New to the Board, question about symptoms...

[Guest guest]

Hi everyone. I just joined and am hoping to participate frequently.

I was diagnosed with RA/fibro less than a year ago and have been on

the medicine trial and error rollar coaster since August. I am

currently on celebrex (400mg/day), prednisone (10 mg/day or more as

needed), plaquinil (200 mg/day), and Arava (20 mg/day.) I had been on

methotrexate but the side effects far outweighed the slight benefits.

I am waiting to talk to my doc because the Arava is not cutting it, I

have had the worst month since I have been on it, and this weekend was

freaked out by my throat tightening up and affecting my voice. I took

some extra prednisone, which has helped, but I can still feel my

throat all swollen up. I am wondering if anyone else has encountered

this.

Hope everyone is having a good night.

Thanks,

[Guest guest]

Welcome, !

It's not clear from what you said - did you call your physician since your

throat felt as if it were tightening? If not, please do ASAP.

I'll tell you where to go!

Mayo Clinic in Rochester

http://www.mayoclinic.org/rochester

s Hopkins Medicine

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org

[ ] New to the Board, question about symptoms...

>

>

>

> Hi everyone. I just joined and am hoping to participate frequently.

>

> I was diagnosed with RA/fibro less than a year ago and have been on

> the medicine trial and error rollar coaster since August. I am

> currently on celebrex (400mg/day), prednisone (10 mg/day or more as

> needed), plaquinil (200 mg/day), and Arava (20 mg/day.) I had been on

> methotrexate but the side effects far outweighed the slight benefits.

>

> I am waiting to talk to my doc because the Arava is not cutting it, I

> have had the worst month since I have been on it, and this weekend was

> freaked out by my throat tightening up and affecting my voice. I took

> some extra prednisone, which has helped, but I can still feel my

> throat all swollen up. I am wondering if anyone else has encountered

> this.

>

> Hope everyone is having a good night.

> Thanks,

>

[Guest guest]

,

You need a lot of patience when you have these diseases. I took a

year to 18 months to find a drug combination which helped me. And in

the years since then, continual tweaking occurs. I have a fairly

mild case of RA & fibro, so my symptoms responded to drugs less

harsh than yours. Currently I'm on Naproxen, Plaquenil and Osteo

BiFlex (over the counter) for the RA, Elavil and Flexeril for the

fibro, and Oxycontin and Lexapro for chronic pain. This regimen has

been fairly stable for about a year, now, but I'm sure it will

evolve further in the future. So hang in there. Keep trying

different things (like Naproxen instead of Celebrex) until you find

the medications which your unique set of genes is happy with.

That said, anytime you have an adverse reaction to a drug,

especially if it involves your throat and your ability to breathe,

contact a doctor immediately. If your throat symptoms are caused by

that drug, you need to stop taking the drug and find out what is

going on. And above all, trust your instincts. Even if the doctor

says that drug never causes that problem, you need to listen to what

your body is telling you. If you stop taking the drug and your

throat gets better, then you have discovered a new side-effect.

Managing these diseases with medication is more an art than a

science. One more thing - prednisone has some very serious side

effects, one of which is osteoporosis. If you take prednisone

frequently, you need to get a bone density scan done (it's called

a " DEXA " scan) so that you have a starting reference point. Perhaps

your doctor should have you on calcium supplements (must have

vitamin D included or they are not good) and/or the new drugs which

treat osteoporosis. DO look up prednisone's drug profile and become

familiar with the side effects and adverse reactions:

http://www.drugs.com/alpha/d1.html

or some other web site for drugs. When it comes to your healthcare,

learn as much as you can. Don't depend upon the doctor or the

government to keep you informed. Jusy my humble opinion...

Nina

[Guest guest]

,

You need a lot of patience when you have these diseases. I took a

year to 18 months to find a drug combination which helped me. And in

the years since then, continual tweaking occurs. I have a fairly

mild case of RA & fibro, so my symptoms responded to drugs less

harsh than yours. Currently I'm on Naproxen, Plaquenil and Osteo

BiFlex (over the counter) for the RA, Elavil and Flexeril for the

fibro, and Oxycontin and Lexapro for chronic pain. This regimen has

been fairly stable for about a year, now, but I'm sure it will

evolve further in the future. So hang in there. Keep trying

different things (like Naproxen instead of Celebrex) until you find

the medications which your unique set of genes is happy with.

That said, anytime you have an adverse reaction to a drug,

especially if it involves your throat and your ability to breathe,

contact a doctor immediately. If your throat symptoms are caused by

that drug, you need to stop taking the drug and find out what is

going on. And above all, trust your instincts. Even if the doctor

says that drug never causes that problem, you need to listen to what

your body is telling you. If you stop taking the drug and your

throat gets better, then you have discovered a new side-effect.

Managing these diseases with medication is more an art than a

science. One more thing - prednisone has some very serious side

effects, one of which is osteoporosis. If you take prednisone

frequently, you need to get a bone density scan done (it's called

a " DEXA " scan) so that you have a starting reference point. Perhaps

your doctor should have you on calcium supplements (must have

vitamin D included or they are not good) and/or the new drugs which

treat osteoporosis. DO look up prednisone's drug profile and become

familiar with the side effects and adverse reactions:

http://www.drugs.com/alpha/d1.html

or some other web site for drugs. When it comes to your healthcare,

learn as much as you can. Don't depend upon the doctor or the

government to keep you informed. Jusy my humble opinion...

Nina