So the liver panel was bad but the sed rate was really low,11. I am in a lot of pain, not just in my head pain. I don't have a lot swelling but alot of pain. Do pain and inflammation not go hand in hand? I am slightly confused. With the amount of pain I have I assumed (I know what that means) that it would be higher. Anyone have the answer?Thanks
Q: I had blood work done the other day,liver panel and sed rate.
Answers (2)
10/17/10 8:46pm
Hi, Hope. I'm certainly no expert, but I sometimes have a LOT of pain, and my labs are normal, except for an elavated CRP. I don't have RA, I have Inflammatory Osteoarthritis, which rheumys treat like low grade RA. I have swelling in my hands and wrists, and ankles. Not sure what all this means. Just wanted you to know that a person can have a lot of pain without having blood tests that indicate inflammation. There are a lot of people w/seronegative RA. Hope this helps. What are they going to do about your liver enzymes? Change your meds...??? Best Wishes, and peace to you, V
10/20/10 7:47pm
to be honest, I'm not an expert on lab results, but we do have an excellent post on the various blood tests for RA that can hopefully give you more information. that said, blood tests are generally used as more of a confirmation of a diagnosis already made, rather than the determining factor - one of the reasons is that at least 20% of people with RA are what is called seronegative, which means they don't test positive for the disease. As well, in the beginning of RA, your symptoms can be very confusing, come and go and it's possible that your blood tests will change at a later day when the disease has sort of settled in for good .
Not all doctors are comfortable diagnosing RA in absence of positive blood work - the message hasn't quite gotten out to all of them yet, so if that happens, don't give up. Get a second opinion or even the third if you need to. Trust yourself - if your instincts tell you that something isn't right, keep pursuing it.
Good luck! Please let us know how things go?
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By Hope— Last Modified: 12/27/10, First Published: 10/16/10
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