Lupus question...?

Hello. For awhile now I have been expieriencing symptoms that almost match the symptoms of Lupus. I am 15 years old. My doctor did the lab work, and everything came back pretty unremarkable, although he thinks that Lupus is still a stong possibility. He is sending me to see a rhuematologist tomorow, to further evaluate me. Is it possible to have Lupus, but have it not show up in lab work? Any info is appreciated. Thanks

Hi I'm Chris, I have Lupus. For quite a long time they suspected Lupus, but my blood work was confusing them, because it was nothing very remarkable most of the time. escpecially early on. The first few rounds of test given to detect any autoimmune disease were negative, though I did meet 4 of 11 critera (I will add at end) for Lupus. In fact you do need four of 11 to meet the critera to have Lupus. about 5-10% never have the positive blood work. I did eventually. Even now mine can go from positive to negative, depending on disease activity, time of year, or even in some people day to day. On the other hand, some healthy people will come back positive all the time. Lupus is tricky and called the great imposter, it looks like many different illnesses, and different times. I started having symptoms a bit younger than you, but was not diagnosed until my late 20's.

I know several teens with Lupus, because i own a Lupus autoimmune support group, and they all handle it and have it to varying degrees. So if you do have it, I hope you have a good family support team.
Ill give you the diagnostic critera. They will really be looking at the blood work, but if any of the other diagnostic critera is very pronounced and the rhuemotologist is any good, they will either diagnosis it, or give you a possible or probable Lupus diagnosis and see what happens, and may start you on a antimalarial drug called plaquinil for several months to see how you respond, or even prednison (a steroid).

Diagnostic criteria for lupus
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Last Updated: June 29, 2004
Diagnostic criteria for lupus
The following criteria are used to distinguish lupus (systemic lupus erythematosus, or SLE) from other autoimmune and rheumatic diseases.

A person with 4 of these 11 conditions can be diagnosed with lupus; 3 symptoms suggest that lupus is probably present, and 2 raise the possibility of lupus. Symptoms may be present all at once or appear in succession over a period of time. 1

Butterfly (malar) rash on cheeks
Rash on face, arms, neck, torso (discoid rash)
Skin rashes that result from exposure to sunlight or ultraviolet light (photosensitivity)
Mouth or nasal ulcers, usually painless
Joint swelling, stiffness, pain involving two or more joints (arthritis)
Inflammation of the membranes surrounding the lungs (pleuritis) or heart (pericarditis). This inflammation is called serositis.
Abnormalities in urine, such as increased protein or clumps of red blood cells or kidney cells, called cell casts, in the urine
Nervous system problems, such as seizures or psychosis, without known cause
Problems with the blood, such as reduced numbers of red blood cells (anemia), platelets, or white blood cells
Positive antinuclear antibody (ANA) test
Signs of increased autoimmunity (antibodies against normal tissue), as shown by laboratory tests
References

It does sometimes happen that blood work can be negative in the early stages of lupus. Please read up on this topic below. I think it will answer your questions and there's also a list of questions to ask the doctor, next time you visit:

http://pain.health.ivillage.com/fibromya...

Yes it is and it happens quite often. If you do in fact receive a diagnoses of Lupus it is not a death sentence. I was diagnosed 10 years ago. I would be happy to share with you my experiences etc.

Hello, your question really interested me because my daughter has been going through alot of things and they thought she had lupus to. she also is 15. this all started with very painful periods so bad that she couldn't do anything then she was told she had emdometreosis . then as things progressed she kept getting weaker and weaker then the rhumatologist told her she had chronic fatigue ,and fybromyalgia he recommended she see a endocrinologist and they found that her adrenal glands were not functioning properly i do not no what e are in for next but if any of these symptoms sound familiar i would tell your doc.

fatigue,nausea, headaches, dizzy,body aches, low blood pressure, hypoglycemia, always feeling like you just cannot go on that you have to lie down alot.

Good luck, lorlor