Elevated White Blood Cell Count (WBC) and Tietze’s Syndrome

In the majority of Tietze’s syndrome cases reported in the literature, patients have normal blood test results. However, it’s worth bearing in mind that they have only been a few, limited studies of the disease, so no real conclusions can be drawn from that statement. The best information I can draw from the journals is that some cases of Tietze’s Syndrome (most likely, those causes by a virus or other infection) may result in a high white blood cell (WBC) count.
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New Research: Diagnosing Tietze’s Requires Multiple Tests

I would have thought that as more is known about Tietze’s syndrome, diagnostic tools would improve. However, new research just published in the May-Jun 2009 issue of Clinical Experimental Rheumatology had a surprising conclusion: a combination of X-ray, CT, MRI and nuclear medicine is the best way to diagnose the disease and rule out other disorders.
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Why You Shouldn’t Self-Diagnose Chest Wall Pain

Tietze’s syndrome is a rare disorder, and there are a few dozen other ailments that can cause similar rib cage pain. Just in case you haven’t been diagnosed yet (or if you’ve diagnosed yourself), here are a few really good reasons why you should see a doctor now:
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How to Tell if You Have Tietze’s Syndrome

Why even your doctor might miss a Tietze’s syndrome diagnosis

I consider myself to be a fairly smart person, and I consider doctors in general to be pretty smart. However, Tietze’s syndrome is a rare disorder, so rare that even your doctor might miss the diagnosis (he’s going to be trying to decide between about three dozen different possibilities for your pain, and Tietze’s is way down on that list). Two general practitioners and two specialists missed my diagnosis of Tietze’s syndrome; it took one year for me to finally get diagnosed–and that made it a lot easier to deal with. This short article will let you know how to tell if you have Tietze’s syndrome–a benign inflammation of the ribs–or something more sinister, like Pleomorphic T-cell lymphoma, a rare cancer.
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Tests for Tietze’s Syndrome

There are several tests that can be undertaken to determine whether you have Tietze’s syndrome or not. Why test? Because there are several other serious diseases that can appear to be Tietze’s syndrome, including certain cancers.
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