Senior citizen weakness and severe shoulder pain?!
Question: what can cause severe shoulder pain and loss of appetite and weakness in an 80 yr old woman with arthritis and kidney problems and heart problem all of a sudden. she is on many meds and isnt really eating to counteract the meds, especially predisone and taking tylenol for pain. she takes thryroid meds and blood pressure meds and water pill and predisone for arthritis and warfarin.
Answers: what can cause severe shoulder pain and loss of appetite and weakness in an 80 yr old woman with arthritis and kidney problems and heart problem all of a sudden. she is on many meds and isnt really eating to counteract the meds, especially predisone and taking tylenol for pain. she takes thryroid meds and blood pressure meds and water pill and predisone for arthritis and warfarin.
The severe shoulder pain could be a bursitis following an inadequate control of arthritis inflammation. Arthritis medications should be changed.
Prednisone is extremely bad and should not exceed 5 mg per day as it will clog arteries and cause a heart attack.
Warfarin could promote excessive bleeding, I believe.
Antibiotics and Lipitor can both be used to decrease inflammation and reduce the dosage of arthritis medications.
Rheumatic diseases are the result of a defective gene and collagen inflammation, often from a chronic infection. Collagen is present throughout the body, from the eyes, skin and joints to the heart. Hence, the multiplicity of symptoms, depending on the location of the most affected internal organs or body parts.
I have had seronegative rheumatoid arthritis for more than 27 years. The telling signs of seronegative rheumatoid arthritis are the following:
- Joint pain in the feet (or cracking ankles) in the early 20's or late teens;
- Fatigue, especially after a moderate exercise like a 30 minute walk;
- Blood test showing a negative or low level of Rheumatoid Factor (RF);
- Joint deformities of the fingers, after a few years, a specific sign of rheumatoid arthritis;
- Consecutive X-Rays, over several years, showing bone erosion, a consequence of rheumatoid arthritis;
- Generalized arthritis, involving the whole body;
- Blood tests showing elevated levels of C-Reactive Protein (CRP) and Sedimentation rate (ESR).
NSAIDs like Voltaren, COX-2 inhibitors like Celebrex, acetaminophen like Tylenol, and codeine are all used to control inflammation and relieve the pain of arthritis.
Regular exercise like walking, biking and swimming is also helpful for most patients. Make sure that you are not overweight as carrying too much weight can only increase the pain of arthritis in the supporting joints of the hips, knees, ankles and feet.
For any form of arthritis, you should consult an orthopaedist who will order blood tests, joint scans and X-Rays to better diagnose the type of arthritis from which you suffer.
The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons at http://www.aaos.org maintains a public online directory where you can find the address and phone number of orthopaedists who belong to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Orthopaedists are listed by geographic location and family name, inside the USA and in most countries.
The membership directory of the AAOS is located at:
http://www6.aaos.org/about/public/member...
The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons maintains a wealth of information online at:
http://orthoinfo.aaos.org
Lyme disease could be a possibility. Ask your doctor to test you for the bacteria causing Lyme disease.
Are there any other cases of arthritis or rheumatic diseases among your relatives? Chronic forms of arthritis are usually prevalent in families where a defective gene is passed on by parents to their children.
There are a few hundred types of arthritis and rheumatic diseases. The good news is that science is progressing rapidly in its understanding of rheumatic diseases.
Antibiotics are now used to achieve full remissions for at least 40%, if not 65% of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. For more info, please join the antibio group at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/ant...
The severe shoulder pain could mean she has had a fall. With the loss of appetite, weakness can set in fast. Most 80 year olds are on a lot of meds. And due to their either being less active or in pain, they will shut down. Get her in to see her doctor ASAP.
My mother did this a week ago. She is now in a nursing home and may have to stay. I did all her cooking and med set-up. She only needed to take her meds and use the microwave. But, she would only comply when she felt like it. Thus she fell and was banged up pretty good. She is now in wheelchair and very weak.
So please do not wait, have her checked by her doctor.