2 Yr AS Veteran | Arthritis Information

G'day AS Community,

I am new to these forums and I would like to just introduce myself...well, my name is David, I live in Melbourne, Australia and I am 26 years old.

I was diagnosed with AS 2 years ago and know as much as I want to know about it as every time I read up I can't help myself and look at complications and set a weight of anxiety on my shoulders.

I am HLA-B27 Positive and have had xrays of my pelvis and they had noticed deformities there, so that's how I was diagnosed. I take celebrex, infact I only have 1 left :( , doesn't matter though, I only choose to take it occassionally when I really need it.

Celebrex has worked wonders for me, but the complications factor scares me, all over the internet I see nothing but bad things about celebrex, however it's very effective in treating my lower back pain, unfortunately does bugger all for the stiffness.

My back has been stopped since the age of 15 and hasn't got much worse only in the mornings, sitting down for long periods or laying down for long periods.

I love hot showers, for that 5 minutes im in the shower I feel normal, until I sit, lay down and itll go back to normal.

So anyway, I am commencing study again on feb 7th and excited about it, have been spending alot of time refreshing myself on maths, algebra, equations etc as it has been 8 years since I attended school last.

I do have afew concerns and questions for you guys, however I wanted to introduce myself first.

Talk to you all soon,

David.

Hi, David,

Sorry to say that few people stop by this forum.

I have several forms of autoimmune arthritis, AS being one of them. And yes, I am positive for the HLA-B27 antigen.

I've been taking Celebrex, 200mg twice daily, for about 10 years. Have had some edema, but it's resolved with diuretics as needed.

Have you tried the anti-TNF drugs such as Humira or Enbrel? You need to talk to your doctor about drugs that prevent damage rather than just take care of the pain.

Just send a private message to me if you need to reach me, as I don't check this forum very often anymore.

Sam