Remicaid vs. Humira...everything else has failed! long note

[Guest guest]

I am 39 years old and have been diagnosed with RA since 2001. I

believe I have had it since I was a teen, but it was never diagnosed

and I had long remissions.

My RA just keeps getting worse and worse and I am at my wits end! I

was on Enbrel for 1.5 years, along with MTX, Bextra, Skelaxin and

Prednisone. I had flares but things were basically under control

and I was working.

Last year, the efficacy of the Enbrel ended for me. At about the

same time, Bextra was taken off the market and I was suddenly in

horrendous shape. The Rheumy tried all sorts of things with no

sucess. I couldn't sleep, and spent most of the time rocking myself

because I didn't know how to stop the pain. On July 1, I stopped

working because I couldn't even bend my arms to get them up to the

keyboard, let alone type. I am the sole bread winner for my family

and we have 6 children.

The Rheumy gave me the option of joining one of the drug studies he

was doing and I decided to go with it. I started on Abatacept

infusions and began to get some relief. Suddenly, my back pain was

much worse and I couldn't sit, stand or lay down without pain.

Turns out that the facet joints in my back had deteriorated so badly

that one of them cracked and opened and then it collapsed down on

the next few levels of my spine. In Dec, I had back surgery where

they did a laminectomy and used rods and screws to put things back

together.

Well...the surgery made my RA pain flair even worse than it was

before. I ended up with pulmonary effusions (fluid on my lungs)

that they said was likely from the RA. The Dr. started me on

Oxycontin for the pain and I finally felt that I was getting some

relief, at least to the point that I could tolerate the pain.

I have healed from the surgery, but the Abatacept infusions are not

giving me any pain relief at all. When they feel my joints for

swelling at each appointment, they are all swollen. It is as if I

am not on any meds at all. The Dr. added Lodine XL to my list of

meds.

I started going to a pain management center and they changed the

oxycontin to Avinza and also added Lyrica for the pain. I also

noticed than since surgery, I was having these tremors and jerking

movements and at times would have difficulty with my speech. I was

sent to a neurologist and am now diagnosed with multi focal

myoclonic seizures which could be from the surgery but can also be

caused by the immune system. This Dr. now added Trileptal to my

meds. Of course I am still on MTX and Skelaxin plus meds to try and

help me sleep.

The Rheumy did a bone scan and found that I had considerable bone

loss for someone my age and started me on Fosamax. I had xrays of

my hands and wrists and it shows a build up of crystals that they

believe are hydroxyapaptite crystals and said follow up would be

needed. I just had an mri of my hand and wrists but no results yet.

Meanwhile, my RA is still flaring and my husband and I have decided

that the Abatacept is no longer providing me any relief at all, and

its time to try something else. My options are Humira or Remicaid

and I don't know which to try. What I would like to know is this:

Based on all this history I provided, which of these might work

better? Does anyone have thougts they could provide. Anyone tried

both and had sucess with one but not the other?

Just as additional info...in case you are still reading, I have a

wheelchair and an electric scooter that was purchased by my ins.

co. I wear braces on my arms to help with pain. I have done

aquatic therapy 3x a week for months now. I am extremely depressed

and see a psychiatrist for that and he has me on other meds. I am

still mourning for the life I knew and realizing all the things that

I will never be able to do again. I am only 39, I just can't take

much more of this.

My hubby is extremely supportive and he and the kids do everything

around the house, I can't do anything to pitch in and that just

makes me feel useless and more depressed.

ok...all for now, I will stop my sob story. Thanks for listening.

Miriam