Fifths Disease In Adults (cold, infection, soreness, swelling)

[cmacf1]

I was diagnosed in July of 2006 with Parvo virus (after being exposed to it at my girls' preschool.) I originally had the most severe symptoms in mid-June and my doctor did all kinds of tests, all of which came back negative. The symptoms are what everybody else has described -- awful joint pain in the hands, wrists, elbows, knees and ankles. It hit me suddenly a day a so after I woke up with a weird, but very mild rash all over my body. The pain was excrutiating and I know my spouse didn't believe that I could suddenly be in so much pain. He thought I was exagerating. I really wasn't. I sat on the sofa with my hands in bowls of ice water for several days. The extreme pain lasted 5-7 days and then mostly disapated. However, in the months that followed, I came down with de Quervain's tenosynovitis in my right wrist (a wrist tendon inflammation) that required surgery a year later, carpal tunnel syndrome that required surgery a little over a year later and trigger finger in my left thumb that is responding to cortisone shot therapy (the tenosynovitis did not respond to it.) I'm still feeling the effects of the parvovirus and wonder if it will ever go away completely.

After the major symptoms went away, I went to the doctor for some other reason and she mentioned my previous arthritic symptoms again and how she'd like to test me for the antibodies for fifth disease. Antibodies DID show up, so that is definitely what I had.

I have no clue why there is so little literature or information about this disease when it hits adults.

I'm sorry the OP and the other people here have also had to deal with this disease and I hope all of us find complete relief.

[LaurainNewMexico]

Hi CMACF1. I am very interested in your comments about antibodies from 5ths still in your system. I'm wondering if this is my issue too. It sounds like the Dr tested you for these. I will ask my Dr. to do the same. This is so crazy that so many years later I still have issues. I am also having tendon wrist pain..and my pointer finger on my left hand seems to be worse than the others. Some days, even my elbows hurt.

For everyone else, glad this forum exists and I hope you will all keep posting to it. I have found out some very interesting things and it gives me hope that I will find answers.

[debbee]

I also came down with this as an adult in my mid 20's a little over 10 years ago. I was a healthcare provider in a medical clinic and had just received my Hep A & B vaccines one week prior so at first I thought I was having a bad reaction to the vaccines. My joints hurt miserably from my head to my toe...terrible headache loss of appetite went down to 93 pounds. I went to 6 different doctors and got tested for everything under the sun which came back negative. They just said it was some type of virus and left it at that. The last doctor I went to treated me for lymes disease after testing me. He wasn't completely sure it was lymes and also said it might be a virus which mimicks lymes.
Needless to say I started my own research to find answers. I contacted the local hospitals and cdc to describe symptoms and ask questions.
My illness lasted for about a month to month and 1/2 and I slowly started to recooperate and get my strength back. Fortunately I have not been bothered since with any symptoms.
One of the medical centers sent me some info on fifth's disease which described my symptoms and later I spoke to a friend who was also a school nurse. She informed me that fifth's disease was circulating through the schools and tends to sweep through schools and communities every 7 years or so and most children will get a rash with other minor symptoms and then become immuned and those who never got it as a child and contract it as an adult can get very sick with complications. She then put me in touch with other adults in our community that were sick with it and had very much the same symptoms as I was suffering. We have all completely recovered. It was the sickest and most miserable feeling I have ever felt in my life. So I feel for those who are going through it... hang in there it does get better and for most you will completely recover and should build up antibodies for the disease.

[lilypad]

Good info on viral illnesses (and others):

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/revb/respiratory/parvo_b19.html (broken link)

[Mimi N]

I came across this forum looking for reassurance when I was in a lot of pain after getting fifth disease from my kid's preschool... and if you are out here for the same reason, you are probably not feeling very reassured right now (ahem, Marge53)! I wanted to revisit this forum now that I'm 100% again to say that you are going to be just fine. Day 8 was the magic day for me when I felt pretty good again. The hardest part of this virus were the first few days without a diagnosis when my imagination ran wild. If you are miserable with joint pain right now, I highly recommend Ibuprofen as often as the bottle says you can take it. Ibuprofen is your friend, it will take a week or two, and you will be okay. Hang in there.

[marekeener]

I feel for you all. I am currently suffering from what I belive is fifths disease. I first went to the dr. because I was having night sweats while I was on antibiotics for a sinus infection. I went to the dr. thinking i was going to have an antibiotic resistant infection. i was then tested for leukemia and blood cancer. i was petrified. that all came back normal. doc said i had a virus. my son had fifths disease about 3 weeks ago. then a day later i came down with the rash. then that night i had the worst pain i have ever had in my life. i could not walk. i am an athlete and have a very high pain tolerance. i can not describe the pain. i thought i was getting over it after 3 days of pain and then last night it hit my hands. my hands hurst so bad i thought they were going to explode. my finger tips are still purple. it is getting late and i am starting to get stressed about having to go to bed because it is always so bad at night. my dr told me to take 800mg of ibuprofin 3 times a day. it does NOTHING. I have some prednisone leftover from an old case of poison ivy i am thinking about taking that. i have emailed my doc asking her what else she can do but she has not gotten back to me. i pray this goes away soon. i cant take this for months or years!

[cazowen]

Just got back from the Dr and he confrimed fifth disease. It is going around my daughters school right now and she has it too.He sent me for blood work to see if I have anaemia which can be a side effect from this disease. I started with stiff joints that later turned into the worst pain I can remember that was two weeks ago. I started to take Advil but they are not helping much.I have not had a proper nights sleep in days because of the pain and feel exhausted. I also have found that my muscles are weak and twitch like crazy. I started thinking that I had something else other than fifth disease. Today the rash started along with the nausea and a headache. Wanted to go back to work tomorrow but have a feeling it will be another day on the sofa.

[marekeener]

Cazowen,

where do you live? I am in GA and it is going around here. I am now having some weird sensations in my face. I feel a little tingling. Did anyone else have that? I am sure it is just from the Fifth's but since I have never actually been tested for it, I am getting nervous that it might be something else.

[FarNorthDallas]

YES! I had it a few years ago. What a trip that was. It was going around the kid's school. Every joint in my body hurt. I couldn't push the elevator button at the office in hurt my finger so much. I could barely walk. I kept working though. It took 6-8 weeks to totally go away. I felt very ...alive during it. It was strange. Some times it felt good, like getting a massage, then it would just be pain. Weird.

[marekeener]

Was it tingly. kind of like when you come off of novicane (sp?) at the dentist? mine is not pain - just tingly and kind of numb. alive is a good term to desribe it. feels like your skin is crawling.