Blood test for RA/ Rheumatoid Disease Archives | Page 2 of 3 | Rheumatoid Arthritis Warrior

4 Benefits of a New ACPA Rheumatoid Arthritis Test

October 3, 2012May 14, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 9 Comments Blood test for RA/ Rheumatoid Disease, Research on Rheumatoid Arthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis test

IS there a reliable Rheumatoid Arthritis Test? One question I often answer is about tests for Rheumatoid Arthritis. (Actually, one of the videos that was lost addressed that question! See Postblog below!) The short answer is “There is no RA test.” RA is diagnosed and monitored based on a combination of tools, including several tests....Continue reading 9 Comments » Read more

A Paradigm Shift in Rheumatoid Arthritis Disease Activity? Part 3

October 17, 2011May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 59 Comments Blood test for RA/ Rheumatoid Disease, Measuring rheumatoid disease activity, Patient reported outcome measure, Research on Rheumatoid Arthritis

In Part 1, we pointed out that patients and clinicians look at Rheumatoid Arthritis disease activity in different ways. Rheumatologists especially focus on joints, and actually particular kinds of joint activity. Patients face much more with regard to disease activity, as reflected in the post and comments page. In Part 2, we looked at two specific...Continue reading 59 Comments » Read more

Rheumatoid Arthritis News Articles Vol.4: Lifetime Risk of RA, Home RA Tests, Atherosclerosis & RA

January 7, 2011May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 16 Comments Blood test for RA/ Rheumatoid Disease, Research on Rheumatoid Arthritis, Rheumatoid arthritis and heart, Video or podcast

3 Big RA news articles right now 1) News from Mayo Clinic about lifetime risk of developing Rheumatoid Arthritis Mayo is gathering important data on Rheumatoid Arthritis that has not been known before. We looked at one Mayo Clinic report last summer showing the incidence of RA is higher than expected and increasing in women. My readers...Continue reading 16 Comments » Read more

All I Want for Christmas Is My CRP

December 3, 2010May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 35 Comments Blood test for RA/ Rheumatoid Disease, CRP, Research on Rheumatoid Arthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis Clinical Trials, Talking to doctors

I thought I’d finally gotten out of Rheumatoid Arthritis / CRP purgatory, but I was wrong. I got an early Christmas present after I got back from the ACR meeting, I got a certified letter from my rheum doc. It said I couldn’t have any more Actemra infusions because my insurance company would not pay properly. It...Continue reading 35 Comments » Read more

Rheumatoid Arthritis Test: Some Funny Factors

July 13, 2010May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 15 Comments Blood test for RA/ Rheumatoid Disease, Humor with RA, Living with chronic illness like RA

Oh finally, the real "RA test”! The other day, I picked up my lab test results. Because of new insurance, I’d been sent to a new lab. New procedures. New forms. New nightmare parking lot. I’m such an RA geek I start reading my blood test results the minute they are handed to me while walking out the...Continue reading 15 Comments » Read more

Rheumatoid Factor Test: Should We Rely on Rheumatoid Factor Levels?

March 23, 2010May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 37 Comments Blood test for RA/ Rheumatoid Disease, CRP, Rheumatoid Arthritis test

The Rheumatoid factor test is not the only way to diagnose RA It can be frustrating to read about the different ways that people interpret a Rheumatoid factor test. It seems there are still some doctors who think Rheumatoid factor levels are sufficient to diagnose Rheumatoid Arthritis. If you meet an RA specialist like that, I...Continue reading 37 Comments » Read more

Blood Tests for Rheumatoid Arthritis, part 2

August 27, 2009May 17, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 79 Comments Blood test for RA/ Rheumatoid Disease, CRP, Measuring rheumatoid disease activity, Rheumatoid Arthritis diagnosis

Many people with active RA have “normal” test results In my last post, I posed the question: Is There a Blood Test for Rheumatoid Arthritis? I told you that the answer is yes – and no. I went on to describe the “yes” by summarizing four principal blood tests used in diagnosing Rheumatoid Arthritis. Now it...Continue reading 79 Comments » Read more