Could this be PMR ?

Posted , 11 users are following.

in a lot of pain over 12 months ago. physiotherapist suggested could be something like giant cell Polymyalgia ? Have raised CRP levels 77....im anaemic something i think it was iron 3.7 also raised white blood cell count. im very tired and after about an hour up have to go to bed to sleep. i cant tolerate many foods, just white fish or something. ive lost around a stone in weight in the past month which is about thenlength of time ive been vomiting. My first GP thought it may be this, however was unavailable until next week. i went to see another GP who isnt sure. im at a loss as i have two young children. recent drugs prescribed...sorry im falling asleep writing this.

Citalopam 12 yrs use

Naproxen 3 months ive now discontinued

Ranitidine 2 weeks now discontinued

Codeine 90 mg day.

Omeprazole for 12 months now discontinued

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  • Posted

    Your doctor really needs to run a few simple tests to see if anything deserves further investigation. If nothing else is found then a trial of prednisone/prednisolone (a week at a dose of about 15-20 mg per day, no more) and a rapid positive response to this often confirms a diagnosis of PMR. Anemia often goes with autoimmune diseases and usually easily dealt with by supplements. I took liquid iron for about a year as I can't tolerate the tablets and now my iron is normal, it had been very low.

    How old are you? If you have young children I assume you are on the young side for a PMR diagnosis, but there are younger people who have it, maybe more than we know as doctors are often reluctant to concede this could be the diagnosis, while at the same time unable to come up with another plausible cause for a patient's pain, so it's good that your doctor is willing to consider PMR as a possibility.

    • Posted

      HI, thanks for reply.. Iwas 48 last week . The Dr who ordered the tests was unavailable until the week after next. I saw another who wont admit the physiotherapist may have been right. if i eat the foods i can tolerate I dont vomit. its the tiredness/exhaustion where incant even make my own bed. i was really houseproud until this. This last GP has suggested an endoscopy which makes little sense as the pain started in my head and neck, unless more than one thing going on?

    • Posted

      If you have head pain make sure if you experience any vision problems, including blurred vision, you should be checked at once. A disease related to PMR, Giant Cell Arteritis (GCA), can affect the optic nerve and cause blindness. Any symptoms need to be treated as seriously as a heart attack or stroke.

    • Posted

      Oh, and 48 isn't too young. PMR doesn't wait for a 50th birthday and you'd be appalled how many doctors think you can't get it until you're 70. That would eliminate the majority of us, I think!

  • Posted

    Did the Naproxen and Codeine help the pain? Normally GCA/PMR only really reacts to steroids. How old are you?

    • Posted

      no it just makes me feel a bit more relaxed

  • Posted

    What is your GP messing about at? With symptoms like that - above all the large weight loss - you should be an emergency referral to hospital for investigation.

    There is no easy way to say this but PMR is not the disease - it is the name given to a set of symptoms caused by an underlying illness and there are several, including some nasty ones. What you describe isn't really typical of PMR , especially the sickness, and if you have small children that makes the PMR we discuss here less likely though not impossible at the age of 48 (as I now see you are). However, I do know people who suffered severe nausea and sickness with GCA (giant cell arteritis) and that DOES occur in younger patients and has been documented - again it is rare but possible - and weight loss is often a criterion for a GP to realise what is going on.

    Tell us more about your head and neck symptoms. And anything else - visual symptoms for example. Your physio probably suggested giant cell arteritis (which affects arteries in the head) which can present with the symptoms of polymyalgia rheumatica.

    On Monday morning you should be at the practice insisting on an emergency appointment. And if they won't listen - either call 111 and ask to speak to an OOH doctor or go to A&E, take someone with you to vouch to them how ill you are.

    Where are you?

    • Posted

      thank you everyone ...Ive been to hospital...my mum called an ambulance 2 wks ago as i had severe pain under my ribs and in my chest..i thought it was an MI ...however there were no ambulances even after she called the second time. some how she got me in the car and to the hospital.....they did the blood tests. which showed high CRP told me i was anaemic and white blood Cell count was high ..they discharged me stating it was the Naproxen that caused it. they gave me Ondansetron for the sickness. i checked this for interactions and noticed it had major ones with Citalopram. i then went to the GP who did more bloods to check for PRM etc. thats the one whos away until the week after next.

      i keep going to the opticians as my eysight is blurred . i cannot read or write V well or drive.

    • Posted

      Just a question, what is 111? Is it like 911? I'm in the US and I'm not familiar with it.

    • Posted

      The UK equivalent of 911 is 999 for emergencies. It is also possible to dial 112 and you get through to the same place but I am not sure anyone actually told the British public of this number being available. 111 is a telephone service offered by the NHS as everywhere else is shut, cannot offer an appointment for four weeks or has four plus hours wait. It's a sort of FAQ for the Health Service.

  • Posted

    Hi BS8

    Are you suffering with depression as i see you take citolapram. Plus codeine for pain managment. Do you think these meds could be making you tired?..Check with the Information Leaflets that came with your meds for side effects. By the way ..how old are you?

    • Posted

      Hello thank you for answering me i was given Citalopram when i had my son 12 yrs ago for PND..im 48 now

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