what do you think of er???

[Jena]

so i wanted to ask, i saw a few of you have gone to the e.r. in your own states or had to unfortunately.

i sat here today in pain all day, leg's burning ankle pain, blurred vision. it's back, it came back so quick this time. just had it last month almost exactly a month ago. it used to only happen every 3 mos or so, now it's coming closer and getting harder when it hits.

so i've been to doctor's and the next is an mri. yet fact is at the hospital they have everything...... mri machines, medications. you get my point??

i can spend a fortune running to every different doctor around here we dont' have insurance or head to the e.r. i'm def. in enough pain...to justify an er visit.

or do we think e.r.'s are well e.r.'s and not capable of handling a diagnosis, or giving one rather. it would just be so much easier, they bill i could pay it off. sound crazy?? i need some relief to it, i dont' even think i can ride again.

the burning in my legs and calves literally all day and i'm spending my day squinting it's ridiculous

 

[HaoZi]

Pain in calves (that's obviously not Charley Horse) would bring worry about clots, I'd say that alone could justify a trip to ER.

 

[Jena]

i meant more like what do we think of er"s? i mean in all honesty i'd only go to save the cost of specialist. horrible iknow lol. it's not a clot, it's a burning sensation. yet they have mri's there and i could probably get the test for ms right there as opposed to running all over town like a nut with blurred vision ya know...?

it's same stuff that's been happening since beforei got married. blurred vision and dizziness was always on and off, yet the pain in hands and legs especially ankles and feet freezing cold like ice is since before i got married. remember they thought i had lupus first, than lyme disease? lol than my doctor said hello it's ms after ra came back negative also.i just want to confirm it now and get the medications in me to slow it down because it seems like it's moving at light speed

 

[HaoZi]

I'm just saying a worry about clots would sound like a legitimate enough concern to tell the ER. Coupled with blurring vision you could be looking at clots that have moved, etc. I would hope that would be enough to start getting the tests run that you need.
Every ER is different, some are terrible, some are great, some are more specialized (like cardiac or trauma).

 

[Jena]

yea i hate the drama of the e.r. i'm just looking to get into an mri machine without having to wait two mos. lol. i had an appointment with neuro yet i had to head to portland with difficult child and i cancelled it. now its'a wait to get back in.

i was just thinking wow if i could just bang it out in one shot that would be great. go in get the spinal tap or the mri machine, confirm the ms and get the medications so i can get out of some pain.

 

[Hound dog]

Burning pain can be phlebitis which is nothing to mess with. It needs to be checked. Is there redness or swelling? Have you had your blood pressure monitored?

in my opinion at least for ERs around here? Most are going to treat you as a drug seeker unless you have an obvious "something" going on. They're usually crammed with patients and don't have time for mysterious dxes.......and so on the whole, don't bother attempting to make them. Odds are they'd check you for dehydration......check the leg for phlebitis or blood clot......if you're lucky you might get a CT scan if nothing shows on blood work.....and then they'd send you home and tell you to follow up with fam doctor.

Once in a blue moon..........you might get a doctor in an ER (most are actually physician assts. anymore) with some time on his hands who cares enough to look a little deeper. But even then if something obvious doesn't jump at them they tend to discharge you with the orders to seek fam doctor or maybe a specialist.

My opinion? Unless the pain is unbearable I'd stick it out, see fam doctor, get MRI done and not risk the extra ER bill. Of course if it were me I'd have to go the ER route cuz no insurance.....and county hospital I wouldn't have to pay the bill. lol (doctor I would)

Hugs

 

[1905]

I'm sorry that your feeling so bad. I know you said you would go to the ER to save on the cost of a specialist, but without insurance wouldn't the ER be way more expensive?...and there most likely isn't a specialist right there. You need a specialist to look at an MRI because they have more of an idea of what they're looking at regarding a diagnosis. Plus the specialist will treat you and continue monitering you. on the other hand, if you think you need to go to the ER, go! Maybe I'm misunderstanding...I hope you have some relief soon.

 

[crazymama30]

Mysterious issues are usually better left to a primary doctor, if you can wait. They know you better. Our ER here is good for maybe stitches (the last time I had them they came un knotted and fell out within 4 days) and maybe broken bones and a stroke or heart attach, but that can be iffy too. I have found that sometimes an urgent care will be more responsive and helpful.

 

[Jena]

hmmm i'm deciding now if i grab husband's truck when he gets in and run down road its' 5 minutes away. my family doctor is the one that is clueless lol...... big time. nice guy yet clueless. he won't run anymore tests.

yea er is more expensive yet not a bill that has to be paid right away......

maybe ill call them first ask do you have an mri, if they don't i wont' even bother. i would see them than they'd refer me to a specialist for follow up their good with that. i just yes want some medications ill be honest... want some pain relief, do not want my legs burning anymore. we'll c also gotta wait for difficult child to fall asleep which is no easy task.

 

[Jena]

what's an urgent care?? here it's wild, you have to wait so long to get in to see a specialist.

 

[KTMom91]

An Urgent Care is like an ER, without the emergency part. Urgent care may not see you without insurance unless you're willing/able to pay right now. At least with ER, they have to take you. I HATE the ER, they take forever, but I have to admit they hopped right to it when I went in with heart attack symptoms. With a possible clot in the calf, they should see you fairly quickly.

 

[Jena]

i'm going to go. difficult child's wide freaking awake tonight. coughing her brains out, apparently caught a cold while with dad this weekend. my legs are burning so bad im good with pain yet i can't take it anymore. i'm going back to the stupid hospital i went to last time that claimed i had lyme disease right after we got back from mexico. going to ask them why they thought that, have them run another test for that.

do some more blood work for a few other things i thought of, maybe the ultrasound thingy for legs if theyll do it. than maybe just a neuro guy they can get me into quickly, and some medications to take the burn away. its' as if someone has hot water and their pouring it all over me lol. oh joy....

just didn't want to leave because difficult child will be up all nite long i know her and worried. yet waiting her out we'll be here till 1 a.m.

 

[HaoZi]

The hospital's website should say somewhere if they have an MRI.

 

[flutterby]

ER's generally treat your symptoms and leave diagnosing a medical condition that's not emergent to your family doctor or specialist.

 

[Shari]

Yeah, I would highly doubt an er is going to diagnosis MS, even if they suspect it. Getting and MRI for anything that's not life threatening in an ER problem won't happen, either...so even if they do one, the person who needs to read it to diagnosis MS isn't going to be seeing it.

Glad you went to deal with pain. Hope they can help

 

[DammitJanet]

I would seriously doubt you would get an MRI based on your symptoms. In fact, your symptoms dont even really coincide only to MS. Even with a negative RA test there are other illnesses or disorders out there. There is a seronegative rheumatoid arthritis. There is diabetes, considering the eyes and the burning legs which could be neuropathy. I have horribly neuropathy and narcotics dont touch it. There are other medications namely neurontin or lyrica which help. Lyme disease is a definite possibility and if they ran the normal test there is a great possibility you got a false negative. There is a more sensitive test that catches it better.

MRI is not the only way or even the best way to catch MS, spinal tap is from what I have heard. But really, I think there are a ton of things you could have and I would really want a good rheumy to overlook the case first...then hit a neuro.

 

[Star*]

My advice is to find a practice with a NURSE Practitioner, and SCHEDULE an exam WITH HER. As long of one as you can get. Tell them when you schedule you need a LONG exam. They bill by time - so be sure to tell them YOU WANT A LONG CONSULTATION. It will cost you more but she will listen. Then take a list of ALL that is wrong with you. Talk to her, don't TELL her what you think is wrong, You're not a doctor, you don't play one on TV, and Wikki health can get you in trouble. Just present her with a list of "this is what's going wrong with me" then shut it. Wait for the tests, go back....do what she says, and see if you don't start feeling better. EVERYTHING she does will be run by a doctor. Nurses catch a ton more stuff and are a lot more observant in my opinion than doctors are and they tend to spend a little more time on details and emotions.

 

[Jena]

hi

couldn't go last night, believe it or not easy child pulled a "difficult child" on me....... stayed out till 1 a.m. so we sat from 11 when he got in waiting for her and than she showed, today she's still sleeping...... UGH~! can't do much about it, have tutors in house can't cause scene.

so we will wait till tmrw nite to go. i want them to re run the test for lyme again. we have run all the blood tests to rule out everything else, only one we missed was scolderma not spelling it right which i do not believe it is. it could possibly be a circulation problem also yet all the symptoms dont' add up.

the one it matches with best is ms, due to sensations in legs, numbing, pain, non swelling and pain, also loss of balalnce, vision disturbances, it's actually classic. only thing that doesnt' fit is the nodules that i have all over my hands and feet now. so suffice it to say we rubbed my legs and ice cold feet last night the burning finally subsided and i got some sleep.

if i can rule out lyme and the other few things ih ave on my list than it'll be neuro guy next, get the mri (i'm not risking a spinal tap) and if i have lesions than bingo we got it and just gotta medicate it make some changes to slow it down. my mind keeps going back to the lyme though.

i mean my swelling began shortly after i did yard work prior to wedding, than all the symptoms became increasingly worse. lyme can also have bouts and flare ups. yet when i feel good i feel great. so we'll see........ my gp thinks it's ms, the dropped foot, all the junk i get. there was just so much controversy over whether or not i had lyme. the hospital said yes, specialist who handles infectious diseases we paid fortune for reviewed all blood work and said no their WAY off.

plus this is exactly how the ms thing plays out, you go to a ton of doctor's, get a ton of tests it usually takes years to diagnosis. at least if its' that it's not life threatening, it'll be an interesting ride yet i'll live because ya know my life's so wonderful how or why would i wanna leave it to go to the bar in the sky?? LOL

 

[Josie]

You should know there are two standards of care for Lyme.

The infectious disease doctor, no doubt, follows the IDSA standard. The IDSA standard relies on a two tiered test to see if it is Lyme per the CDC guidelines. However, the CDC says (or at least used to) on its page that the strict criteria are for reporting purposes only and to use clinical judgement. The IDSA guidelines call for limited treatment with antibiotics and if you still have symptoms after that, call it Post Lyme Syndrome. Symptom relief only at that point.

There is another group of doctors that follow ILADS standards of care and believe in diagnosing Lyme clinically, based on symptoms and exposure, with test results providing support for the diagnosis. They believe that ongoing symptoms are due to continued infection and will treat until symptoms are gone. Many of these doctors have come to treat this way after experiencing Lyme themselves or in their family.

The whole thing is controversial with the IDSA doctors calling the ILADS doctors quacks and the ILADS doctors and chronic Lyme patients accusing the IDSA doctors of conflicts of interest. The IDSA docs think the science is settled and proven and the ILADS docs think there is a lot that is unknown and that good studies haven't been done.

My guess is that you got a doctor in the ER who is more on the ILADS side while the infectious disease doctor goes strictly by the blood test.

If you had a positive test, either ELISA or WB, the ILADS docs would probably treat you, while the IDSA docs would say you had to have both, probably along with a swollen knee and a bullseye rash.

You need to decide which way you want to approach it and which kind of doctor you want ruling it out. Either way has its own set of risks.

 

[Jena]

i know it's crazy lol. i don't think it's that yet it would make sense. lyme can get bad and in all honesty besides the burning, pain etc. i dont' get headaches really, dont' feel totally run down.....

i have to pull out my old blood work. i cant' remember it was a while back. the infectious guy who specializes in lyme said no way you do not have that at all. and gave me a physical exam as well. the e.r. was just like ok yea that's what you have. who knows...... so stupid

yet one thing i did learn that at this stage now, which would be 9 mos after bite if i did get bit the antibodies would def. show up on blood test. so its a good idea to get that re run first just at an er. if i go to my reg. doctor its' a whole conversation procedure, etc. than the blood will take forever to come back