Arthritis

[fruitsalad]

I know I have Arthritis in my lower back, and hands, recently it's been waking me in the night and I have a dull aching pain in my toes, elbows and knees, and sometimes my hip, so I feel its gradually moving into different areas of my body, is there anything apart from MRI that can confirm these aches and pains are Arthritis.

[bednobs]

blood tests will tell you if its ra.
simple xrays can show up arthritis

[fruitsalad]

I've had blood tests for RA bednobs it's not that although my Grandmother suffered with RA mine is definitely osteoarthritis, as an mri scan showed it was osteoarthritis in my lower back, I would just like to know how bad its getting in other areas of my body, without an mri if, there is another way of knowing.

[Sqad]

There is no other way other than by X-Rays, conventional or MRI.

[Ringlet]

Maybe ask your doctor about Polymyalgia Rheumatica. This can affect different areas of the body and cause pain similar to arthritis. It is a disorder of the immune system and can be successfully treated with cortico steroid tablets