Hi there,
That is a relaly diffciult question to answer!
On the whole GPs are not particularly good at diagnosing lupus or other auto-immune diseases as they lack the specialist expertise necessary to diagnosis. Having said that mine suspected lupus long before anyone else (He does however lack the expertise to treat it).
Rheumatologists do tend to be cautious when diagnosing and one of the reasons is that it may be more difficutl to get things like health insurance with a lupus diagnosis.
The essential thing is whether you are being taken seriously by the rheumy, whether you feel comfortable with him/her and whether you are being effectively treated. Some people are not "quite" diagnosed but their rheumies know something auto-immune is going on - most likely lupus - and they are being treated with all the meds that can help them.
If you do feel very uncomfortable with the rheumy then it may be worthwhile looking for a second opinion from another rheumy. Getting a referral shouldn't be a problem as your GP should be behind you with that.
Having a good rheumatologist is essential. Having a wonderful GP is too, but for most of us the rheumy becomes our primary carer as far as lupus goes with the GP working hand in hand and being there for all the inbetween things.
Katharine
That is a relaly diffciult question to answer!
On the whole GPs are not particularly good at diagnosing lupus or other auto-immune diseases as they lack the specialist expertise necessary to diagnosis. Having said that mine suspected lupus long before anyone else (He does however lack the expertise to treat it).
Rheumatologists do tend to be cautious when diagnosing and one of the reasons is that it may be more difficutl to get things like health insurance with a lupus diagnosis.
The essential thing is whether you are being taken seriously by the rheumy, whether you feel comfortable with him/her and whether you are being effectively treated. Some people are not "quite" diagnosed but their rheumies know something auto-immune is going on - most likely lupus - and they are being treated with all the meds that can help them.
If you do feel very uncomfortable with the rheumy then it may be worthwhile looking for a second opinion from another rheumy. Getting a referral shouldn't be a problem as your GP should be behind you with that.
Having a good rheumatologist is essential. Having a wonderful GP is too, but for most of us the rheumy becomes our primary carer as far as lupus goes with the GP working hand in hand and being there for all the inbetween things.
Katharine
