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Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR): Meet others & Share Your Story
Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR) | Last Active: Jan 27 8:38am | Replies (1879)Comment receiving replies
I started feeling pain in my hips last December; I had joined a gym and noticed the pain shortly after using the treadmill. By Christmas I could barely walk. Couldn't get in to see GP until January 11. He did the blood work, saw the elevations indicating elevated inflammation. Got the diagnosis of PMR. He prescribed 40mg of prednisone which I started and IMMEDIATELY felt better. He suggested I meet with a rheumatologist. This was JANUARY and the earliest I could get into the rheum was JUNE (this Tuesday, actually). In the meantime, I cut my pred down to 10 mg, which I took in the evening to help with the well-known morning nightmare. My gp suggested las week that I take a break from the pred for a few days before meeting with the rheum. So I am off it and, man, what a difference - I don't want to sit down b/c there is such pain trying to stand. Don't even talk to me about stairs. My sister (nurse) suggested some CBD gummies - they seem to help some (company - Proleve). I am glad to have found a forum for people like me who are struggling with this.
Replies to "I started feeling pain in my hips last December; I had joined a gym and noticed..."
@ksidorov I have non-classical PMR symptoms and so the doctors were late putting the Dx on the table. I spent time looking at the pain in detail. What I learned is that PMR often comes with bilateral trochanter bursitis (this is thigh pain - that can hurt when external pressure is applied over the trochanter bursae). I have had several rounds of hip steroid injections which quiet the local pain for a few months. I even had a guided injection of steroids directly into the bursa sacs. Note that this is not a systemic treatment but a localized treatment of the PRM pain, so please keep that in mind.
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Hi @ksidorov, it's no fun that's for sure. With PMR I felt like I was wearing an astronaut suit of pain, from the neck down over the Tin Man's body (stiffness). Were you doing okay on 10 mg? Did you decrease gradually from 40 to 10 mg? Did you also taper down from 10 mg? From what I've read 40 mg of prednisone is a high dosage. Usually, PMR is managed with 20 - 15 mg of Prednisone and a gradual taper. I took 40 mg of Prednisone because I had Giant Cell Arteritis. That was a year ago - I'm down to 3mg now with virtually no pain and normal CRP results. My current taper is -.5 mg every two weeks. With proper treatment, there is an end to the unremitting pain and stiffness of PMR. Good luck. I hope you like the Rheumatologist.