OK People - I am Freaking Out with Worry- Need Some Reassurance, Prayers

[DaisyFace]

My DS is getting an MRI right now to confirm or rule/out Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis.

He started a couple of weeks ago with a swollen knee. No injury, no brusing, no fall - just swollen. We applied heat, ice, wrapped it, elevated it....but still swollen. doctor sent us to ortho....ortho called for X-rays...negative....now calling for MRI and consult with Pediatric Rheumatologist.



I am so worried!

And I don't even know what to wish for here...He has an inflamed joint without any injury. Bone fragments, strains, infection, Bursa-sac problems all ruled out.

That leaves Juvenile Arthritis...

or Cancer.

Spare a prayer, please....if you can.

 

[Mattsmom277]

Prayers on their way pronto. I'm sorry he's hurting and I can see why you'd be concerned. I will hope that it is neither of the 2 remaining things you are worried about and maybe with luck just "one of those oddities" where someone can't remember at all hurting themselves and it just improves on its own. I hope the negative xray is a good sign!!! (((hugs)))

 

[ThreeShadows]

Oh, DF! I'm so sorry! I would be freaking out too. I believe in miracles and will be praying for your child.
HUGE HUGS!

 

[KTMom91]

Oh, wow...hugs and prayers going out.

 

[gcvmom]

Well, if it IS RA, there are a lot of medications that have come out in the last decade or so that help treat it. My son has Crohn's and many of the RA drugs have proven useful for Crohn's patients. Remission is a reality for many people thanks to these medications.

Hugs and prayers here too!

 

[DaisyFace]

UPDATE: husband just called....MRI procedure went well. DS managed to stay still.

The MRI shows fluid buildup all around the knee joint...but no tumors or anything indicating cancer. (Whew!!!--Of course, this is not "official" because tech is not allowed to analyze the results...but everything looks good structure-wise.)

OK....so I can stop being in full-blown panic mode. No cancer.

But--now we have to wait to hear from Rheumatologist....

So...small panic-mode.

Thank you so much for your support! It's nice to be able to hold hands through this!

 

[tiredmommy]

{{{DaisyFace}}}

Adding my prayers to the rest. We went through a similar incident with Duckie when she was four years old. She woke up with badly swollen hands and feet. Eight days and 14 doctors later the medical consensus was atypical presentation of allergies; basically edema brought on by hives. I understand your fear too well. Please update more when the Rheumatogist weighs in.

 

[ML]

I'm so happy to hear of this positive outcome.

 

[flutterby]

Have they run any bloodwork to check inflammation and rheumatoid factor?

I'm glad the MRI went smoothly and that it doesn't look like cancer. Really glad.

When I was about 15 my knee just ballooned up for some unknown reason. I could barely walk on it, kept putting it up with ice on it, etc. Never went to the doctor. It went away on its own. That may or may not make you feel better given my current health stuff, but it just seemed to be some kind of flukey thing. A tip: my former mother in law told me to put rubbing alcohol on my knee. I don't know why, but it worked.

 

[SRL]

Make sure he's had blood work for Lyme Disease done. Plus be aware that the test isn't always accurate, and even on lab reports it will say to retest if symptoms persist.

 

[DaisyFace]

Right now, I am still hoping that the swelling is just some "fluke" caused by something simple...

So far, they have not ordered any bloodwork. I suppose that will be next.

Keep you fingers crossed!

 

[HaoZi]

Not out of the realm of possibility. I sprained my ankle pretty bad as a teen, but didn't know it until 3 days later when I was out and suddenly couldn't walk on it. Even my doctor was surprised at the level of damage since there was no swelling or bruising at all.

 

[Mamaof5]

UPDATE: husband just called....MRI procedure went well. DS managed to stay still.

The MRI shows fluid buildup all around the knee joint...but no tumors or anything indicating cancer. (Whew!!!--Of course, this is not "official" because tech is not allowed to analyze the results...but everything looks good structure-wise.)

OK....so I can stop being in full-blown panic mode. No cancer.

But--now we have to wait to hear from Rheumatologist....

So...small panic-mode.

Thank you so much for your support! It's nice to be able to hold hands through this!

Could be a ligament tear with synovial fluid leak. I had that a month ago. It's very easy to accomplish this type of injury. I didn't bump my knee, twist it or anything and it resolved with anti-inflammatory and elevation with a knee brace for two weeks

 

[svengandhi]

Be aware that you can have RA without rheumatoid factor in your blood. I was diagnosed with RA at 19, though I am sure I had since 17. Since I was over 18, they called it RA and not JRA. I am now in my early 50's and have never had the factor in my blood, though I very clearly have RA. It can be managed. At the beginning, I was in very active disease but ultimately over the past 30 years have had somewhere between 8 and 10 serious flares where I had to be under treatment for a period of time. The last flare was 4 or 5 years ago and lasted about 6 months. I don't take medications when I'm not in active disease. I was told at 19 that I'd be in a wheelchair by 25 - I'm not. I do have problems but many of them are more due to the fact that I have become a fat pig in the past 5 years than to the RA.

If I had the choice, I'd pick RA over cancer any day.

Good luck, I hope it's just an idiopathic swollen knee from something he doesn't even know happened.

 

[Jena]

wishing you lots of luck and breath!!

SRL is right have them test for Lyme tha'Tourette's Syndrome one of the signs. good luck!! sorry i'm soo late to this.

 

[Hound dog]

Saying a prayer it's nothing serious.

Hmm any possibility of gout? Just tossing out ideas........

Like someone else said could just be a synovial fluid leak or a small tear in a ligament......

Hugs

 

[DaisyFace]

Good morning--

We are into the third week of the swelling....you can actually feel "bubbles" sloshing around under your hand when you feel his knee. He has pain on and off - largely due to the swelling making the joint so stiff and hard to bend.

The rheumatologist is supposed to call today or tomorrow...

I hope my little guy gets some relief soon!

 

[DammitJanet]

My arthritis problems started with a swollen knee they had to drain. I feel for him.

Like someone else said, between cance and RA, I would pick RA. They have so many treatments out there now. I hope its nothing though and that he did just trip somewhere and doesnt remember. Even if that means some icky treatment, it may be a one time thing.

Hugs.

 

[DaisyFace]

UPDATE:

The pediatric rheumatologist cannot get us in before December...

since the swelling and pain are continuing - we are now being referred to a pediatric orthopedist about an hour away. We will go see him tomorrow...

 

[flutterby]

They need to check his sed rate and rheumatoid factor. Rheumatoid factor only shows up in 80% of cases, but it should still be checked. There's also a second thing they test - besides the rheumatoid factor - for RA, but I can't remember what it's called. Pretty sure it starts with a "c". Have his ANA checked, too. Your family doctor can do those tests.