I love my rheumatologist!
Oct. 11th, 2005 11:53 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
averygoodun42I'm not a fan of Western medicine. I don't like going to the doctor, and try to avoid it whenever possible. Yesterday, however, I developed a rash that really concerned me (being similar to a rash I had back when I was ten, right before I was diagnosed with MCTD) especially considering that it was on the shoulder that's been hurting more and more. I got an appointment for this morning with my Primary, and the person who saw me diagnosed the rash as contact dermatitis, even though I haven't been in contact with anything new or suspicious (and the rash wasn't on the arm that guy touched). I didn't agree with the diagnosis, but hey, I'm not a doctor, now am I?
Anyway, my rheumatologist is in the building across the street from my primary, so I decided that instead of calling in, as I had planned to do, I would walk over and see if anyone (the nurse) was there, and if she had an opinion on whether this was a Lupus rash or not. When I got there, it turned out my doctor was in (though not technically, as she wasn't going to start seeing patients again until tomorrow. I told her that I was worried that I might be going into a flare because my shoulder was hurting, painkillers weren't helping and then that rash appeared. She waved me back into the exam room, donned her white coat and set about examining me, while flirting with Babe.
Everything was going fine, though she noticed my purple hands and asked if I was getting enough (!) salt in my diet, then she looked at my rash and said, "This is so cool! You've got shingles!" She started grinning madly and lifted my arm again to look at the blisters, shaking her head, still smiling, and saying, "Perfect! This is so perfect!" She then went about finding a book with a picture to show me how perfect an example my rash was, and how perfectly it was contained within the areas proscribed by that type. She then told me she needed to fetch her camera from her car to take pictures, while the nurse called my primary to see what meds and dosage I needed to take (shingles isn't exactly up a rheumatologists alley, afterall). Doc came back and was genuinely disappointed she didn't have fresh batteries for her camera.
I love it when doctors not only find me an interesting case (which they frequently do) but are enthusiastic about their interest. In this case I got a laugh I desperately needed.
The good news is that because of my concern the (correct) diagnosis was made within the 48 hour window that allows the medication to be effective. I didn't even know there was such a thing as an anti-viral med, but it turns out shingles is one of the ten out there. Bad news is that the pills are the biggest horsepills I have ever laid eyes on. And they're blue. The very bad news is that Babe could get the chickenpox from me. The good news about that, though, is that chickenpox is a disease best gotten when young. (And at least he won't have to get the vaccine, which is of questionable immunological merit considering CP is only rarely deadly, and then usually due to complications from other pre-existing health conditions. He can get the shingles vaccine when they develop that, instead.)
So anyway, hopefully the pain in my shoulder is just from the virus and it will go away as soon as the pills start working.
And best of all, no Lupus rash means no prednisone! YAY!!!!!!!
Anyway, my rheumatologist is in the building across the street from my primary, so I decided that instead of calling in, as I had planned to do, I would walk over and see if anyone (the nurse) was there, and if she had an opinion on whether this was a Lupus rash or not. When I got there, it turned out my doctor was in (though not technically, as she wasn't going to start seeing patients again until tomorrow. I told her that I was worried that I might be going into a flare because my shoulder was hurting, painkillers weren't helping and then that rash appeared. She waved me back into the exam room, donned her white coat and set about examining me, while flirting with Babe.
Everything was going fine, though she noticed my purple hands and asked if I was getting enough (!) salt in my diet, then she looked at my rash and said, "This is so cool! You've got shingles!" She started grinning madly and lifted my arm again to look at the blisters, shaking her head, still smiling, and saying, "Perfect! This is so perfect!" She then went about finding a book with a picture to show me how perfect an example my rash was, and how perfectly it was contained within the areas proscribed by that type. She then told me she needed to fetch her camera from her car to take pictures, while the nurse called my primary to see what meds and dosage I needed to take (shingles isn't exactly up a rheumatologists alley, afterall). Doc came back and was genuinely disappointed she didn't have fresh batteries for her camera.
I love it when doctors not only find me an interesting case (which they frequently do) but are enthusiastic about their interest. In this case I got a laugh I desperately needed.
The good news is that because of my concern the (correct) diagnosis was made within the 48 hour window that allows the medication to be effective. I didn't even know there was such a thing as an anti-viral med, but it turns out shingles is one of the ten out there. Bad news is that the pills are the biggest horsepills I have ever laid eyes on. And they're blue. The very bad news is that Babe could get the chickenpox from me. The good news about that, though, is that chickenpox is a disease best gotten when young. (And at least he won't have to get the vaccine, which is of questionable immunological merit considering CP is only rarely deadly, and then usually due to complications from other pre-existing health conditions. He can get the shingles vaccine when they develop that, instead.)
So anyway, hopefully the pain in my shoulder is just from the virus and it will go away as soon as the pills start working.
And best of all, no Lupus rash means no prednisone! YAY!!!!!!!
