Hi,
I'm new to this board but not new to RA. My doctor wants me to take Arava. Has anyone tried it?
Roger
Roger
I do not reply to post very often as I feel there are more people with more experience, however as you don't have a reply yet I will give you information about my experience with Arava.
I started on 10 mg Arava last January, I was also on 7.5mg mtx, and after about 5 weeks found I was feeling better than I had in a long time. The main side effect that I had was diarrhea which was quite severe, In May my RD took me off it as the diarrhea had not calmed down.
Not everyone suffers with the same side effect, it might just be the right drug for you, you can always come off it if it does not suite.
Pat
Hi Roger! Welcome to the board! I was on Arava a few years ago and it worked well for me for awhile( about a year) and then I started having digestive problems and had to discontinue it. Before that though, I had no side effects.
Doreen
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I started on Arava about 2 months ago. I developed a dry coigh that would not go away. Dr. told me to stop the Arava, wait until cough went away, then start again to see if Arava was the cause. I started again and have a cough again. as well, I feel really sick, like a flu that won't go away. I am thinking about stopping it again. I am on alot of other meds too, so I am never sure what is causing what. I just know that I am sick all the time and starting to have trouble dealing with that. No diarrhea though. Good luck to you. I know others have had no problem with Arava.
take care |
Roger,
I took Arava for just over a year and it caused terrible diarrhea for me, too. I ended up losing about 5-7 pounds, not terribly much. But what made it difficult was the need to be near a bathroom! I hated that. Stopped it last June and the diarrhea stopped shortly thereafter.
Will never go back on this med.