HealthCareMagic is now Ask A Doctor - 24x7 | https://www.askadoctor24x7.com

Get your health question answered instantly from our pool of 18000+ doctors from over 80 specialties
159 Doctors Online

By proceeding, I accept the Terms and Conditions

Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

HCM Blog Instant Access to Doctors
HCM BlogQuestions Answered
HCM Blog Satisfaction

What Causes Poor Mobility In The Righ Shoulder?

A year ago my daughter had loss of range of motion in her right shoulder. She did physical therapy for 3 months and finally she was able to regain complete range of motion. Not sure if therapy was the reason. Two months later her left shoulder began feeling tight and hurting. Again she went to physical therapy. The tightness began getting worse instead of better. She went to a family practitioner who was going to refer her to a neurologist but did blood work first. Her ana came back positive with a reading 1200. He did additional testing but said all came back negative and recommended she see a rheumatologist. What does a positive ANA mean?
Mon, 14 Aug 2017
Report Abuse
  User's Response
Hi there -

I'm sorry to hear about your daughter's troubles. First of all, a positive ANA can have a number of causes. It is a very non-specific test that can come up positive without necessarily being associated with a disease. Most commonly, it is associated with an autoimmune disease called lupus, in which the body attacks it's own organs and blood vessels. I don't think a neurologist would be helpful here, and I agree that a rheumatologist is the correct person to see. A rheumatologist can order more blood tests that can nail down the diagnoses of lupus.

Given your daughter's history of shoulder problems, and an elevated ANA level, I'd be worried she might have rheumatoid arthritis. A rheumatologist can help diagnose and treat this. If she gets the right treatment, she can still have a very normal and functional life, but she needs the right person treating her, which is a rheumatologist and not a neurologist in this case.

I hope this is helpful. Feel free to contact me if you have any further questions!
I find this answer helpful
Note: For further follow up on related General & Family Physician Click here.
Disclaimer: These answers are for your information only and not intended to replace your relationship with your treating physician.
This is a short, free answer. For a more detailed, immediate answer, try our premium service [Sample answer]
Share on
 

Related questions you may be interested in


Loading Online Doctors....
What Causes Poor Mobility In The Righ Shoulder?

Hi there - I m sorry to hear about your daughter s troubles. First of all, a positive ANA can have a number of causes. It is a very non-specific test that can come up positive without necessarily being associated with a disease. Most commonly, it is associated with an autoimmune disease called lupus, in which the body attacks it s own organs and blood vessels. I don t think a neurologist would be helpful here, and I agree that a rheumatologist is the correct person to see. A rheumatologist can order more blood tests that can nail down the diagnoses of lupus. Given your daughter s history of shoulder problems, and an elevated ANA level, I d be worried she might have rheumatoid arthritis. A rheumatologist can help diagnose and treat this. If she gets the right treatment, she can still have a very normal and functional life, but she needs the right person treating her, which is a rheumatologist and not a neurologist in this case. I hope this is helpful. Feel free to contact me if you have any further questions!