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Burning Sensation in Legs

Posted , 15 users are following.

andrea93419
andrea93419

Hi All,

I haven't asked any questions for a while, because everything seemed ok. I'm down to 2mg of prednisolone, I still have to pace myself on daily chores or otherwise I'll 'crash and burn'. I've lost 18 pounds of steroid weight since May due to diet and exercise which I'm happy about, but now all of a sudden my legs have started with this 'burning sensation'! It's odd but it comes and goes and I can't pin point what triggers it. Anyone else been through this?

many thanks

Andrea. Xx

0 likes, 11 replies

11 Replies

  • EileenH
    EileenH andrea93419

    Posted

    Well done!!! You must be feeling really proud of yourself.

    Pred can cause neuropathy - maybe you should speak to  your doctor. Have your blood sugar levels been checked? That can also cause trouble.

  • arlene85779
    arlene85779 andrea93419

    Posted

    I am trying to taper from 1.5 to 1 and for the past couple of weeks I have been feeling so very tired and have to have a sleep every afternoon. Also I have had slight burning in my calves on and off ...usually in the evenings or in bed. I wonder if the burning could be signs of some inflammation ? I had my bloods done last week and have to see doc this week so will see what he thinks.
  • lois41428
    lois41428 andrea93419

    Posted

    Hi Andrea, I get those symptoms also.  No idea why?  Could it be the damaged blood vessels?  perhaps Eileen or someone with more medical knowledge may throw some light on this annoying problem.  I also get very frequent leg cramps - have to get up many times during night to stretch and walk around - my GP is not interested - says it is common in old age to suffer these discomforts, suggested I drink tonic water.  I tried that to no avail.  I am 80 and on a slow reduction of steroid intake regime.

     

    • jones10939
      jones10939 lois41428

      Posted

      Was the tonic water the traditional type containing natural quinine? It's the quinine which can alleviate the cramps - not a common bedtime drink though.

      Tonic water with quinine is in fashion at the moment - "Fever Trees " and "Llanllyr Source" to name a couple. I was looking at the Llanllyr website this afternoon and noticed that they make a Bitter Lemon containing quinine also.

    • EileenH
      EileenH lois41428

      Posted

      Try magnesium supplements for the night cramps.

      I will not be impressed if your GP hasn't at least checked your electrolytes (blood levels of potassium, sodium, chloride and magnesium. Though you can be depeleted in most of them even with the blood levels being OK - the blood keeps the levels up by scavenging from the rest of the body so when blood levels are low the rest of the body can be even lower. Being on steroids makes your body lose more than usual through the kidneys - so he SHOULD be interested.

    • lois41428
      lois41428 EileenH

      Posted

      Dear Eileen, Thank you for the magnesium tip and no, I have not had the electrolytes checked to my knowledge .  Does that only get checked on request ?  I think I will have to start requesting a copy of the blood results in future.  I am due for a blood test in a couple of weeks time and if I ask I am given crp and esr results and that is it.  I am scheduled to see the rheumatology doctor early August, last seen a year ago - seen by specialist nurse in February this year to check where I am on steroid dosage - the nurse urged me to start Methotrexate but I am not going to do that  -  maybe they have little time for recalcitrant patients like me.  
    • ptolemy
      ptolemy lois41428

      Posted

      Having copies of blood tests I find really useful, I have even set up excel spreadsheets being a complete nerd that I am! My surgery now have the facility to view test results on line which is great. They do not have the doctor’s comments but at least I have the test results. For hard copies they normally give me all the blood tests I had at a particular time as they seem to be on the same page of paper.
    • EileenH
      EileenH lois41428

      Posted

      I suppose they should be checked when a patient provides grounds for them being checked - and having cramps while taking corticosteroids would (IMHO) form such grounds. If they are taking blood for ESR and CRP - they can easily check the other things at the same time.
  • Anhaga
    Anhaga andrea93419

    Posted

    I didn't have burning, but did get aching pain in lower legs when at rest.  I learned about an exercise, just flexing the feet - point the toes, then point the heels - which brought this pain under control.  This improves circulation in the lower limbs. But then I discovered I seemed to be sodium deficient and with increased salt intake the pain appears to have gone completely.  It used to be so bad it would wake me up after I'd been asleep for a few minutes, although then would ease overnight.

  • andrea93419
    andrea93419

    Posted

    Thank you All for you reply,

    Im due for blood tests in a week or so. Last time I saw my rheumatologist he told me my CRP was slightly elevated (it was 11) because I was 2 stone heavier than I was before taking prednisolone and being overweight is a contributing factor! So when I left his office I decided to loose the weight and see what his excuse will be next time! 😆

    This burning in the legs comes and goes, and now today it's in my hands, it could be side effects of prednisolone, but being on only 2mg I find it unlikely. I'll have bloods done and mention it to my GP.

    many thanks.

    Andrea.xx

  • nick67069
    nick67069 andrea93419

    Posted

    prednisolone at higher dose masks lots of problems. What I found out is that when I reduced to 3mg, some of the those problems surfaced. I started to get swelling in my hand joints and pain ( mostly knuckle) . I have seen the Dr for it and the recommendation was to increase the pred dose.  Now I am at 9mg and all the symptoms are gone, but I feel as I "wasted" 2 years of taper.

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