Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR), prednisone and Coronavirus COVID-19

we may be more fortunate as we have known that we COULD BE more susceptible to virus and bacteria. We should have learned those basic rules of hygiene, as hand washing (often and well), being cautious of touching your face, nose, eye, etc, clean or avoid the surfaces that have been touched by others (door knobs), get adequate rest, eat your fruits and vegetables, remain hydrated, etc etc. Remember to get a flu shot each season........

Certainly Prednisone use can lower your immune system But I would think dosage and length of trine being treated would make a difference But is it safer to assume that it has It us difficult to know for sure
So just be aware , yes that is possible but take the right precautions Wash you Hands for 2x times times to Happy Birthday, stay away from anyone coughing , sanitize high touch surfaces.nCough into a tissue, then discard , or your arm If no tissues are available
Stay home if you are sick and do not let sick people visit you

I was wondering the same thing.

My GP says yes we are if we have been taking prednisone

I was afraid of that.

My Rheumatoid doc confirmed the same. I chose not to go on prednisone from the beginning so he told me that my immune system was not at risk. I need to follow rules of the general population.

This Corona virus thing has me a bit on edge as prednisone is known to suppress the immune system. I'm only on 1 mg/day down from 2 mg/day taken for the past year and I havent tried stopping it completely yet. Anyone know if the immune system is heavily suppressed at this low dose?

Hi @ayjaydee you may have noticed I moved your post to this existing discussion on PMR and Coronavirus so that you can have your posts on this topic in one place and also so you can connect with others who haves similar concerns.

I also have added this discussion to Mayo Clinic Connect's new group dedicated to COVID-19, https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/covid-19/. The idea is to help Connect members cope and connect during these unprecedented times.

You may follow along with the COVID-19 group by clicking on +Follow. You're welcome to look at the discussions there and participate, including starting any new discussions on any COVID-19-related topic you'd like to talk about.

Back to you @ayjaydee, I thought @johnbishop, @bridgegoddess @maija and @mbm would be able to share their knowledge and thoughts on this topic. Have you had a chance to ask your doctor about this?

One of important issues right now , is the shortage of hand sanitizer . Lots of home made recipes on line but not all are science based World Health has excellent information of home made sanitizer Remember if all else fails house bleach works Hands would be dry And smelly BUT Remember that Prednisone can thin the skin , so be careful Use the best web information you can. Mayo Clinic, Harvard , your National Health site, I am in Canada so I use Health Canada , BC Health , are all my go to sites
Beware of anyone telling you their secret is a homemade solution with a variety of organics, herbs, etc
Stay Safe The Convid 19 situation will be much worse in two weeks on the North American continent

@ayjaydee, I think it's healthy to have a concern about the side effects of taking prednisone. I also think it would be a good idea to discuss it with your doctor - the benefits (no pain) vs any potential risk like suppressing your immune system. I think we are all concerned about becoming infected with COVID-19 but there is a lot we can do to lower our risks. Here are some guidelines issued by the CDC:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prepare/prevention.html