Have posted here several times in the last month about the development and then diagnosis of humeral osteronecrosis, possibly caused by my 2.5 yrs of prednisone use for PMR. As I'm dealing with this new pain, and the possibilities of two shoulder replacement, I've noticed that my classic PMR pains, mostly in my upper arms and shoulders, just aren't there. Dud labs a few weeks ago and SED and CRP are at all -time lows. I'm at 7 mugs preds reducing to 6; but also wondering if my PMR has burned out? Or is it gone to remission, or what? Should I just continue reducing dead slow to nothing and see what happens? And special cautions?
Yes - keep reducing SLOWLY to nothing. Your labs SHOULD be that low if the pred dose is high enough to manage the inflammation and it doesn't mean that it has gone altogether. The only test for that is getting to zero pred with no return of symptoms.
At this stage you need to reduce slowly - your adrenal glands need to wake up again and start to produce cortisol. Going slowly encourages that to happen without any risks. You may find you get MORE fatigued - if so just slow down a bit and mark time for a few weeks until your body catches up. But you may have no problems at all - hope not.
Occasionally people find that when they have other pains, the PMR fades into the background - so be watchful! Good luck.
That sounds like very sound advice to me, good luck on your Rocky Road, FLpanhandlKen.
Thanks, Eileen. Especially interested in your comment about fatigue. An afternoon nap has been part of my daily routine almost the whole 2.6 yrs, and I still need it! I just retired at 68, and look forward fo continuing my naps, PMR or no!
Naps, you ubetcha, nothing like a good NAP!
Southern Europeans have a lot of things right - and IMHO that is one of them!!!
Yes, but everyone does a better job than the American system for far less money. Wish we had almost any other system, the German system seemed to be better when I worked for Siemens, I was employed in the states, but spent a lot of time in Munich!
The German system is/was good when I lived there. It has its problems too - all the systems do because of the amazing increases in costs. The problem in the UK is that they aren't paying a sensible amount of contributions - pay peanuts, get monkeys. We used to live in Siemens City, Erlangen...
EileenH so happy to see you responding again in your normal postitive way. It was worrying to read your message where you told us how blue you felt. Yes, I know we all have days like that but not our Eileen. Our geru who always gives such practical medical suggestions and comments. What would we do without you? Thanks for your comments which I know we all read eagerly!
Hi EileenH, I was never there, work in Munich, so spent most of my time around that area, when in the USAF, was stationed outside a little city CELLE by Hanover. Picked up a little German, which helped when being employed by Seimen, where I learned a little more! Had a great time working for Seimen, but the travel was a killer,, never home!
EileenH, you are our ROCK, please do not forget that LADY! I for one could not have got this far without your guidance! 🙂🙂😋
Ah yes - but even for me it gets hard at times despite knowing the theory and the medicine. And it is important that people also understand that - because otherwise there may be a risk they'll just think "what does she know". I also know why I felt like that - just slightly too low a dose of pred in the 6/7mg range. Lazy adrenals...
EileenH, to change the subject on you a bit, have you seen this article: A case of polymyalgia rheumatica following influenza B infection. Found it on line looking at viruses. It might be old news.
You do a great job! Thanks!
Lots of people develop PMR soon after an infection - but a whole range of them, no one thing that is common to all. It is probably that last infection that was the final straw for the person's stressed immune system and triggered it to go into overdrive. People had flu, pneumonia, flu jabs, pneumonia jabs - you name it, you can find someone who has had it in the period before the PMR appeared.
Yes, I am one of them my after a intestinal virus, then sore throat,
and I also believe there is a virus in our bodies waiting for the
immune system to be over loaded. Now if the virus was known
and could be attacked. That would be something!! But so that think
maybe this or that, but no cigar!!
They really have looked - and there isn't anything they could find that was common to everyone so the direct viral cause theory has been shelved. There COULD be an undiscovered virus but it is pretty unlikely for something so common.
So your thought is more than one virus or one not yet ID. Hope we are still around when they come to a conclusion. Funny I still favor, a very common type that cause several different conditions. Hope we see it! 🙂
There is a suggestion that the conditions of modern life have harmed the little critters which share our body space and keep us healthy, and as a result there is an epidemic of autoimmune diseases.
Oh Anhaga, I do not disagree. What has happened to the food supply is criminal and the latest send chickens to China to be processed with no labels stating that. Poison the ground, poison the crop, modify the seeds for greater production and shipping products to China for processing. Do you think modern life is HEALTH? I do not!
My thought is there is no single cause - many and various things upset the immune system and eventually the straw breaks the camel's back. It is the same for all autoimmune disorders - and what symptoms you develop and what label you are awarded varies according to the visible and measurable criteria. I believe all autoimmune disease is a continuum - where you end up on it depends on many factors, including genetic in some cases.
If you want a healthy life - I can recommend where I live! Locally produced food, our milk comes from happy cows living a natural life up a mountain and pollution is minimal - except on the Brenner highway!