Has patient been misdiagnosed?

December 21, 2012 By

Q: I have had problems with joint pain and exhaustion all my life. I do have some structural problems in my hips which have lead to arthritis but I don’t have arthritis anywhere else in my body. I had two knee operations for dislocating knee caps when I was 15 and they don’t always feel great but don’t appear to have arthritis.

The pain can appear in any joint in my body. The same exertions do not cause a consistent amount of pain. The exhaustion can come and go at any time during the day without rhyme or reason. I have noticed that when I eat carbohydrates I can get sluggish and occasionally nauseous. I have been tested for rheumatoid arthritis but the result was (happily) negative.

I also have problems with lung inflammation that can result in bronchitis and pneumonia and have occasionally been sick for months on end and lost as much as 60 pounds while sick. [Read more…]

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Horse liniment helps the pain

June 26, 2012 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: A couple of years ago you recommended a mint-scented sore muscle lotion for horses that was also effective in humans. I cannot remember the name of it but it worked very well when I had severe bursitis and now my knees are sore when I lay on my side in bed at night. I wonder if that lotion would help. Could you possibly tell me the name again?

DEAR READER: I believe the product you are referring to is veterinary liniment, a topical pain-relieving rub used on horses and other large livestock that can be found in many feed stores. The one with which I am most familiar is Absorbine; however, I am sure there are several other brands available which will work just as well.
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What causes joint pain?

June 22, 2012 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I am a 76-year-old female. I take many supplements (too many to list here), plus Stelazine and Nexium. I take Vicodin for pain. I am not aware of any allergies. I have all over body, joint and muscle pain, especially in my shoulders and arms. I have all over body tingling every day. I have itching off and on on my fingers and toes. I also have a herniated disc, scoliosis and spinal stenosis. I have pain in my right foot which they are telling me I have arthritis and a collapsed arch. My sister also has joint pain and so does my brother. At times I feel very weak. I have occasional chest pain, am sensitive to bright lights and feel sick when I get hot. My ANA test is never normal. I have redness in the upper part of my fingernails and toenails. All blood test I’ve had done come back normal except my ANA. The doctor told me I don’t have fibromyalgia because I have no trigger points.
[Read more…]

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Patient took matters into her own hands

May 24, 2012 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I have arthritis in my feet and hands but never let it slow me down. I became semi-crippled after being put on simvastatin. I didn’t complain to the doctor. I cannot tolerate pain killers, so I spent hours each day off my feet on a large heating paid. I’m not young, of Scottish ancestry, and raised to be stoic. I’m the widow of a nuclear scientist who died in his mid 50s. He moved us 23 times and I had six children.

I never told my oldest PhD/MD/OB/GYN son but but after reading your column in the Journal Inquirer, I stopped using the statin of my own accord and that saved my life. Within a few days the excruciating pain that would have staggered a lesser person was gone. At age 92 ½ I have a lot of pain in my mid spine but I just soldier on. I am doing my own landscape cleanup, am an old-fashioned New England housekeeper and live alone. [Read more…]

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Simple remedy for fibromyalgia

April 10, 2012 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia seven years ago and went to a clinic at a local hospital where I was evaluated by a doctor and a naturopath. The doctor put me on a clinical trial of vitamin B injections and the naturopath recommended a supplement of magesium/malic acid.

I experienced relief quite quickly and thought it was due to the “miracle” injections; however, I had to discontinue them. For the past six years I have continued to take the malic acid/magnesium supplements daily and have found that they alleviate all my pain. Occasionally I will run out of supplements and after three days the pain will start to creep in again. I had previously been on many sleep and pain medications which made me a walking zombie. Avoiding sugar and alcohol also helps.
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Rare side effect causes intense pain

March 27, 2012 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: This is to warn people with poor bone density of the severe side effects of taking a Reclast injection.

I have poor bone density and was advised by my doctor to have a Reclast injection. This would supposedly help rebuild my bone density. I was provided with a pamphlet that said a person might get fluid symptoms or joint pains that might last from one to two weeks. As of today, four months later, the pain remains and has turned my life into a living hell and me into a recluse. I was once an active 83-year-old woman who enjoyed going on trips and riding my stationary bike five miles, three times a week. Now, I am an 83-year-old who is limited to making short trips to the store, doctor and church and can no longer ride my bike because of the amount of pain I am in. [Read more…]

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Reader taking 10 times more than recommended

February 20, 2012 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: Now 67, I’ve suffered with “pings” of sharp pain in my shoulders for three years. I could hear and feel the tendons and muscles pop when I moved or reached for something. My uncle, 94, claims to have “not an ache or pain” and recommended I take 40,000 units of vitamin D3 daily. I tried 20,000 with no results. I tried 30,000 with some relief. I tried 40,000 units and am mostly symptom free. I had been to MDs, chiropractors and had acupuncture and massages all with little or no results. What might have been my diagnosis? Are there any long-term side effects from this seemingly high dose?

DEAR READER: Vitamin D is fat soluble and found naturally in very few foods (fish liver oil, fatty fish, beef liver, cheese, and egg yolks). It is best known for promoting calcium absorption, but also maintains adequate blood calcium and phosphate levels, [Read more…]

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Wife concerned about husband’s pain and sleeplessness

November 19, 2011 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: My husband enjoys reading your articles. He thought he had cut one out for future information but cannot find it. He has muscle pain more than joint pain, hot flashes, insomnia, and sometimes what he calls “no legs” as he cannot feel them in the sense of walking.

He is 60 years old and has a very physical job. He works out with weights for his upper body and has for years. He is using prescribed testosterone cream trying to maintain strength. He takes blood pressure medication and it is under control. He takes cholesterol meds, Tramadol and Ambien. He is so bad he can hardly talk or walk from the shaking but yet his face feels hot to the touch only on his head. He worries a lot.
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Joint and muscle pain caused by allergies

October 4, 2011 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I am 75 years old and have what I believe is muscle and joint pain caused by allergies, similar to the lady that wrote you a while back. For me it happens mostly in the fall but when the aches and pain come, I just take antihistamines until the first freeze and then all is okay. This note is only to tell you that there are more like her out there.

DEAR DR. GOTT: Sometime ago you had an article about muscle and joint pain caused by allergies. Well, I am one of those people. This has been going for many years and I have been to so many doctors and have had many tests but everyone tells me there is nothing wrong, it’s probably my imagination. I also have told all the doctors I have been to that after I take an antihistamine, I have relief. No one believes me.
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Severe joint pain has multiple causes

August 13, 2011 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I’m a 34-year-old male who suffers from severe joint pain. The sharp and sometimes aching pains started in my teenage years and have gradually worsened. At first it was primarily a problem with my shoulders, and even then, only when I had done something to set it off like splitting wood for a few hours.

By my mid-20s the pain had spread to other joints, most noticeably my hips. I noticed the pain wasn’t always set off by some extreme event or workout but rather simple tasks. Holding my infant daughter for any length of time would be enough to cause my shoulder to hurt for a day or more. Now I suffer from nearly constant pain in my shoulder, hips and knees.
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