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Rheumatologist confirmed pmr

Posted , 6 users are following.

Guest
Guest

smile Finally after 2 months of my doctor putting me through many blood tests, referral to rheumatologist and abdominal ultrasound, the rheumatologist's report came back stating that he thought my problems were mainly pmr! He said I should go to 20 mg from 10 mg prednisone. My doctor went along with his recommendation though she commented that she didn't think it was pmr because the sed rate was not elevated. The rheumatologist said the sed rate could be normal - it had been very high when I first developed pmr two years ago. The ultrasound showed no problems so that was good news and helped rule out other causes of inflammation.

One indicator of inflammation two years ago and again now was an elevated ANA or antinuclear antibody test. My doctor wondered if this indicated lupus.

The rheumatologist agreed this is one indicator but ruled out lupus as it is only 1 of 11 criteria of which you must have at least 4.

Rheumatologist has recommended 2000 IU of Vitamin D and physiotherapy :D. I am very happy about the latter as I think it will help - when I get feeling a little better. My health insurance covers 80% which means about $20.00 a session.

The good news is since being on 20 mg steroid, the severe pain and stiffness I have had for two months, from my right hip to my ankle and mainly the calf - have disappeared! It was very painful to move in bed, get out of bed, get dressed and to walk. The 10 mg steroid and tylenol arthritis helped for part of the day but it was always bad in the morning and at night and unpredictable.

sad The bad news is that there was a complication. My doctor had doubled the dose of a blood pressure medicine because of my being on steroids (the 10 mg). It was twice the thickness of the previous pill. I had been having trouble swallowing it but persevered until one morning - I felt I was going to choke, got up quickly to cough into the sink, fainted and fell.

I seemed to have slumped to my knees and think my fall was broken because I was holding onto the edge of the sink and came to about half way down (or so it seemed). I ended up with a fat lip and a sore back. My lower back has been terribly sore and I wondered if I had cracked a bone. Had an xray which didn't show anything broken. I guess it is muscle strain. After almost 3 weeks, I am starting to be able to walk around with some comfort.

My doctor agreed the pills were too big (I took them in to show her) and changed the prescription to one the pharmacist mentioned to me which is similar, and much smaller.

0 likes, 7 replies

7 Replies

  • Green_Granny
    Green_Granny

    Posted

    Dear Mrs L, Glad the increased dosage is helping you to feel better! It's amazing how one thing seems to lead to another isn't it? Side effects etc, plus all the business of not knowing whether one actually has PMR or not! My Dr is trying to investigate whether I have more things than just PMR, so I have to go and see him on Thursday to get the result of various blood tests. When I saw the nurse to take the blood I asked her to take my blood pressure which apparently was up. She wouldn't tell me what it was - I guess nurses don't want to get involved with clinical discussions. But I realised that raised B.P. can be the result of taking steroids and nobody had actually checked up on that for 18 months, so one does have to push to get things done sometimes. The nurse actually moaned and said I ought to make another appt. for the B.P. which took all of 2 minutes to do!

    I'm sorry about the fall too, thank goodness you didn't break anything. I had several falls last year, tripping over things. I put it down to one's muscular tone not being so good so one couldn't recover one's balance quickly enough, not as much control as usual so I am really pretty cautious these days. I hacked lumps out of my shins which, of course, the steroids then make healing much slower :cry: But I do know what you mean about the size of tablets -VAST some of them and they really do make you gag.

    In the UK we have had a rather cold and snowy winter and we are all moaning about it making the PMR worse. I guess you know all about that in Canada :shock:

    Anyway, all the best and hope things continue to improve, Green Granny

  • Tills
    Tills

    Posted

    Hello Mrs L.

    It sounds as though you have been struggling against the odds and it must have been so frustrating for you all this time.

    The good news is that you have a diagnosis from a Rheumatologist and steroids which have freed you from pain and stiffness. It is such a relief isn't it?

    Sorry to read about you bad experience with the horse pills! Some are a ridiculous size aren't they? Too late for you now but you can buy pill cutters which can half and then quarter them into a managable size.

    I hope your back keeps improving.

    Best wishes,

    Tilly

  • MrsO-UK_Surrey
    MrsO-UK_Surrey

    Posted

    Hello Mrs L and welcome to this forum all the way from Winnipeg. Good to hear that after everything you have been through especially the trauma of choking on a BP tablet and fainting, you have now been properly diagnosed and treated and are now feeling so much better. I do so sympathise with you re the size of the tablets you were given as I am the world's worst at swallowing anything slightly larger than the norm! The problem is that you can only cut the pills if they are not enteric coated - if they are coated, then you must swallow them whole. I am now on the very low dose of Prednisolone so only have the choice of an uncoated pill as they're unavailabe with a coating - they're only tiny but a horrible taste if I don't get them straight down in one go! I expect, living in Canada, you think we are all a load of softies when you read our moans and groans about our freezing winter we are going through!!! Very best wishes for your continued improvement.

    MrsO

  • Guest
    Guest

    Posted

    Thank you to Green Granny, Tills and Mrs. O. for your sympathy and good wishes. Yes, Mrs. O. this pill had instructions not to cut. My back is improving very slowly.

    I might mention that I think the physio is more for muscle/skeletel problems other than pmr e.g. osteoarthritis, scoliosis, flat feet.

    Even though Winnipeg is also known as Winterpeg, I do sympathize with your miserable winter. We have been lucky to have one of the mildest here this year (not in all parts of Canada) mainly because of an el nino effect from the Pacific. I never really get used to our winter even though I have seen about 75 of them and am really looking forward to spring. I do feel the cold more now. Like some have mentioned, I have had the problem of Reynaud's (?) with fingers and toes temporarily turning white. We are more prepared than places where the weather is usually milder. Our housing insulation, heating systems, snowplowing and salting/sanding of roads make a lot of difference.

    I have a soft spot for England having spent about 10 months in Britain in 1956 - yes, I was much younger! With a girlfriend, I backpacked and stayed at youth hostels. For about 4 months I lived and worked in London doing office work through a temporary agency. It was a highlight of my life. I was there until the end of November and never felt so chilled. It was the dampness that made the difference. Will be with you in spirit when you meet in London.

  • Wallis
    Wallis

    Posted

    Hi Mrs L, glad you're getting somewhere with diagnosis. I too have a positive ana. About 15% of a healthy population have a positive ana too. [i:3e9451e7d7]ANAs are also found in patients with a number of different autoimmune diseases, such as systemic lupus erythematosus, Sjogren's syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, polymyositis, scleroderma, Hashimoto's thyroiditis, juvenile diabetes mellitus, Addison disease, vitiligo, pernicious anemia, glomerulonephritis, and pulmonary fibrosis. ANAs can also be found in patients with conditions that are not considered classic autoimmune diseases, such as chronic infections and cancer[/i:3e9451e7d7]

    I copied that last bit! They're not normally found in pmr though so I think when it shows up it just gives the doctors a pointer towards keeping an open mind on your diagnosis.

    I'm back to the Rheumy in April and hoping he'll be able to give me some more info on my pmr. ie pmr or not! Today I've realised I've got quite dry eyes and have just bought some eyedrops, this is a new sympton. Yesterday my left leg was twitching most of the day, even after a long relaxing soak in the bath. I think it's lupus but my last lot of bloods with him last spring said not. My gp tells me lupus normally takes around four years to diagnose. Lovely.

    My muscles are not too bad except in my throat, which still feels very lumpy.

    I've arranged a small pmr/gca meeting with a few other local people for us to have a coffe and a moan soon. I'm on the edge of Dartmoor, contact me thru this or via Wendy Morrison of the new pmr charity if you're local and would like to come!

    Best wishes all, Wallis

  • Guest
    Guest

    Posted

    Thank you Wallis for replying and especially the information about ana. Mrs. k I am glad to know about the other websites. It does help to share information.
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