Am I Celiac?

[McGreen]

I know there are a ton of these posts...here's another one!

Okay, I have had joint pain, stiffness and swelling for about 9 years. I am currently 28 years old. It has effected fingers, wrist and knee over the years and it extremely painful at times. I have noticed that fatigue goes along with it. I have been to about 6 doctors and been tested for lyme disease, juvenile arthritis and on and on. The last doctor I went to was a well-known rhematoid specialist and said it "looked like" I had some form of rhematoid arthritis, but it was not confirmed. Recently my mom found out that she is celiac. She went gluten-free a few weeks ago and is seeing huge improvements so far! She also has Multiple Sclerosis, by the way. I am aware that autoimmune disorders run in the family. Do you think my joint problems could be caused by gluten? I think it is a strong possibility. I would appreciate your thoughts!

[CarlaB]

Lyme testing is highly inaccurate. Please check out the Lyme Disease thread. Open Original Shared Link

Plus, many who are the sickest have a negative test even if it's done at a good lab because it's an antibody test, which is not very accurate. Unless you went to a specialist in Lyme Disease (not an infectious disease specialist), I wouldn't rule out Lyme just yet.

Getting a celiac test is easy enough .... go ask your doctor to run a celiac panel on you.

[Lizz7711]

I'd also try just stopping all dairy foods for a few weeks. MANY people get total relief of joint issues/arthritis, by cutting out all dairy. I'd also do the celiac panel as another poster suggested.

good luck!

[ZeeZee]

PLEASE have your mom (and you) go to a Lyme Disease specialist! Multiple Sclerosis is VERY often a false diagnosis for what is actually Lyme Disease. Your mom should get thoroughly checked out, because if it is Lyme then they can actually treat her infections and she could get healthier. The longer she waits though the worse it is for her body. I HIGHLY recommend you doing this. I am in "recovery" treatment for Lyme, come from a family of all doctors (2 others of whom also have Lyme) and one of my parents has worked with one of the top Lyme specialists in the nation where they often saw this MS/Lyme situation. The other thing is that if neglected Lyme can turn into MS. It would be good to see if there is a chance that your mom can get better by being diagnosed correctly.

I know there are a ton of these posts...here's another one!

Okay, I have had joint pain, stiffness and swelling for about 9 years. I am currently 28 years old. It has effected fingers, wrist and knee over the years and it extremely painful at times. I have noticed that fatigue goes along with it. I have been to about 6 doctors and been tested for lyme disease, juvenile arthritis and on and on. The last doctor I went to was a well-known rhematoid specialist and said it "looked like" I had some form of rhematoid arthritis, but it was not confirmed. Recently my mom found out that she is celiac. She went gluten-free a few weeks ago and is seeing huge improvements so far! She also has Multiple Sclerosis, by the way. I am aware that autoimmune disorders run in the family. Do you think my joint problems could be caused by gluten? I think it is a strong possibility. I would appreciate your thoughts!

[kmcmahon]

I would also get a blood test done to detect Celiac disease followed by an endoscopy w/ biopsies. If your Mom did test positive for Celiac disease, it is quite possible that you have it as well(since it is genetic). Joint pain is a symptom of Celiac disease. Some Celiacs portray digestive symptoms(as I did) and have no neurological symptoms. However, many Celiacs portray only neurological symptoms, such as joint pain, headaches, fatigue, etc. You should get the test done as soon as possible so you do know whether you are celiac or not. I learned from my doctor that only 10 percent of Celiacs are diagnosed because those 10 percent show classic symptoms, whereas the other 90 percent are diagnosed as other things because the patients symptoms mirror those of other diseases. Until you have the test done cut out dairy, but don't cut out gluten until after the test, as it can show false reports in your blood because the antibodies against gluten will not be present. Hope this helps and get tested!

[McGreen]

Thanks for your concern:) I will mention this the next time I see a doctor. I really don't think I have Lyme disease because I was tested quite awhile after my symptoms started. But it never hurts to re-test. My brother actually had Lyme disease and was diagnosed very quickly. My mom has gotten soooooo much better after less than 2 months gluten free. It is amazing! I am going to cut out dairy and see what happens.

[RiceGuy]

Of course, trying the gluten-free diet would be the best way to tell. All the current tests are still very inaccurate, not to mention often misinterpreted by doctors. Many find that also cutting dairy out at the same time is necessary, but can sometimes add it back in later, once sufficient healing has taken place.

Hope you feel better soon!