I have been having health issues all summer & the tests are all coming back okay (but with female issues unrelated). It is very frustrating & I am confused as to what the problem is. I am 33 and am never sick – I have been healthy forever, haven't even seen the doctor for like 3 years before this began. Got a cold, then the flu in May. June comes & I have this shoulder/neck pain (that keeps going away & coming back), 5 days later I had a horrible fever & torso pain that I went to urgent care, which I ended up being told was a severe kidney infection and my WBC in my blood was pretty high. I took Cipro for 3 weeks. This was the end of June. Since then I have had weight loss (15% of my body weight – I have been trying to lose weight for years & this weight comes off without even trying or exercising [besides my normal yoga] or changing my eating habits]), heart palpitations (I had sinus tachychardia when I was pregnant 15 years ago, stress on the body I was told, now it's back), severe fatigue (having trouble staying awake driving), no urge to urinate (may be related to the ovarian cyst & prolapse uterus [?I think that's what the nurse said?]?) — only peeing half as much as used to, periodic WBCs & RBCs in urine, sometimes burns when I pee, even though I lost weight my rings are too tight–I'm swelling, periodic low grade fevers (never go over 100), then there is the HORRID constant rib pain that keeps getting worse. It feels like it is going right through my abdomen, but originates in my back. It feels like something is pushing on the back of my ribs & that it's swollen. The doctor & my husband said it looks minimally swollen. This is the area between the 9th & 11th rib on my left side in my back. Laying on the left side or leaning back in a chair is NOT possible, it hurts too much. Now with my shoulder hurting again, it feels like the pain is going right up my left side, although the shoulder thing might be unrelated.
What tests I had done already: CBC, Thyroid, neck & chest & rib x-rays, CT scan stone protocol, CT scan abdomen & pelvis with constrast, IVP & bone scan, some cancer urine test, anemia test, urinalysis, pelvic ultrasound.
What I DON'T have: no thyroid issues, no anemia, no broken bones on x-rays (was told maybe the bone scan would find something), no kidney stones, no fibroids, no leukemia, no cancer (yipee!!!), no problems with organs (originally thought kidney/kidney stone or spleen issue), no UTI...
What they DID find so far (haven't gotten the bone scan results back yet): a 2.5 cm ovarian cyst on the ultrasound & uterine prolapse (I think that's what she said??) on the CT with contrast.
Any ideas as to what is causing this pain??? I hate being on pain killers & am getting frustrated & depressed about what the problem is... Maybe they will never figure it out....
You should stop taking Cipro. It sounds to me like you're having a bad reaction to the drug. I took this drug two years ago when I was 25 and it gave me the same symptoms that you described. I ended up in the hospital because of it. They told me I had a kidney infection too but then all my tests came back normal. I had difficulty breathing, pain in my ribs, rapid heart beat, fatigue, joint pain, numbness/tingling in my arms and legs, painful/frequent urination, ringing in my ears. It might take a long time for the side effects to go away. I stopped cipro while I was still sick and it took about one year for the side effects to disappear. And if it happens that you do have fibro you shouldn't be taking cipro anyway because it destroys muscle tissue.
I only took that Cipro for 3 weeks. That was in June. I did ask my doctor if that would be a side effect, but most of the problems started after I was done with taking it.
They ended up finding out that I had colitis. That was the cause of the weight loss. I had a horrible time with the colonoscopy/EGD that I had. It sucked. I didn't have diarrhea though, although I did have blood in the stool. THAT is probably from the Cipro.
Thing is, I am PRETTY sure it was a kidney infection. Although I had no burning with urination, I had the shakes, high fever & very dark cloudy urine. When they tested it, it was positive. My wbc count was 17. I was pretty ill. And the Cipro did work.
But now I am in a lot of pain. I had OMT by an osteo off & on. I have been doing physical therapy. The PT said that lactic acid sits in the muscles & causes these lumps, trigger points. Myofascial pain, I guess. She pushes on the spots & boy it is so painful. But, if it will work, I will do it. I do stretches twice a day along with my yoga. Then I do PT twice a week.
I did go to a rheumatologist when I was young who told me I was going to arthritis problems when I got older. I thought that was strange. But now I am totally wondering what my problem is. This myofascial pain sounds like it. I hope it's fixed soon!
I did look that up & had looked at it before, but it says to STOP taking them if that begins, & I wasn't taking it when it started hurting. Now they think I have scoliosis & a rib out (being hypermobile certainly doesn't help).
I seriously doubt it was the Cipro that caused this chronic pain. I have even discussed it with my osteo & he said it wouldn't cause this pain I have.
to tell you the truth, the part that caught my eye was the part where Cipro can cause joint damage in children.... logic would dictate that although not as common, it would be possible that joint damage could also occur in adults......... you did mention something about being told you were going to have arthritic problems, and it does specify to tell your doctor if you've ever had arthritic problems before taking Cipro......... problem is, you may have already had arthritis and not realized it, and the Cipro aggravated it............ if your're in this much pain, and they can't figure it out, a 2nd opinion couldn't hurt, either........
I have had a second opinion. I saw a general surgeon when they thought I had colon cancer (which ended up being colitis) & he didn't think it was arthritis. The D.O. (osteo) thinks it's because my joints are hypermobile & my rib is slopping around. The PT thinks I have scoliosis & thoracic spine issues along with trigger points & muscle knots & a rib out of place. A different general surgeon I saw thought it might be arthritis of the rib (which I originally thought was strange, but not as much anymore....). So who knows. The PT also was wondering about my WBC count & if I have had a CBC lately. I am wondering why she would say that. I should have asked. I had the CBC done in July. Would it show something now that it didn't show then?
I never did realize I had arthritic problems before taking Cipro. I have taken it before, I think. I had lots of problems with UTIs in the past, years ago. My mother takes it all the time, too. I saw a rheumatologist in high school (diagnosed with tendonitis of the ankle) who said I was going to have arthritis. That was it. Never had problems again with pain (besides childbirth & normal bruises & strains & stuff like that) until about 7 years ago when I had SIJ pain, started doing yoga & dealing with it. Now this horrid rib/back/shoulder pain. Palpitations. Weight Loss (from colitis). Dizziness (from inner ear issue, I believe).
I truly trust my PCP. She's very caring & concerned. It's just that she is confused as to my problem, and to be honest, it was slightly better before physical therapy, but now it is so painful again, I can't take enough pain meds. I am sure she could help me, but I can't ever get in to see her since they changed the office over to a completely digital office, she only sees like 8 patients a day & I want to talk to HER. I have called for an appt & can't get one. Was told to go to urgent care. Did that & it's just not like being able to talk to her, they don't understand all my issues.
So I am lost... given tons of diagnosises, that all seem to be wrong & I am lost & unsure where to go from here....
