This is topic Ignorance of drs.-my Rheumatologist appt. for example in forum Medical Questions at LymeNet Flash.


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Posted by one4islands (Member # 28187) on :
 
A little recap about me.

I was diagnosed WB in Sept. by my family dr.

I made an appt to see a Lyme dr. in between I saw 2 ID drs.

The second ID dr. ordered about 20 tests on me, not ruling out Lyme totally but convinced it was some sort of connective tissue disease/vasculitis.

He consulted w/ a Rheumatologist and Sjogren's came up.

I was given an appt. with a Rheumatologist in two months. (I have been seeing my Lyme dr. since the end of November).


I saw the Rheumatologist on Monday to see what her thoughts were.

I knew I was jumping the gun, when she said "Lyme is a very misunderstood disease."

I thought, yes it is, go on. Please understand.

Well, the next words out of her mouth made me want to tell her off, but I sat politely and listened.

She said "a diagnosis is made by you pulling a tick off of you, getting a rash and having big, swollen joints-like your knees."

Well obviously because I had not experienced any of those in her eyes I don't have Lyme.

The ding dong ordered all of the tests the ID dr. ordered on me again and included testing for Sjogren's and some other things.

She was also concerned w/ my low WBC and told me that a low WBC is not a sign of Fibromyalgia.

I am quite sure that there are plenty of people who have a low WBC and have Fibromyalgia.

She said sometimes there are varying reports in difference labs and LabCorp results were " a bit funky" reason for repeating.

All tests run by Mayo were negative, with the exception of a pending myositis panel.

I don't plan on seeing her again, I just wanted to see if maybe she agreed with the Lyme diagnosis and if other illnesses were my problem along with the Lyme.

It is frustrating that these drs. can be so blinded.
 
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
 
Pretty pathetic! [shake]

Low WBC is indicative of ehrlichiosis. Were they smart enough to test you for that one?
 
Posted by 5vforest (Member # 29365) on :
 
As long as you're not paying out of pocket for all of this, try not to get mad.

At least be thankful that they're covering all of your bases. You're headed in the right direction by yourself, so let them test you as much as they want to. You're welcome to laugh at their stupidity as soon as the appointment is over, and you never know, maybe one of their tests will tell you something.

EDIT: And remember, no steroids!
 
Posted by one4islands (Member # 28187) on :
 
Thankfully I only paid a $40 copay and all labs are covered.

I thought they may uncover something else along with the Lyme, but not as of yet.

I just get so frustrated that none of them believe that it is Lyme except my Lyme dr.

No testing done for Ehrliciosis.

I'll have to ask about that next appt. with Lyme dr.
 
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by one4islands:

No testing done for Ehrliciosis.

I'll have to ask about that next appt. with Lyme dr.

Pretty ignorant doctor then! OH.. but you already knew that!! [Wink]
 
Posted by geo (Member # 18333) on :
 
My rheumatologist told me that I have chronic lyme not requiring further treatment. He went on to say that he has seen many people messed up by antibiotics. Haven't seen him since.
 
Posted by sickntired19 (Member # 21949) on :
 
My rheumy told me for a couple of months that I did indeed have an auto-immune disease, she could see that. But she couldn't ever figure it out.....even with a positive Lyme test right in front of her eyes.

She was crazy. I would spend $400 to have to wait an hour and a half in her office to only see her for 5 min.

This is the problem with having only 1 Rheumatologist in a big town full of drs and hospitals. She was seriously overworked! And overcharging!!!

And to be told over and over that she didn't know what was going on, just wait, it will show up eventually.
 


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