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Newly diagnosed and contemplating how long this has been coming on.
Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR) | Last Active: 21 hours ago | Replies (9)Comment receiving replies
Hello @nothatkaren, Welcome to Connect. Good question and PMR does seem to sneak up on you from nowhere. My first occurrence started with the worse pain in my leg and ankle joints but also in my shoulders. I was started on 20 mg prednisone and like you said it was like a miracle happened within a few hours. Being diagnosed and starting treatment about a month ago sounds like you might be tapering too fast but I'm not a doctor and am just sharing my experience. The average starting dose for prednisone for PMR is 12.5 to 20 mg from what I've read. @dadcue and other members may also have some thoughts or suggestions for you from their experience with PMR.
There are many PMR discussions on tapering off of prednisone that you might find helpful. Here's a link that shows the discussions and member comments - https://connect.mayoclinic.org/search/discussions/?search=tapering%20prednisone.
With both of my occurrences of PMR I found it helpful to keep a daily log to help track my pain when I got up and what dose of prednisone I was taking. Do you keep a daily log for tracking PMR?
Replies to "Hello @nothatkaren, Welcome to Connect. Good question and PMR does seem to sneak up on you..."
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My symptoms began a full 6 months before diagnosis. I was dramatically better within 6 hours of a single dose of prednisone 20 mg. Have been tapering slowly over the last 10 months. Most studies suggest the risk of relapse is lowest if the total course of prednisone is 12 to 24 months. Still have mild discomfort in the shoulders on 4.5 mg prednisone, which, for reasons I cannot explain, is dramatically improved by swimming. Best wishes for an uneventful tapering and a lasting remission.