Hello debbie27473 - bloodshot and sore eyes can be a side effect steroids. I had many burst blood vessels in my eyes (subcongunctival haemorrhage) during my years on Pred, and on one occasion I awoke with both eyes affected and looked fit for Halloween. They're probably caused by steroids thinning the blood but I was assured by my ophthalmologist at the time that there was no need for concern. I haven't had any repeats since coming off steroids (hope I don't regret saying that!) I also experienced the dry throat, often producing a croaky voice but never experienced "choking fits". I always had enteric coated Pred until I reached the very low doses - 1mg pills are only available uncoated. If you feel it could be caused by oral thrush, try eating a daily 'live' yoghurt - that was one of my dietary mainstays along with a teaspoonful of Manuka honey with my breakfast and before taking the Pred, and served as a very successful stomach protector as I was unable to tolerate the Proton Pump Inhibitor pills such as Lansoprazol and Omeprazole often given out with the Pred.
MrsO, my eyes and the other GCA like symptoms have been with me for years, and then a few months ago pred. cured them when I took a big dose at the beginning of my diagnosis of PMR. Now symptoms are back with lower dose of pred. Thanks for sharing your experience.
Elieen and Debbie, thanks for your response. I am a widow on my own with no children. I do have my mom living with me, but she is 90 and can't hear well!
I've had the "choking fits" ever since I've had PMR so it isn't the oral thrush aspect - I wasn't on pred for the first 5 years. I also had a dry cough and have assumed it was a symptom at the GCA end of the PMR/GCA spectrum. The other option is silent reflux which can also cause sore throats and a cough but I've never been investigated for that. Mine also went away at higher doses of pred and are reappearing now I'm on a lower dose.
Mrs O - are you no longer on steroids? Is it that you now have no PMR? I seem to find no-one who has actually told me it does eventually go for some.
Both MrsO and MrsK on here have had PMR/GCA and GCA repectively and have been off pred for a while. On the forumup forum associated with the northeast support group there are several who have had one or other or both and are now off pred - we even have a "club" over there to encourage them to hang around and prove it happens! The most famous is a Swedish gentleman called Ragnar who was the first to have the idea of a slow reduction for under 5mg - he's been off pred for 5 years.
PMR can and does go into remission - that doesn't mean however that it goes for ever, it CAN (and does) come back but by no means for everyone. You also tend not to meet these people on the forums - we are often the more difficult cases to start with and once people HAVE got off pred they go away and get on with normal life.
I'm surprised you haven't had a doctor tell you it goes away - they'll often try to tell patient "just take this pred for a couple of years and it'll be all gone" - which isn't always true as we often have to explain!
Hi jennissw - Mrs O here "hanging around and proving that it happens, as Eileen has put it! Yes, I've been off steroids for just under two years now, with PMR and GCA having gone into remission. It took a few years for me to get there but although I had a fairly textbook journey down through the high doses from 40mgs, it all went a bit pear-shaped at 5mgs. It was learning from Ragnar's post on this site some years ago giving his experience of a slowly slowly approach to successfully getting from the oft sticky dose of 5mgs to zero, that finally allowed me to join his 'club' too. Eileen and I are in touch with many people now who have successfully got off steroids, and my PMR support group also has members who stay on in spite of having recovered just to give a morale boost to others that there is life after steroids. Hope that gives you a lift to hear that too.
Thanks to you Mrs O and to Eileen. The doctor said "if you are lucky it will go in two years.' and I did not want to rely on luck alone. What is gthis forum and can I join? Jen
https://patient.info/forums/discuss/pmr-gca-and-other-website-addresses-35316
Follow this link to another page on this discussion forum where the various useful addresses are given together.