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Other pain medications for Polymyalgia Rheumatica besides prednisone
Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR) | Last Active: Oct 24, 2017 | Replies (13)Comment receiving replies
Hi @charlena, I used to take aleve and tylenol, etc. but then I started reading about some bad side effects. I know most of the time it means if you use them on a regular basis. You can do a lot of different searches and find information. I would use https://scholar.google.com/ to find research type info. Drugs.com is a good start. Just looking at the side effects is enough for me to just say no. I don't have any medical background or training and I have taken them before but have tried to avoid them whenever possible. If your husband is taking the prednisone and it's not doing it's job, I would have him talk to his doctor.
https://www.drugs.com/sfx/aleve-side-effects.html
I'm still tapering off of prednisone and I'm at 3-1/2 mg but I only reduce the dosage if the pain is bearable, kind of in the 1 or 2 range of pain level.
John
Replies to "Hi @charlena, I used to take aleve and tylenol, etc. but then I started reading about..."
I really understand the pain your husband is going through. Normally for PMR responds well to prednisone. It might be good to have him talk to his rheumatologist to let him know the prednisone is not doing the job for his pain and ask if there are alternatives. Mayo Clinic lists a few but haven't used any of them.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/polymyalgia-rheumatica/basics/treatment/con-20023162
Other Connect members have talked about being on methotrexate for polymyalgia rheumatica which is one of the drugs mentioned on link above. @crhp194, @slbeall, @peach414144, are you able to provide @charlena any information about your experience with methotrexate?
John
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Thanks, John, for the reply. My husband has been on Aleve for a very long time... Started taking for aches/pains from arthritis. I don't know if prednisone should address the aches/pains of arthritis or not. I just know that without the Aleve, he is in pain and miserable. His docs are aware he is taking it. I still worry that he is not able to reduce his prednisone dosage at all without pain coming back within an hour's time. His labs are normal with the exception of a slightly elevated AST level, which was elevated before he started taking Aleve. I always appreciate your thoughts, opinions, and suggestions.