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Can PMR (Polymyalgia Rheumatica) be induced by vaccine?
Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR) | Last Active: Oct 19, 2023 | Replies (401)Comment receiving replies
I'm sixty years old. In addition to PMR I also have Sjögren's. I'm taking 20 mg of prednisone daily for the PMR. After several weeks at full dose, I was instructed to reduce it by 5 mg but I deteriorated drastically within a short period of time. I've resumed taking 20 mg of prednisone daily and I'm on my second week of methotrexate injections (16 mg). I still experience pain and limited movement but I'm looking forward to seeing improvement with the shots. So far, I've had no side effects from them. I was very reluctant to take it but really had no choice if I wanted to function better. It was a good choice for me. Another positive note is that, if the methotrexate shots work well, I'll be able to stop taking the hydroxychloroquine (plaquenil) I take for RA (Rheumatoid Arthritis).
Replies to "I'm sixty years old. In addition to PMR I also have Sjögren's. I'm taking 20 mg..."
I was diagnosed with PMR in Jan. 2022 and put on 20 mgs. of Pred. It has been my experience that .5 (not 5) mg reduction at a time is more than enough. 5 mg. is too much and that's why you're experiencing the pain (again). I have not been offered methotrexate - yet. There is no race to the finish for tapering, go by what your body is telling you. Over the last few weeks I was down to 14 mg. but last weekend experienced much head pressure, jaw pain and some eye involvement and went to ER. After the resident spoke with the Rheumatologist on call, I was put up to 60 mg. Pred and now being tested for GCA (possible biopsy on Wednesday next, but since I've been on Prednisone for this long, it may not be a good result (not show much). I wish you well on this "journey", but slow down the tapering (lack of pain and quality of life also count). Know that you're not alone and keep in touch with this support group and also healthunlocked.com/PMRGCAuk (another extremely helpful support group).
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I'm taking 25 mg methotrexate weekly not 16 mg as I stated in the post above.
I time my injections so any nausea occurs in the night while I'm sleeping. The first time I did it at 6 p.m. The second I did earlier in the day at 11:30 a.m. I woke up briefly last night with nausea but immediately fell back to sleep.