Anyone else have PMR with some serious sternum/rib cage pain?

Yes. My PMR went to everywhere below my hips -- neck, arms, hands, all parts of my back upper and lower, ribcage front and back, hips) (except weirdly it REMOVED the pain I'd had in my feet and ankles in the am for years!).

I am 3+ years into pred - started at 20 mg and was almost instant relief (now at 3 and can't get below).

Before pred I was going steadily downhill; got to where I had trouble getting dressed and taking a shower. Had to do many careful maneuvers to turn over in bed. VERY slow bending down to pick something up.

Then one night I couldn't get out of bed, bcuz the slightest use of torso muscles would send them into wrenching spasm.
The next day my doc game me pred and gave me my life back.

But now I have not been able to get below 3 mg. And even so, by day's end and next morning I have (mild) ache in ribs and/or back.

When it was bad I got to avoiding coughing, sneezing, even sighing, bcuz they hurt... and eventually led to spasm (as things got worse).

Also I don't remember having shoulder pain, which is typical, tho I had it in my left scapula.

But definitely yes, rib pain, front and back!

Welcome @knyhus, Tapering off of prednisone can be difficult when you get below 5 mg. My first time with PMR it took me 3 and half years to taper off with the last six months going back and forth between 1 mg and 1/2 mg until I could finally stop taking it with only minor stiffness and aches when I got up in the morning. Here is another discussion you might find helpful:
--- PMR Dosages and Managing Symptoms: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/pmr-dosages/.

Keeping a daily log with my level of pain when I woke up and the dose of prednisone I was taking for the day helped me when tapering to a lower level. Do you keep a daily log?

Hi John
Thanks for the welcome, and the welcome advice.

I have not kept a daily log lately, as there hasn't been much variation in symptoms for a long time.

However, as they actually seem to be slightly worse lately, while still on the same dose I've been taking for months, I might start doing so.

I did at the beginning, including before I was diagnosed, since it was such a strange and ever-worsening series and spread of symptoms.

Thanks again. I'm glad to be joining.

When my pmr kicks in, the first thing l notice is my ribcage aching, and when l inhale, it seems to 'catch' just above my sternum area. My pmr manifests in my shoulders and my neck, mainly. I also have gout and osteoarthritis. I had not read much about the ribcage issue until now, glad for confirmation (Diagnosed last March, started with 20 mg pred., now down to 9 mg, reducing 1 mg per month.)

What you are describing sounds like costochondritis. It isn't necessarily related to PMR but it is possible.

"Examples of health conditions that can feature costochondritis include fibromyalgia, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, reactive arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and inflammatory bowel disease (such as ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease)."
https://www.medicinenet.com/costochondritis_and_tietze_syndrome/article.htm

I had PMR as an add-on to reactive arthritis. I often had flares of costochrondritis when it hurt to inhale every time I took a breath.

I'm now going back into history as this happened only once, and it must have been 40 to 45 years ago. It was at a time when I had an inadequate doctor and ended up changing to the best doctor I have ever had. He didn't know what it was but suspected autoimmune problem and gave me the only test available at the time, for Lupus. Although the results weren't conclusive, he suspected Sjogrens Syndrome and prescribed hydroxychloroquine which I took for many years. I believe I have had PMR for a very long time, and his intervention prevented a flare up happening much earlier, and kept me safe at a time when medicine didn't recognized what PMR was, also as a single parent, when I needed to earn a living.

Now I am retired and taking 1 1/4 mg of prednisone and about to come down another 1/4 mg. I know it sounds like a ridiculously small amount but after 2 years of trying to drop below 2 1/2mg it works for me.

To get back to the topic, I relieved the pain in my ribs by gently massaging between the rib bones with my fingers. Keep smiling sunshine, it does get better.

I managed to reduce me Prednisone by small increments of 1/4 tablet. I would wait until I was feeling pretty good then take a week off from my life and reduce again. It wasn't easy or pain free but it worked, you just have to out wait it. If the pain is too intense, go back to the previous dose and wait to try again. Your experience mirrors my own. It's hard, and the hardest thing for me was getting used to an illness that took years to end, not the one or two weeks we are used to. I am almost there right now, after 4 years, and I bless every day when the stiffness wears off in a quarter of an hour instead of half a day.

For those of you who are weaning off pred, are you augmenting with any pain relievers? I am trying tylenol 8hour, naproxen, as well as motrin with varying results. One day, 2mg pred, the next 3 mg. Going on 3 years with this nonsense. Good to know there may be light at the end of the tunnel.

Really! I will have to look into this further, thank you so much. It's a very weird sensation, and l dont think l have been able to describe it well to my family doctor.

I have PMR and there isn't much of my body that doesn't hurt, even with the lighted touch. I too have pain in my chest and ribs, so I can relate. But I also have Interstitial Lung Disease and combined with the PMR it makes it very difficult to take a full breath. It is frustrating. My hope is they find a treatment that works better than those I am taking now. (I have been on Prednisone for the last 5+ years, Hydroxychloroquine, and muscle relaxants off and on as needed for muscle spasms and cramping. The doctor tried meds for pain, including Tramadol none of the pain meds have offered much relief.)