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No help for osteoarthritis or sarcoidosis

Posted By Huatulco

"No help for osteoarthritis or sarcoidosis"

About: Aberdeen Royal Infirmary / Physiotherapy General Practices in Grampian

(as a service user),

GP states there is no help for osteoarthritis or sarcoidosis

An MRI recently confirmed spinal odoema probably caused by constant clicking of my coccyx - probably caused by arthritis, but could be linked to sarcoidosis. Physio responded to my query by saying they couldn't treat clicking; GP said "there is no treatment for osteoarthritis".   All I would like is to be seen by a specialist who can determine if my extremely painful coccyx, spine, feet, hands, feet and ankles are linked to sardcoidosis.   GP is uninterested in joints jumping out of position.   I can't even turn over in bed myself; the clicking starts within 10 minutes of sitting anywhere so I have to constantly lie down.   If anyone can suggest a way to get help from someone who can determine whether sarcoidosis is an element in this I'd be very grateful.

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Responses

Response from Kirsten Dickson, Quality Improvement and Assurance Facilitator, Quality Improvement and Assurance Team, NHS Grampian 3 years ago
Kirsten Dickson
Quality Improvement and Assurance Facilitator, Quality Improvement and Assurance Team,
NHS Grampian

Submitted on 04/02/2021 at 13:53
Published on Care Opinion at 13:53

picture of Kirsten Dickson

Dear Huatulco,

It sounds like you are in a lot of pain and it must be frustrating when it isn’t being resolved.

As with the majority of our services you will need to be referred in through your GP. There are treatments for the conditions you mention but your GP would need to assess you and write a detailed report for referral into the appropriate service. Many services are only processing urgent referrals at the moment - so please bear in mind this may take some time.

I would urge you to go back to your GP and go through your symptoms again. GP’s have different specialist areas and it may be worth asking when you book an appointment if there is a GP in the practice with specialist knowledge of the symptoms you have described – this might not be the one you have already seen.

Most of the GP practices in Grampian are independently run and unfortunately do not access the Care Opinion platform, any concerns you have with your GP practice are best directed to the practice manager.

Take care,

Kirsten (kirsten.dickson@nhs.scot)

  • {{helpful}} {{helpful == 1 ? "person thinks" : "people think"}} this response is helpful

Update posted by Huatulco (a service user)

Many thanks for taking the time to respond.

I think perhaps you have sent me the standard non informative or helpful response from Grampian Region.

I think I am right in believeing that despite whether GP practices in Grampian are independently run or not they have the same duty of care. I am beginning to think that a GP practice being "private" is of more benefit to the people who own it, rather than to patients themselves.

I specifically asked for a review by a specialist due to the ongoing nature of these and other symptoms; and told the GP that I hadn't seen a rheumatologist for around 10-15 years despite having a rare condition. I would have thought that would at least warrant a review by someone with a fuller understanding of possible implications of my clinical presentation. I don't expect every GP to understand the full details of all rare disorders but would have thought a patient presenting with such difficulties would warrant some sort of investigation.

I fully understand the difficulties the current pandemic causes the NHS but it should not be cited as a reason to to fail to offer due care and diligence.

However, I've now managed to speak to another medical person who agrees that someone having osteoarthritis and sarcoidosis with worseing partial dislocations on a daily basis, even in sleep, would benefit from a review by a rheumatologist. They have agreed to request a referral for me.

Kind regards

Huatulco

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