1. < Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR)

Progression of other ailments after PMR diagnosis

Posted by orangecat @orangecat, Dec 25, 2024

I write asking how others feel about incorrectly tying an ailment to PMR. How can I/we try not to do this or simply rely on our doctor knowing that we have PMR and this will be enough? I wonder if my trigger finger is related to PMR. I also wonder when it could matter when I incorrectly say that some condition is related to the PMR or the prednisone?

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR) Support Group.

DadCue | @dadcue | 1 day ago
In reply to @jlo2252 "@dadcue Wishing you the best in your health journey in 2025…and may you be pain free!" + (show)
@jlo2252

@dadcue
Wishing you the best in your health journey in 2025…and may you be pain free!

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I'm doing great! I have a doctor visit today and I don't have much to talk about. I somewhat wish I didn't have the appointment.

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DadCue | @dadcue | 1 day ago
In reply to @jlo2252 "@dadcue Agreed! As you know we both have the same multiple autoimmune conditions. The one difference..." + (show)
@jlo2252

@dadcue
Agreed! As you know we both have the same multiple autoimmune conditions. The one difference is that I only had the uveitis when I was first diagnosed with the reactive arthritis- one of the classic symptoms of this disorder—I was also treated with prednisone and three different drops for my eyes. The whites of my eyes were blood red and my pcp was also worried I would lose my eyesight!! Thank god I have not had a repeat of that—I feel for you, I really do—it was very painful as well….
Prednisone has also been a constant off and on for most of my life (I’m 75) since it was used when I had severe asthma. Now they are more hesitant to use in large doses because I’m now diabetic!!
Thankfully I seem to be infection free after an awful bronchitis that lasted 3 months—it’s amazing what they can find out when the right tests are run—my pulmonary doctor ordered a sputum culture that was positive for bacteria and they gave me the correct antibiotic and I was better in a week!😃
I’m making an appointment to try Actemra and hopefully I can finally get off prednisone-I’m currently on 5 mg but I’m having a fair amount of pain and stiffness from my arthritis. Not everything is caused by my PMR, which is why I recommend that some people get checked for other autoimmune diseases. Thank you for bringing that to our attention!

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"Thank god I have not had a repeat of that—I feel for you, I really do—it was very painful as well…."
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I had more than 30 flares of uveitis in 20 years before PMR was diagnosed. After the first couple of flares, I got used to the flares of uveitis. I could feel the uveitis symptoms quickly and recognized them.

I was seen quickly after I reported another flare of uveitis. I frequently took 60 mg of prednisone and tapered off prednisone in a month.. I tried to make sure I saw the same ophthalmologist each time because he and I had the routine perfected. Our routine was to take 60 mg of prednisone and increase as needed if my symptoms worsened. Otherwise my followup visit was one month later or sooner if I had any problems. I never had any problems. The ophthalmologist I saw regularly said I was skilled with prednisone tapers.

This toutine caused some controversy whenever I saw a different ophthalmologist. They wanted to do followup visits every 3 days to make sure the uveitis was responding. I tried to tell them I could tell if the uveitis was responding or not and I could adjust my prednisone dose accordingly. Some ophthalmologists didn't believe me and didn't want me to "self medicate."

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