Hi Sharon,
I was tested for hla-b27 and sent for lots of xrays in January 2006(I had just turned 50). With those and my health history, my GP diagnosed me with AS and sent me to a rheumy, who also diagnosed me with AS. I had never heard of it before, if I had You can bet I would have been looking for a dx before then.
My previous GP told me I had arthritis. I had symptoms since 1987(31 years old) which eventually became worse and more numerous until I did finally go to a new GP and told him my arthritis meds did not work. I had been on quite a few different ones including celebrex. I had also been to the orthopaedic doctor for various things over the years including knee pain, back pain, degenerative disc disease, bursitis in hip, plantars fascitis, neck pain, sciatica, and shoulder/elbow pain. In addition to those things, I had developed pleurisy at least a couple of times a year, occasional anemia, fatigue, carpal tunnel, tarsal tunnel, tmj, wierd pain that went from place to place, and finally an extreme ripping pain when I sneezed. There was pain that got worse when I stopped activity(I really couldn't understand that one). By the time I went to the new GP and rheumy, I was eventually getting so stiff in the mornings that it would take me a couple of hours to get warmed up. Riding in a car for any distance was becoming more difficult. Working a job seemed near impossible. I either just didn't have the energy it needed or that gremlin in my body would start up again. I couldn't understand how other women could work regular jobs, much less be able to function when they got off work. I was a hard worker and anything but lazy. I can't remember when I slept a whole night. Literally cannot remember. Years. I would wake up with back pain, at first thinking my back was hurting because I had to go to the bathroom.
My Uveitis/Iritis kicked in about 3 years ago. It also was not diagnosed until last year when the rheumy advised me to go to the opthomalogist. The optometrist I was seeing had been trying several different drops until he eventually hit the right one - pred-forte. He didn't send me to an optho. He was talking about it, but didn't when the pred-forte kicked in. When I went to my new optho, she diagnosed me with recurring Uveitis and dry eyes(stemming from the AS she says).
With our insurance you have to have a referral from your GP to go to anyone but your GP, and then they have to be in the "network".
There you have it. Perfect example of how a woman can be mis-diagnosed over so many years until damage occurs and she has a primary care doctor that is up to date and gives a "you know what" . I hope your Mom checks into this and does not just attribute it to arthritis or old age(even though 50 is NOT old, no matter what you young ones think).
Good luck to her and you, Wanda
