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I had liver tests done a few months ago (before my health coverage was cancelled) and all my liver tests were fine.
I have lower right rib area pain. It's hurt for a few days. It makes me nervous.
I keep thinking if mino 3x a week for a year and a half could give me liver damage, then I'd have been dead from the other drugs they give for ra.
Any suggestions? I'm poor, no health insurance…. what tests are necessary?
Jenn
Isn't that where you would have gall bladder pain, too?
I never had liver labs when I took mino daily for acne, or any of the tetracyclines. I took them for years, and they only started doing labs with Accutane. Liver damage from MWF mino would be low on my list to rule out. Is that your only med, or do you have other risk factors?
Good luck and I hope you figure it out and feel better!
Mom of teen daughter with Poly JIA since age 2. Current med: azithromycin 250 mg MWF.
Jenn, I'm no doctor, but I tend to feel as Suzanne does, that right-sided tenderness or pain right under the rib cage 'might' be gall bladder-related…basically from personal experience of this type of pain.
It's such an oft-ignored little organ, but very common to have issues with it when you're female, 40, fertile…called the three F's. You may be younger than 40, but just being a woman, hormonal shifts and having had children predisposes us all to gall stones, sludge and…ultimately, inflammation of the GB. My daughter's 21 year old friend who just had a baby just got dx'd with gall stones due to similar pain she was experiencing.
The lemon and olive oil drink would certainly help to get your GB contracting and moving the bile….and wouldn't hurt trying until you can look into this a bit more and possibly get an ultrasound to see what may be going on. Also, keeping the ol' “eliminations” regular.
I once read that 80% of people (found on autopsy) have gall stones, so this really isn't anything to be alarmed about. My Mum had a cluster of gall stones that was the size of a golf ball on ultrasound that never gave her trouble. It's the sludge and little stones that sometimes get stuck in the bile duct that can cause the back-up. You're already eating well, active and exercising, so if you find it is GB-related, there are GB friendly diets you can follow as well as liver/GB flushing to work towards getting it healthy again….if it is your GB, that is. 😉
Peace, Maz
Hi Jenn,
Sorry to hear about this new development. I've had similar pain, accompanied by nausea and diarrhea on and off for 8 yrs that recently got so severe that I finally went to a GI doctor. So far we've ruled out ulcers and gallstones, but I'm waiting on a CT scan (done 10 days ago-argghh!) for a more definitive dx of a small mass on my liver that they think is a hemangioma, which is harmless. They remove it if it's bigger than 4 cm or causing pain, they are usually asymptomatic. Mine is only 7mm so I'm doubtful that it's causing the problem.
I'm beginning to wonder about autoimmune hepatitis or pancreatitis, but it could also just be good old-fashioned PSA, which can affect the connective tissue around the ribs. However, that doesn't explain the GI symptoms. Any one of these problems could be causing your symptoms, among others. One thing I found in my research is that the liver has to have serious damage for liver function tests to come back abnormal, and usually by that time you have other symptoms like dark colored urine or light or clay colored stools. That's an indicator you can keep track of that's free of charge. Of course, if that happens you will need a liver function panel. I know your insurance dilemma, even with my ins I have over 1,000.00 in medical bills for an endoscopy, ultrasound, labs and CT scan.
Are there any hospitals near you that treat uninsured patients, like a county or university hospital? If not, you may have to wait and see if the symptoms continue or worsen before you see a doctor. I can empathize with your dilemma, one of the reasons I moved to AZ was because of their HIPAA law that prohibits denying coverage to anyone based on pre-existing conditions- but they don't regulate the premiums, mine are 1,030.00/mo. I think I've talked to you about this before. I thought that my insurance would be terminated if I moved out of state back to my family in TX, but I was wrong. I could have moved back after a year w/out losing my coverage as long as I made all my monthly premiums. My premium will change, hopefully lower, but who knows? Could you move to AZ and work out of your home for a year, then move back to CA?
I hope these symptoms are temporary, and also that we elect someone who will tackle this health care problem so we can all focus on getting well instead of stressing about medical bills.
Hi Linda,
Could you tell me what PSA stands for? Some of the abbreviations that people use are not in the abrreviation section of the RB board. Thank you.
Patti D.
Jenn – whilst I am not medically qualified, I tend to agree with Suzanne and Maz and Linda. Given that your tests were fine a few months ago, it is highly unlikely that you have liver problems from mino……it is such a benign drug and you are pulse dosing. It could even be some connective tissue issues around your rib cage……at one stage with my palindromic RA, my connective tisue hurt there. Why not try a little pain relief medication first? If that helps, then it's probably not your liver. After that, I'd maybe take up Mazs suggestion of gall bladder remedies.
Be well! Lynnie
Palindromic RA 30 yrs (Chronic Lyme?)
Mino 2003-2008 100mg MWF - can no longer tolerate any tetracyclines
rotating abx protocol now. From Sep 2018 MWF - a.m. Augmentin Duo 440mg + 150mg Biaxsig (roxithromycin). p.m. Cefaclor (375mg) + Klacid 125mg + LDN 3mg + Annual Clindy IV's
Diet: no gluten, dairy, sulphites, low salicylates
Supps: 600mg N-AC BID, 1000mg Vit C, P5P 40mg, zinc picolinate 60mg, Lithium orotate 20mg, Magnesium Oil, Bio-identical hormones (DHEA + Prog + Estrog)Sorry Patti, we should have a page for all of our abbreviations. PsA is psoriatic arthritis. A few others:
FMS- fibromyalgia
RA-rheumatoid arthritis
MCTD-mixed connective tissue disease
AS-ankylosing spondylitis
SLE-systemic lupus erythematosis(sp?)
SD-scleroderma
abx-antibiotics
rx-prescription
dx-diagnosis, disease (I'm not sure which one)
mtx-methotrexateI'm sure there's more but that's all I can think of right now.
???We have an abbreviation section??? I honestly had no idea! :blush:
Well, the connective tissue pain thing sounds the most likely. I had my gall bladder removed three years ago, so I know it's not that. If I push on my rib.. the last one there at the bottom right- it hurts pretty bad. The pain stays pretty intense when I'm foolish enough to try it! So, I'll lay off the rib and I guess it makes sense that it would be a connective tissue thingy. Man- I hope a health care loving Democrat gets in this time. I'm pretty much at the mercy of the universe at this point. Any single Canadians here? French? British folks.. Just asking…:roll-laugh:
Jenn
Hi Jenn,
LOL Sorry I can't help – I'm a dual national Brit/Canuck, but that's about as far as it goes.
Let's hope it's just a transitory connective tissue thing or even a herx symptom, seeing as you've already had your GB removed. 😉
This may not relate to you either, but apparently there are occasions when it's possible to have GB type pain after removal. This can occur when scar tissue from the removal builds up around the sphincter of oddi and disrupts bile flow, causing a kind of backwash. Sometimes it takes several years for this scar tissue to become a problem. If the pain persists and is really concerning you, this could be something to have checked out, although it wouldn't be visible on ultrasound and usually takes an ERCP scope to figure it out and recify. As I say, it's pretty unlikely as your liver tests were fine, but just something to consider if nothing else makes sense.
Hope you feel better soon, Jenn.
Peace, Maz
Hi Jenn,
I can identify with not wanting to touch ribs. I've had trouble with rib cage pain, that is for sure. The only thing that has helped is Elavil. I guess that's what is helping anyway. But it has slowed down from an overwhelming huge flare to a very background simmer. But I have several other factors involved. I keep telling myself to change one variable at a time, but with medicines that take so long to act, it's hard to define what's doing what.
Here's a summary of what various specialists have told me in the last months regarding rib pain:
General doc: It's RA
AP doc: Its connective tissue
rheumatologists: It's not part of RA and they look puzzled.
pulmonologist: It's radiating pain from gastritis caused by NSAIDS
pain specialist: It's fibromyalgia
massage therapist: It's ribs out of alignment as they connect to the spine
chiropractor: It's not ribs out of alignment, but no reason provided.
:headbang:I think the suggestions above to try an NSAID first is good. When I started a mino break and started Elavil is when this pain started to recede.
Please note, I took the mino break because the herxing was so overwhelming I couldn't proceed. It doesn't sound like you have had herxing like this in a while. A couple of other people have had rib pain in the lower ribs. I noticed JBJB had some herxing in the rib cage from the IV. I certainly did, too.I will be restarting minocin soon. Once my job duties calm down for summer break. 😯
It will be a test to Elavil and Benicar.
Hang in there Jenn,
MicheleMaz, I am having this same pain and would appreciate it if you would elaborate on what type of flushes one can do to keep the GB healthy? Also, should it be monitored by a dr. or is it relatively safe to perform on one's own?
[user=411]magsmc[/user] wrote:
Maz, I am having this same pain and would appreciate it if you would elaborate on what type of flushes one can do to keep the GB healthy? Also, should it be monitored by a dr. or is it relatively safe to perform on one's own?
I did a liver flush on my own for the biliary colic I was getting a few years ago and it completely resolved it. However, I am just a fellow patient and looking back in retrospect my feeling now is that it's always a good idea to see your doc, first, to figure out if the pain you're experiencing is gall bladder-related, as there can be many other reasons for right-sided pain under the ribs.
If your pain is related to gall-bladder stones/sludge/sluggish function, then seeing a naturopath or integrative physician who would monitor your progress while liver flushing would be a good idea. There is an informative yahoogroup I joined at the time I did my flush, called, “gallstones,” and they have a number of very experienced flushers there who can share more info with you:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/gallstones/?v=1&t=search&ch=web&pub=groups&sec=group&slk=1
There are quite a few variations of flushes that one can try, but the one I decided on is outlined here:
http://www.ghchealth.com/liver-and-gallbladder-cleanse.html
They've changed up the protocol a bit with their various products since I did my flushing, but it's essentially the same. Looking after the liver and gall bladder is a life-style change in terms of eating a liver/GB-friendly diet (good fats only) and supporting these organs with supplements (like flax seed oil, lecithin, probiotics, milk thistle, etc).
Another site with lots of liver/GB flushing info is: http://www.curezone.com
Definitely recommend seeing your doc first for answers to the pain…then deciding from there, with the help of a naturopath or other do who will guide you through the process and monitor you.
All the best, Magsmc, and hope you find your answers soon!
Peace, Maz
Hi Jenn,
I have this type of pain, mine started under the bottom right rib, and then more recently I get pain in my back too at the same point.
It goes away (gradually) when I stop taking NSAIDS (voltarol, celebrex, etc), so I'm pretty sure it's a duodenal ulcer, or at the least gastritis caused by the NSAIDS.
My rheumatologist says it's an ulcer when the pain goes through from front to back, but I did have a gastroscopy that didn't find anything. (Although I had been off the NSAIDS for 6 weeks at that point, so it may have healed.)
I've also had a scan of my gallbladder that found nothing, so I can probably rule that out too.
I would say a good way to figure it out for sure would be to take some anti-inflammatories for a week or two (voltarol, celebrex, ibuprofen or similar) and see whether the pain gets worse or better. Worse may mean gastritis or an ulcer, and better would probably mean connective tissue inflammation – although I'm no doctor obviously!
If the pain gets worse, you may want to get checked for h. pylori infection in the stomach, as you don't seem to be taking any drugs that would bring on a stomach ulcer. Although some people are just more susceptible than others. I got my stomach ulcer from 20 years of anti-inflammatories, along with steroids, so it wasn't exactly surprising!
All the best, ruth
Hi Jenn,
Although like me, you have been on AP for a while and may know better. However, I have experienced similar rib cage pain due to herxing. Could this pain be due to herxing? Did you ever injure that rib / area before? I can only correlate my rib cage herxing pain to an earlier basketball injury.
Randy
Diffuse SD since Apr '07
AP since Feb '08
100mg Mino twice daily
Stopped Clindamycin IVs Aug 2019
"No one should profit over someone else's illness"
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