Had to have an MRI the other day & was in a very awkward position for at least half an hour. What an awful experience, but that's another story. My shoulder is really bothering me since then & I am sure it irritated an already existing problem. I am on 7.5 mg of pred & wondering what can be taken for the shoulder pain.
Hi Mary, it's funny you saying that, I had to wear a blood pressure monitor for 13 hours 2 days ago and although I wasn't really in a certain position I just had to be careful what I did. I have since then had aching shoulders. They are not too bad but if they get worse I'd simply take a couple of paracetamol to ease the pain. All the best, christina
There have be some studies regarding this- University of Leeds, for example. The conclusions were not very positive concerning pracetemol, and for that mattter Ibuprophen. For a lot of pains they weren't much help, and at high doses are dangerous to kidneys and livers.
You can probably google the matter, reported a week or so ago on BBC TV.
Thanks Charles. I did a bit of googling & aspirin, ibuprophen did not sound like a great idea.
Yes Charles you are quite right. I don't that often take pain killers, I think last time was July last year as I do know that they can indeed cause many Clinical problems. Regards, christina
I was about to attribue it to a flare & then I remembered the hellish MRI & the strange position I was in.
My understanding is that aspirin and Ibuprofen shouldn't be taken with Steroids but Paracetamol is ok if not taken in large doses long term. I use it for the odd pains I sometimes have when I've overdone it. Of course they can damage the liver but I think if used only when necessary they are very useful!
You can always check with your pharmacist.
Thanks, that's a good idea.
Paracetamol...I am not sure what that is. Live in the US.
Tylenol or Panadol Mary
No NSAIDs (non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs) should be taken regularly alongside pred - the odd dose for a headache is unlikely to cause much trouble for most people but that doesn't mean it doesn't happen.
Google NSAIDs to get a list of substances and brand names.
Paracetamol (acetinamophen) and codeine alone or in combination are proabably OK but codeine causes constipation and dependency and makes some people just downright ill.
A recent study done in Australia has shown that paracetamol does no more than placebo (a sugar pill) in low back pain and osteoarthritis while putting patients at a 4 times higher risk of abnormal liver tests. So again - the odd dose won't be too much of a problem but there are doctors who will tell you it is what you should be taking for OA and back pain long term. And don't ever take it with alcohol - that just makes things worse.