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Arthritis diagnosis Posted by suze (444 days ago) I suspect I may have arthritis in the knuckles of my right hand. My father is crippled by arthritis in both his hands and my symptoms are very similar to his. Who can I go to for a diagnosis rather than my GP as I know she will send my to someone anyway. Am hoping to cut out the middle man. Thanks (I am based in Hong Kong)  Posted by docboat (444 days ago) No, not an orthopod .... firstly, your GP will know what to do: blood tests to assess the diagnosis - is it RA or OA or what kind of arthritis. Treatment (conventional western medical treatment that is) will generally be of the same approach, so s/he will start you on NSAID as appropriate. The reason for specialist referral will be to fine tune a diagnosis, or if a diagnosis is not forthcoming - and that specialist will be a rheumatologist. (I am based in Hong Kong) Posted by suze (444 days ago) Thank you for your replies however my GP as lovely as she is has yet to diagnose anything for my family without calling for help or referring us. I really just want to go once to someone who can help me. (I am based in Hong Kong) Posted by suze (444 days ago) Frustrating!! Sick of paying for a consultation just to be sent to someone else! (I am based in Hong Kong) Posted by Tidings 2 (444 days ago) It happens to me as well nearly every single time, especially when I go to an expat doctor. (I am based in Hong Kong) Posted by Meiguoren (443 days ago) I have a diagnosis of arthritis in one joint of my thumb. My GP also sent me to a hand surgeon, but it turned out the hand surgeon didn't do anything the GP couldn't have done, in my opinion. In my case, I first thought the bump on my thumb joint was a cyst, and frankly I wanted to rule out cancer (just to be safe). But all it took was one x-ray and the hand surgeon pronounced it to be arthritis. He showed me the xray and explained that the narrowing of the space inside the joint was pushing the synovial fluid outside the joint space to form a cyst. He did a blood test to check for rheumatoid factor (which was negative) and then pronounced it to be osteo-arthritis as opposed to rheumatoid arthritis since there was no rheumatoid factor. (He asked me if I worked with my hands, do you suppose this is a result of computer use?). And then . . . nothing more. That's it. He suggested I take non-steroidal anti inflammatories, but you can get those over the counter. Probably more helpful, was that one of my girlfriends is a hand therapist (occupational therapist) and she says I can get splints to support the joint if I want, and she also says to take glucosamine chondroitin. The hand surgeon had told me that the glucosamine had no proven benefit, but my girlfriend says she works with a lot of elderly people and that it really does make a difference in the patients she sees. She told me, "he must be really young and inexperienced if he said that glucosamine wouldn't help." And it's true, he looked like he was about 18 years old. Her two suggestions were much more helpful than anything the hand surgeon suggested (his main suggestion was that if / when it gets bad enough I could have joint replacement surgery). Anyway, to make a long story longer: if your GP wants to refer you, suggest that she just start with a hand x-ray and blood test for rheumatoid factor. If either one of those shows something worse or something more, then you can decide whether to go to a specialist. (I am based in Guangzhou) Posted by boredtotears (443 days ago) Will the bump ever go away or can you just try to keep it from getting bigger? (I am based in Macau) Posted by docboat (443 days ago) no evidence? There is plenty of excellent evidence for the benefits of glucosamine. Not much for chondroitin though. Glucosamine sulphate is more effective, cheaper and has less (no) side effects than NSAID. (I am based in Hong Kong) Posted by cammy1 (434 days ago) my doctor has it, therefore is obviously well educated on it! the office number i have is 28497236 (I am based in Hong Kong) Posted by Meiguoren (432 days ago) Hi, I'm just checking back in on this thread! To answer bored's question, he said I could drain the fluid but it would just come back because it's the synovial fluid. And Docboat, thanks for the info. I actually hadn't researched enough to know there's a difference. Is there any particular brand or trade name and dosage you could recommend for the brainless ones among us?! I think basically everything I see over here in China is labeled in Chinese anyway, so I'll most likely have to get some in HK when my current (very expensive) supply runs out. (I am based in Guangzhou) Posted by samros (431 days ago) I started on Glucosamine & HCL for my knee problem, which can be ordered online and is in liquid form. USD30 for 1 bottles/average a mth's supply. (I am based in Shanghai) |
