Re: Have an Autoimmune Condition like Rheumatoid Arthritis? Heard of Cellulitis?

[Guest guest]

I wonder how many of us rheumatoid patients have had this battle?

I have had sero-positive RA since 15 (I will be 44 in a fortnight) and

have twice had to be intensively treated for cellulitis.

The first time, not knowing even of cellulitis's exsitence - it

literally scared me half to death as I live hours away from a hospital.

Both these cases happened in just the last three years. I have also

been diagnosed with a rare form of leukaemia, LGLL which is connected to

severe rheumatoid arthritis. (A 30% incident rate of patients that

have LGLL also have severe RA of 20 years or more)

Now I have a spare batch of Augmentin kept here at home, should it ever

start again out of doctors hours/weekends/holiday time etc - so that it

doesn't get to the out of control stage. (I also have two stronger

antibiotics should I develop a temperature, I am to swallow them and

head to isolation at the base hospital for our province.)

When I first did the google searching on cellulitis; I was astounded

that I hadn't had problems before, and I could not believe how common

things can lead to this deadly infection. Since then several healthy

friends also have been treated for cellulitis.

Once while at base hospital (2 hours drive away) I even had a nurse drop

a new but bare needle onto the floor,she picked it up and started to

attach it to the syringe -I said, NO WAY are you using that on me!

Mel

New Zealand

roberts1008 wrote:

>I have posted here several times before. I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid

Arthritis in April of 2004. And, I have been on Antibiotic Protocol since Feb of

2005. I have been getting monthly natural testosterone hormone injections since

August of 2005. On Jan 3, 2006, I got my latest shot, and almost immediately it

began getting sore and redness developed. I thought (wrongly) that I must have

gotten an increase in dosage (which I have wanted for awhile) and so I thought I

wouldn't complain. Well, bad idea! It turned out that I had developed a case of

Cellulitis, a bacterial infection that develops in the tissue BELOW the skin.

This could develope into an extremely serious condition called flesh-eating

strep, or necrotizing fasciitis. It spreads rapidly, especially once it gets

into the bloodstream. I am not a doctor, so I won't try to explain further. But,

a website that you can reference is

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/cellulitis/DS00450/DSECTION=1

>

>My point is this.... If you have an autoimmune condition like RA, your risk

factor is higher for developing Cellulitis. Be sure that skin is clean before

injections, and that any break in your skin is cleaned thoroughly asap. Since my

injection was done at the critically-acclaimed CENTER FOR HOLISTIC MEDICINE and

I was given no warning of the possibility of such an infection -->> BEWARE!! YOU

HAVE BEEN WARNED!!

>

>Fortunately, I was bright enough to call my doctor's after-hours phone number

on Saturday, and he told me to see go immediately to Urgent Care because I

needed a prescription for a strong anti-biotic. I did and they prescribed Keflex

500mg (four times a day). Forty-eight hours later, the redness is almost all

gone, although there is still swelling around the injection site.

>

>Best wishes,

>

>Jeff

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

My daughter has had severe cellulitis twice this year and recovered.

The first and most serious time was after visiting a patient in one of

our major hospitals. Her local doctor said cellulitis can be caused by

several organisms but is most often a streptococcus infection.

Chris.

On 10/01/2006, at 12:47 PM, Imelda and Sutherland wrote:

> I wonder how many of us rheumatoid patients have had this battle?

>

> I have had sero-positive RA since 15 (I will be 44 in a fortnight) and

> have twice had to be intensively treated for cellulitis.

> The first time, not knowing even of cellulitis's exsitence - it

> literally scared me half to death as I live hours away from a hospital.

> Both these cases happened in just the last three years. I have also

> been diagnosed with a rare form of leukaemia, LGLL which is connected

> to

> severe rheumatoid arthritis. (A 30% incident rate of patients that

> have LGLL also have severe RA of 20 years or more)

>

> Now I have a spare batch of Augmentin kept here at home, should it ever

> start again out of doctors hours/weekends/holiday time etc - so that it

> doesn't get to the out of control stage. (I also have two stronger

> antibiotics should I develop a temperature, I am to swallow them and

> head to isolation at the base hospital for our province.)

>

> When I first did the google searching on cellulitis; I was astounded

> that I hadn't had problems before, and I could not believe how common

> things can lead to this deadly infection. Since then several healthy

> friends also have been treated for cellulitis.

>

> Once while at base hospital (2 hours drive away) I even had a nurse

> drop

> a new but bare needle onto the floor,she picked it up and started to

> attach it to the syringe -I said, NO WAY are you using that on me!

>

> Mel

> New Zealand

>

> roberts1008 wrote:

>

>> I have posted here several times before. I was diagnosed with

>> Rheumatoid Arthritis in April of 2004. And, I have been on Antibiotic

>> Protocol since Feb of 2005. I have been getting monthly natural

>> testosterone hormone injections since August of 2005. On Jan 3, 2006,

>> I got my latest shot, and almost immediately it began getting sore

>> and redness developed. I thought (wrongly) that I must have gotten an

>> increase in dosage (which I have wanted for awhile) and so I thought

>> I wouldn't complain. Well, bad idea! It turned out that I had

>> developed a case of Cellulitis, a bacterial infection that develops

>> in the tissue BELOW the skin. This could develope into an extremely

>> serious condition called flesh-eating strep, or necrotizing

>> fasciitis. It spreads rapidly, especially once it gets into the

>> bloodstream. I am not a doctor, so I won't try to explain further.

>> But, a website that you can reference is

>> http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/cellulitis/DS00450/DSECTION=1

>>

>> My point is this.... If you have an autoimmune condition like RA,

>> your risk factor is higher for developing Cellulitis. Be sure that

>> skin is clean before injections, and that any break in your skin is

>> cleaned thoroughly asap. Since my injection was done at the

>> critically-acclaimed CENTER FOR HOLISTIC MEDICINE and I was given no

>> warning of the possibility of such an infection -->> BEWARE!! YOU

>> HAVE BEEN WARNED!!

>>

>> Fortunately, I was bright enough to call my doctor's after-hours

>> phone number on Saturday, and he told me to see go immediately to

>> Urgent Care because I needed a prescription for a strong anti-biotic.

>> I did and they prescribed Keflex 500mg (four times a day).

>> Forty-eight hours later, the redness is almost all gone, although

>> there is still swelling around the injection site.

>>

>> Best wishes,

>>

>> Jeff

>>

>>

>>

>>

>>

>>