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steroids

Posted , 11 users are following.

jojo40
jojo40

Hi everyone just need to know if any ones knows how long is takes for steroids to start working iv just been on 2 weeks of antibiotics not done nothing, now iv been put on sterrode 8 a day started yeterday still no change think I will end up in hospital again it's been a year since I was last there ,hope your all not to bad .

0 likes, 43 replies

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  • broadsword
    broadsword jojo40

    Posted

    I have noticed some confusion on here about the action of oral steroids, but not suggesting you are confused. Steroids for chest conditions deal with the inflammatory response and dampen that down. It does not kill bugs.

    i find that when I have needed them it takes up to a week to feel full effects and then it gets even better when I start tapering the dose.

    My secret was when my consultant who was an author for the UK guidelines for Bx, introduced me to Azrythromycin. While this is an antibiotic in its own right, but of course may not be right for every infection, it also has a powerful anti inflammatory effect for reasons that are unclear. Clarithromycin is in the same group but seems not to have the same effect. I found that Az worked better then oral steroids for me. The difficulty is that some people do not just have Bx but have other conditions too like asthma. With those conditions inhaled steroids are a fact of life but while these are less powerful than the oral dose, they do not have the same extreme side effects. The key is good advice from a doctor who understands these conditions

    • jojo40
      jojo40 broadsword

      Posted

      Thanks for that information. You say you tapper of them after a week but iv not been told that and it conside me about the withdrawal side affect.
    • elizabeth49611
      elizabeth49611 broadsword

      Posted

      After hearing about the long term usage of az on this website. My specialist started me on it two weeks ago.  Too soon to tell.
    • sam90709
      sam90709 elizabeth49611

      Posted

      Well, if you've been on Az for two weeks and you're feeling ok then you can tolerate it. Good news! The evidence is pretty overwhelming for its effectiveness - even if it doesn't cut down the frequency of infections (does for most people) then at the least it generally reduces the severity. Also like broadsword said, you can generally reduce the steroids as well thanks to its anti inflammatory effect. 

      Luck!

      S

  • broadsword
    broadsword jojo40

    Posted

    I may not have been clear about tapering steroids. Because of the systemic effect it is usual to taper off the dose till it becomes one 5mg every two days assuming it was a multiple of 5mg in the beginning. It is not usual to take a high dose, say, 40-60mg and then stop at the end of the course of treatment. Depending upon medical advice, the course may be several weeks long or much less
    • jojo40
      jojo40 broadsword

      Posted

      Iv been on 30mg 6 tabs for 7 days and was just told to stop today they said it's when your on them for over 2 weeks you have to cut them down then but I'm not sure hear so Manny different things.
  • broadsword
    broadsword jojo40

    Posted

    As you have a short term dose, that may be entirely acceptable to stop immediately. I think there are variations in medical advice which is unhelpful.
    • jojo40
      jojo40 broadsword

      Posted

      Yes me 2. Iv been on 2 week couse of amoxicillin and then 7 days of sterrode and I still don't feel better so wats next I don't know I have my 6 month appointment at hospital on 20th this month so guess I just have to carry on till then my GPS are useless on this illness but thank you for getting back to mex
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