Prednisone vs No Prednisone

My last occurrence of PMR was back in 2018 but I've had days that I thought the PMR may be coming back. It always seems to be in the back of my mind when I'm dealing with swelling in my hands or joint pain in my shoulders. Most of the time I can control it with a little Voltaren gel or arthritis lotion. Since I also have carpal tunnel syndrome in my hands and degenerative arthritis it's more of a guessing game for me. If it gets above my pain tolerance, I will check with my PCP and/or rheumatologist to confirm my worst fear 🙃.

I would like to know lab results of my inflammation markers. If they
are elevated indicating systemic involvement I would consider prednisone
if my earlier experience had no severe side effects. Systemic inflammation
increases our cardiovascular risks or inflammaging of our body. Consider
the Mediterranean diet and prescription alternatives as well.

I am definitely upping my vegetables. Doing weekly ordering now with a local co-op that sources from local farms.
Appreciate your suggestions.

Those are good suggestions. Also be alert to any symptoms of GCA, since untreated PMR can lead to the development of GCA, as it did in my case. Get a doctor's advice if you have any new headaches, scalp tenderness, facial pain, fatigue in your jaw muscles, etc. Go to the emergency room if you have any unusual vision problems.

Thank you 🙏🏼

I had those same concerns when I had my flare. Very uncomfortable. Similar pain. OTC stuff was not helping. My Dr appt was 3 months out. I thought that the reason my first PMR occurrence lasted so long was it took 3 months to diagnose. My flare was at about 1 year. I took a 5 day prednisone pack. 20mg - 20mg - 10mg - 5mg - 5mg - stopped. I sort of loaded it up front. My pain was gone the first day. I have not had any issues since.

Prednisone acts directly and powerfully to subdue/reduce/eliminate systemic inflammation. PMR is not a pain syndrome, and it's not an arthritis - it's pain resulting from systemic inflammation concentrating near (but not in, as arthritis) your major joints.

Glad to hear you were able to nip it in the bud. My rheumatologist initially put me on a 9 day taper 30/20-10. All symptoms disappeared but after I stopped the pred the symptoms came back.
Now on 10 mg/day (day 5) with minor pain.

Very interesting!
Thank you!!!

I’m wondering that too. I’m wondering if anyone handled their PMR flare without taking any prednisone? I really don’t ever want to go back on prednisone, and I’m thinking that if the flare isn’t that bad and I can handle the pain should I do it without any help. Curious as if anyone has ever tried this.