@caroljeand

I'm familiar with spondylolisthesis. It is a spinal condition where one vertebra slips forward over the one below it, most commonly in the lower back. Symptoms can range from none to severe, including low back pain, leg pain, numbness, tingling, and muscle tightness in the hamstrings. This is why the surgeon wants to fuse my spine.

I don't think of PMR as an "isolated condition" anymore. I have been diagnosed with multiple autoimmune conditions. I'm not sure how my lumbar spine got so bad but it is called "degenerative." Prednisone relieved whatever back pain I ever had so I suspect it was "inflammatory" in nature. After the damage is done, it doesn't really matter what causes it.

My rheumatologist doesn't refer to any specific diagnosis anymore. The last time I asked ... PMR was my primary diagnosis and Actemra targeted PMR. My rheumatologist has acknowledged that I have a "full range" of rheumatic problems. We don't talk about anything specific anymore other than "systemic inflammation."

Fortunately, Actemra works well for my inflammation and I'm off Prednisone after decades of taking Prednisone. At this stage, except for rapid pain relief, I think prednisone did more harm than good.

After PMR was diagnosed, prednisone never stopped the pain from recurring whenever I tried to tapered off, Prior to being diagnosed with PMR, my ophthalmologist said I was very skilled with tapering off prednisone. My ophthalmologist wasn't treating GCA but something else called uveitis which often caused recurrent flares and could cause vision loss. High doses of Prednisone (60-100 mg) followed by a fast taper always put uveitis back into remission for at least a year or two until it recurred more often.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/uveitis/symptoms-causes/syc-20378734