PMR - How will I know I am in remission?

The biologic that worked for me was Actemra. Unfortunately, Actemra isn't FDA approved for the treatment of PMR. However, it is approved for the treatment of GCA and a few other autoimmune disorders including RA. I don't have GCA but I have another type inflammatory arthritis along with PMR. My rheumatologist thought Actemra might work for my case of chronic PMR and inflammatory arthritis. He just thought if Actemra works for GCA and RA then it might work for PMR and my type of inflammatory arthritis..
I'm glad my rheumatologist went to the trouble of submitting a special request to get Actemra approved for me. The request was approved.

There were other factors that were considered when the approval request was submitted. Long term prednisone use was one factor. The failure of all other treatment options like methotrexate was another factor.

You oviously had a doctor working in your behalf. We should all be so lucky. However, I can see now that, while actemra andles the IL6 that you produce, it doesn't encourage your body to make less. That may be your stumbling block to get off of it.

I was told that PMR is more likely to go into remission than other autoimmune disorders. Part of the problem with achieving remission of PMR is that long term treatment with prednisone is the current standard of care. Prednisone manages the pain but doesn't solve the problem. As long as you take enough prednisone, pain from a wide variety of disorders will be controlled. The trick is knowing what is causing the pain when you taper your prednisone dose lower. It may be PMR or it may be something else.

Generally speaking, I was told autoimmune disorders have three possibilities after they start.

1) A one time event and it goes away and never happens again.

2) A more likely scenario is that it will progress into a recurring pattern.
Remission is achieved but then it starts recurring. The time between remission and recurrence varies. It could be years before it recurs again. Given that it takes a long time to taper off prednisone when it is taken long term at doses in excess of 10 mg, you need to successfully get to a lower dose of prednisone (approximately 7 mg or less) to know if it is recurring.

3) The last possibility is a chronic form. The pain may be controlled but you will always need some kind of treatment to control chronic inflammation.

My rheumatologist thinks I went through all three phases. I have been diagnosed with 3 different autoimmune disorders. When I was first diagnosed it seemed like it would be a one time event. It took 5 years before it recurred. Then it started to recur more often but I still enjoyed a year or more of remission between flares.

When I was diagnosed with PMR things became chronic. I took prednisone daily for more than 12 years after PMR was diagnosed. I did successfully taper off prednisone. I'm now being treated with a biologic that seems to control all my autoimmune problems.

an important message from my Rheumy is There is no Timeline... just b patient when tapering...everyone reacts differently... i went from 5 to 1 and had to go back to 5... I am a patient who's patient lol hope u r 2
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I was told that PMR is more likely to go into remission than other autoimmune disorders. Part of the problem with achieving remission of PMR is that long term treatment with prednisone is the current standard of care. Prednisone manages the pain but doesn't solve the problem. As long as you take enough prednisone, pain from a wide variety of disorders will be controlled. The trick is knowing what is causing the pain when you taper your prednisone dose lower. It may be PMR or it may be something else.

Generally speaking, I was told autoimmune disorders have three possibilities after they start.

1) A one time event and it goes away and never happens again.

2) A more likely scenario is that it will progress into a recurring pattern.
Remission is achieved but then it starts recurring. The time between remission and recurrence varies. It could be years before it recurs again. Given that it takes a long time to taper off prednisone when it is taken long term at doses in excess of 10 mg, you need to successfully get to a lower dose of prednisone (approximately 7 mg or less) to know if it is recurring.

3) The last possibility is a chronic form. The pain may be controlled but you will always need some kind of treatment to control chronic inflammation.

My rheumatologist thinks I went through all three phases. I have been diagnosed with 3 different autoimmune disorders. When I was first diagnosed it seemed like it would be a one time event. It took 5 years before it recurred. Then it started to recur more often but I still enjoyed a year or more of remission between flares.

When I was diagnosed with PMR things became chronic. I took prednisone daily for more than 12 years after PMR was diagnosed. I did successfully taper off prednisone. I'm now being treated with a biologic that seems to control all my autoimmune problems.

Does anybody think a stressful shock to your system triggered PMR?
Any thoughts on what triggered Your PMR?

Does anybody think a stressful shock to your system triggered PMR?
Any thoughts on what triggered Your PMR?