dealing with a hard to diagnose condition on the nhs

i'm having a strange medical problem, and i'm concerned about how well it will be addressed on the nhs. i'm in the us now but am going to the uk in less than 2 weeks. the problem is this: a few months ago i started experiencing pain my in left ribcage going into my abdomen. the pain has gotten worse over time. it now makes a weird sound like a sloshing bog or something,  especially after i exercise. i started seeing a dr here in the us about it in early july. so far, they had done an xray, put me on strong antacid, done an abdominal ultrasound, and a stress echocardiogram, and done some blood testing. they have no idea what it is. the sound is audible to anyone, and my dr is not sure what is causing it and the pain. he says he has never heard anything like it and has brought in his colleagues to hear it. they don't know either. he at first thought it might be acid related, but i have no problems with eating or anything like that, and, he says, the antacid would probably have cured it had that been the problem. he wants me to do an endoscopy to rule my stomach out completely as a next step, but i'm starting a course in the uk and leaving so soon that i do not have time.

i have only dealt with the nhs a little, and it was okay, but, i must say i am far more impressed with the care i receive in the us. i'm nervous to go back and deal with this on the uk system. i am in constant pain. it's not unbearable pain or anything but dull and uncomfortable. does anyone have experience dealing with a hard-to-diagnose condition on the nhs? do you think it will be possible to receive adequate treatment? i know it might take time, but it's so important to me do have this figured out. i really don't want to have to give up doing my course.

Why not get the endoscopy in the UK when you come over?

I don't think doctors in the US are inherently better at diagnosing conditions so if you have trouble getting diagnosed in the US, chances are you will here in the UK too.  I've had incredibly painful arms every day since I was 17, no doctor (US or UK) has ever been able to tell me what it is.  The only treatment i've had was physiotherapy which didn't help.

I think the care you receive in the UK will probably not be as prompt or one to one as in the US, but i'm sure they'll do their best to help you and find out what's wrong.

You could get an endoscopy over here but the big unknown is how long you may be on a waiting list. It could be weeks/months on the NHS or it could be quick. Its a big unknown.

If it becomes an emergency then hopefully you will be pushed up the list.

Make sure the records you bring from the U.S. show a notation from your U.S. doc that he recommends an endoscopy. I say this because you not only might end up on a long waiting list for the test here, your GP might not even think you should be put on the waiting list in the first place. Bring everything you can so that hopefully he or she will go to bat to get you the testing you need. I don't mean to scare you as you may find a GP who willingly pushes for the tests you need, but some won't. As in my GP who told me not to even bother trying to get on a list to see a specialist here and that I should just go private, and that said my husband couldn't even be put on a waiting list for a vasectomy as it "wasn't a priority."

If you have any means to continue the private insurance you're already on in the U.S, you could do that for some peace of mind.

I have a rare bone disease, and the NHS jerked me around so much that my in-laws helped pay for me to have my hip replaced, privately.

Hi, sorry I'm coming late to this thread!

It sounds exactly like pleurisy! The sounds could very well be your inflammed pleural tissues rubbing and sticking together. I had an absolutely horrific case of it during my last year as a student in London. It took 3 trips to my GP, and 3 trips to A&E (me in tears begging for painkillers!!) to realise I wasn't going to get it sorted on the NHS.... no one had a clue what I had. I also had loads of tests and many doctors poking and prodding at me, but they just sent me away with more painkillers. I was even booked in for a pulmonary scan to check that I didn't have an embolism!

So I flew back to the States, and my mother's rheumatologist diagnosed me in 15 minutes. If I recall, I had a course of injections into my ribcage (ouch), some local ultrasound treatment, and a course of anti-inflammatories to get it to go away.

I am in general happy very with my treatment on the NHS. But they just somehow seemed to overlook my pleurisy! Mention it to your doctors, and see what they say...If only I had known what to call it at the time, I might have spared myself a trip to the States to get it fixed!!

Hi, sorry I'm coming late to this thread!

It sounds exactly like pleurisy! The sounds could very well be your inflammed pleural tissues rubbing and sticking together. I had an absolutely horrific case of it during my last year as a student in London. It took 3 trips to my GP, and 3 trips to A&E (me in tears begging for painkillers!!) to realise I wasn't going to get it sorted on the NHS.... no one had a clue what I had. I also had loads of tests and many doctors poking and prodding at me, but they just sent me away with more painkillers. I was even booked in for a pulmonary scan to check that I didn't have an embolism!

So I flew back to the States, and my mother's rheumatologist diagnosed me in 15 minutes. If I recall, I had a course of injections into my ribcage (ouch), some local ultrasound treatment, and a course of anti-inflammatories to get it to go away.

I am in general happy very with my treatment on the NHS. But they just somehow seemed to overlook my pleurisy! Mention it to your doctors, and see what they say...If only I had known what to call it at the time, I might have spared myself a trip to the States to get it fixed!!

Just to add to this: A friend of mine had pleurisy about 12 years ago (when we were 12) and although it's not a commonly known illness, I don't think she had much trouble having it diagnosed on the NHS (at least not that I remember). She was off school for a few days and then her mum told us that she had been diagnosed with pleurisy and would have to take several more weeks off school to recover. I don't know all the details regarding her illness, but I don't think she was suffering for long before they found out what it was and treated it.

Just to add to this: A friend of mine had pleurisy about 12 years ago (when we were 12) and although it's not a commonly known illness, I don't think she had much trouble having it diagnosed on the NHS (at least not that I remember). She was off school for a few days and then her mum told us that she had been diagnosed with pleurisy and would have to take several more weeks off school to recover. I don't know all the details regarding her illness, but I don't think she was suffering for long before they found out what it was and treated it.

My MIL recently had a lodger who was diagnosed with pleurisy by the NHS. There didn't seem to be any problem with diagnosis and treatment.

ETA: Reminder that we have no idea if the OP does, in fact, have pleurisy.