worthwhile to keep up the spreadsheets on lizajane.org. This is the time for you to begin. Good luck.