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Was I properly diagnosed with PMR?
Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR) | Last Active: Jul 25, 2021 | Replies (12)Comment receiving replies
Thank you John for your reply. I didn't give the entire story. I started at 40mgs then retested after 2 weeks and my sed rate dropped to 6 on a scale where less than 10 is good. They had me drop to 30mgs and again tested after 2 weeks and it went up to 9 but they dropped me again to 20mgs. As I have AFIB also, I contacted my doctor as my AFIB was going out of control we decided to drop down to 5mgs. It too me about 2 weeks to get to 5mgs and of course the pain came back with a vengeance and my sed rate went up to 24. By the way before I started taking Prednisone my Sed rate was 18. So now I am at 5mgs, I have a fair amount of pain in my hips and lower back sometimes but my pain is not like everyone else. My pain starts after I start moving around verses right away from getting up in the morning or sitting for a period of time. Also, my pain pretty much goes away when I sit down or lay down so I am really wondering if I have PMR. I did get an MRI of my back and although I do have some stenosis, scoliosis, and arthritis the Doctor did not feel it was the cause of my symptoms. I do have an appointment with a rheumatologist but is is not until October 7. Any other thoughts would be appreciated as I really don't know what to do as increasing Prednisone would probably make me feel better but it is masking something else. Thanks!
Replies to "Thank you John for your reply. I didn't give the entire story. I started at 40mgs..."
Hi tennis1234567, It's too bad you have to wait do long to see the Rheumatologist. I can communicate with mine via email in between appointments. Is that possible for you? A medical textbook I have says both PMR and GCA should respond dramatically to proper dosages of prednisone and if they don't, physician should pursue other diagnosis as infection, connective tissue disorder, malignancy, hypothyroidism. Terrible morning stiffness and pain is a classic PMR symptom. In my case, it persisted through movement and lasted most of the day. At night I felt a little better. Keep a record of your symptoms with dates so you have it to give the doctor. My aunt had GCA and was on high dosage of prednisone. It masked an abscess she had in her gastrointestinal tract, which was not discovered until very late in her treatment. Good luck.
I am wondering if your doc could order more specific wide ranging tests of other prgan invovement. like a complete CBC and white count and a urinalysis to rule out kidney or bladder infections or other things underly your rising inflammation. .
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One thing that I think has helped me is to make a few lifestyle changes in what I eat and try to avoid. I have lower back issues that make it hard for me to walk any distance and some pain in my hips but it's more from degenerative arthritis. Here's some information in case you haven't seen it - https://arthritissj.com/diet-and-lifestyle-changes-that-can-aid-in-the-treatment-of-polymyalgia-rheumatica/