- Location
- pennsylvania
hello my name is joe, I have found out that I have erosions in the proximal section of my small intestine via capsule endoscopy. I have also had other scopes which were negative. the tests were done due to anemia. the doctore ordered blood work for some antibodies. one had elevated values but only in the moderate range. I have other arthritic and joint issues and have not worked in almost two years. about 8 years ago is when my right upper quadrant pain first appeared. at first it was just nagging. after it became worse I had my gallbladder removed. I was told to expect a little of the pain for a while. the pain never went away. for years I had the pain. and found that eating fatty foods made worse so I changed my diet. soon more and more foods caused the pain. which I now describe as almost constant and aching. I seem to have it most all the time. sometimes it makes me feel bloated. and very uncomfortable. I haven't got a diagnosis of either disease yet. however my rheumatologist just recently ordered a new med. sulfasalazine. he told me this is going to eventually. fix everything. he told me it will get rid of my abd pain and joint and muscle pain. I am a little skeptical. since I have just had arthroscopic surgery on both hips. and have knees and feet that hurt more than my hips. I am 49 years old and have always been active. I am a nurse so I worked on my feet all day. the way I feel now is that I will never be able to do bedside nursing again. with all my aches and pains I don't know what I will do in the future. does anybody else have experience with ibd and arthritis and used this medication? can anybody give me some advice on minimizing the abdominal pain? I have tried to narrow down what foods. even tried gluten free. then dairy products started effecting me. as a nurse I learned to really learn about something is to ask and listen to those who know. the patient. thank you.