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  3. Polymyalgia Rheumatica and GCA

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  • Susanne_M_UK
    Susanne_M_UK Oregonjohn-UK

    Posted

    I had shingles about about a year before I developed PMR.

    I do know that you should avoid contact with chickenpox/shingles once you have the illness (and/or GCA), as you are more likely to get a severe form if it.

    • nick67069
      nick67069 Susanne_M_UK

      Posted

      and I certainly would not test /take vaccine while on pred, since your immune system is really on vacation. I am not familiar with shingles vaccine, but if it is live virus, then you could actually develop shingles ( get infected fro vaccine) because of weaker immunity.  Best to verify with rheumatologists or specialist for  infection illnesses.
  • julian.
    julian. Oregonjohn-UK

    Posted

    my understanding is sciencedaily is sourced from mainstream science papers.

    For the article in question. My limited understanding from very slight attack of shingles (one blister) while on pred is that the pred lowers resistance so the dormant virus travels along the nerves to erupt (usually painfully) at the skin.

    Thus. People who had GCA and took pred would possibly be more likely to show signs of virus near the skin than general population.

    Put simply. The corelation between GCA and presence of chicken pox virus that the research found is probably a long way from chicken pox virus causes GCA. Corelation is not cause.

    The abstract of the original Jan 2015 article talks of corelation supporting hypothesis of virus causing GCA. I guess it also supports a hypothesis that treatment of GCA allows the virus to propagate and several other hypotheses. To be blunt. The paper lacked depth.

    To repeat (ad nauseum) corelation is not cause. Something about chickens and eggs and which came first comes to mind.

    • julian.
      julian.

      Posted

      PS

      on a humourous note ..... its been proven that pred improves the performance of rock climbers by reducing the number of climbers that fall off cliff faces.

      The causative relationship is that people who take pred for pmr, gca and other chronic diseases rarely go rock climbing.

      Come to think of it. I don't know of many over 50 rock climbers.

      Maybe we should all take up rock climbing.

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