If you answer yes to this question, it means that you do not have enough knowledge about rheumatic diseases. Rheumatic diseases can often affect the joint, but there is almost no organ other than the joint that it does not affect. I would like to share with you an example that immediately comes to my mind. A 42-year-old female patient applied due to recurrent abdominal pain. Another feature of this patient was that he had been married for 23 years and did not have children, although he wanted to do so. I diagnosed this patient as Familial Mediterranean Fever. The patient became pregnant 2 months after the treatment she received. Frankly, I expected them to name their child Bünyamin, but I did not speak out because the child was a girl. Yes, the patient had no joint complaints, but he was diagnosed with a rheumatic disease.
Rheumatic disease affects many of our organs. Respiratory tracts, brain, eyes, lungs, heart, stomach, intestines are just the ones that come to my mind. That's why we need to get rid of the rheumatism patterns in our minds. The patient complains of pain, redness and blurred vision in the eye. After examining the patient, the ophthalmologist directs him to the rheumatology outpatient clinic. Perhaps many patients ask themselves what I am doing in the rheumatology outpatient clinic. But the answer to the question is clear, many rheumatic diseases can affect the eyes. The patient applies to a hematologist with a decrease in blood values. After seeing the examinations, the hematologist directs the patient to the rheumatology outpatient clinic. The answer is the same, rheumatic diseases can cause changes in the blood table. The patient applies to a gynecologist and obstetrician due to recurrent miscarriages. The doctor orders a few tests and directs the patient to the rheumatology outpatient clinic. The reason is that recurrent pregnancy losses may occur in some rheumatic diseases. A pulmonologist sees a patient for shortness of breath. He also directs his patient to the rheumatology outpatient clinic. The reason is that rheumatic diseases can cause symptoms in the lungs. Or another day, the ear, nose and throat doctor refers a patient with severe shortness of breath to the rheumatology department. The patient sometimes asks us what I have to do with rheumatism. But the patient can actually be diagnosed with a serious rheumatic disease.
Top I could go on and on for pages with the examples I gave you; these were the examples of patients I saw in the last month that I remember. As a result, although rheumatic diseases frequently affect the joints, they can also affect our other organs. While some of these may accompany joint complaints, most of them occur independently of joint complaints. If one day you hear that you should consult a rheumatologist for your complaints, do not be surprised and please remember my article.
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