blood work | Arthritis Information

I got my blood work done at noon today.. By 4:30 my RD was on the phone leaving me a message to PLEASE call him in the morning.All of my blood counts are very low. Low red cells, low white cells and low platelets.. yippee.

I am naturally reading way too much into this.. its probably all because of that abcess.. Which has another head on it now..btw.. but nothing I'm reading looks promising. I have infections tons of spontaneous bruising, oral thrush and mouth sores, and I feel like a truck hit me..

Somehow I don't think I'm going to sleep real good tonight.

Sooo gang I would appreciate any good thoughts you have ..

Hi Kathy, with all that you have going on other than the bloodwork I wouldn't venture a guess as to what's causing your abnormal labs. I don't know what RA meds you're on. I was on Humira weekly and my blood counts and supporting tests were low. I went to Humira every 2 weeks and the labs returned to normal within the month. Call first thing in the morning and then let us know. It just might be a medication adjustment. I'll be thinking of you; I understand how stressful it all can be. Lindy

Since Feb I have only been on 20 mg MTX per week and 5 mg pred per day.. Off all other RA meds for 11 months now..Kathy,

I hope you do get some rest tonight. Please Post in the morning and let us know what the Doctor says about your blood labs.

Try to not worry(I know, easier said than done). Let us know what the dr. says...Oh gees Kathy, you just can't catch a break! I'll say a prayer for you. Aww, Kathy, what a bummer. Sending big hugs your way.

Just to be clear - you stated you are taking the MTX once a week. If you were taking it more frequently, or if your pharmacist was filling and labeling the drug incorrectly......and this has been known to happen...... that could be the problem.

Take the prescription bottle with you to the doctor's office on Tuesday.

This link is not intended to scare you....but rather to inform everyone of the problems that can occur when they take even a tiny dose of MTX more than once a week.

http://www.ismp-canada.org/download/cjhp/cjhp0808.pdf

Kathy Ow are you I ope you are beterKathy, let us know what the doctor had to say, LindyHoping for an update. Kathy I hope you are feeling better this evening.

I talked to the RD this morning. He wants me to start taking 12 mcg of folic acid every day. I have not been taking any at all, and he seemed shocked.. He never told me to take it except when I first started on MTX and then only if I got mouth sores. sigh..

He wants more blood work in 2 weeks. I told him about the infections and the bruising and the dreadful palor.. I'm so pale I could be a mime. My PCP wants to see me today. They seem a bit more concerned than he is.

I've been reading.. Bad idea I know, but what it is looking like is MTX induced pancytopenia.. hopefully my bone marrow hasn't shut down completely.. I am NOT a happy camper right now..

I have been taking exactly the amount of MTX prescribed.. 8 tablets ONCE a week.

[QUOTE=kathy_in_wlsv]

12 mcg = .012 mg

Under normal maintenance dose you should be taking between 1-2 mg of Folic Acid daily. No wonder you've been having problems. And if you only take 12 mcg you'll keep having problems. Call your doctor's office and get this cleared up because 12 micrograms isn't going to do diddly for you.

For what it's worth, I took MTX for two years without knowing to take Folic Acid and I was sick the whole time. Finally when I switched RD's the first thing he asked was about Folic Acid.

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Now thees diseases are simply cured minimum 6 days. Have you seen a surgeon about the abcess? I used to fiddle with the antibiotics and they always came back. My surgeon just cuts them out and it is alot easier then months of antibiotics.

Have the doctor call in the folic acid with prescibing intructions on them. So you know you are taking the correct amount. Not to little or too much. I hope things get sorted out for you soon.

Kathy, I am also not a doctor from India.....

Hope you are feeling better and less undead. Let us know how you're doing.
Hugs, leilaHi Kathy, hope you had a reasonable night. Regarding alot of infections, ie moth etc I get this too, also the unexplained bruising, have an appt at haemotology unit on 21st Dec. As for feeling terrible all the time, I can definitely relate to that. Although I have been told that working full time isnt helping. I hope your results show nothing too awful, thin king of you Re unexplained bruising: while MTX is notorious for bruising, the physician should also rule out other confounding diseases such as Diabetes.

I just found out recently that my Type 2 Diabetes may be Type 1.5 Diabetes, the autoimmune version of diabetes, which goes hand in hand with autoimmune arthritis and Hashimoto's Hypothyroidism. Am being tested soon.