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How long does mesalazine take to work?

Posted , 5 users are following.

Joel53242
Joel53242

hi guys, recently diagnosed here.

my doc had me on prednisolone for 7 weeks which eventually got me in remission towards the end. On the last week i changed onto 2400mg of mesalazine a day. However, 4 days after coming off the steroids, i seemed to start flaring again. 

My nurse has got me to double the mesalazine dose to 4800mg for a week to see if theres any improvements. I'm currently 5 days in and haven't noticed a lot of difference. I notice the capsule skins and some of the powder in my stools quite often - does this mean its not working?

How long does it take to see if a double dose of mesalazine will do the trick?

Thanks

0 likes, 5 replies

5 Replies

  • Sbgoodguy
    Sbgoodguy Joel53242

    Posted

    Hi - which version of masalazine are you using? Mezzavant or Pentasa?

    I found Mezzavant made me flare again where Pentasa kept me in remission.

    Mazzavant made me very windy and increased my frequency and urgency.

    Hope this helps!

    • Joel53242
      Joel53242 Sbgoodguy

      Posted

      I think you're right, i'm taking octasa which looks a bit like the mezzavant pills. since doubling my dose, i seem to feel worse, dont know if its the pills thats causing that or the flare just progressing! 

    • Sbgoodguy
      Sbgoodguy Joel53242

      Posted

      Personally I self diagnosed and came off it, made me feel terrible. See if you can try Pentasa which I find gentler. 
  • damian72975
    damian72975 Joel53242

    Posted

    I've found Mezavant takes up to two weeks on the 4800mg dose to bring back to remission

  • pca
    pca Joel53242

    Posted

    Hi AJ693,

    There are various forms of mesalazine. I take 'Octasa' 3 x 800mg enteric-coated tablets daily when I have a flare-up and to date find that within about a week I see a definite improvement in symptoms. 

    The drug is also available as a foam enema (which personally I couldn't tolerate, but for some is a very effective means of getting the drug to the inflammation) and as a suppository.  You may wish to ask your IBD nurse about whether either or both may be suitable for your particular circumstance.

    Good luck and I very much hope you get into remission very quickly indeed. This is a wretched condition.

    Peter A   

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