prednisone question .. digestion | Arthritis Information

 

I find everytime i eat i get a very full feeling in my tummy and i feel like i have mucus in my throat that won't go away.. does anyone else experience this with steriods?

A feeling of fullness is one of the (many) possible side-effects of steroids. It is one of the ones to be mentioned to the doctor if I remember rightly - steroids can irritate the lining of the stomach. oh ok MrsE thats good to know. If you are taking omeprazole (the active ingredient in Losec) that should take care of any steroid irritation. However, some people don't get on with the inactive substances in the pills and get an upset stomach - gas, diarrhoea or constipation. Often another PPI (that's the type of drug) is better tolerated because it has different things in the pills. If you can manage, try not to eat your yogurt until an hour or so after taking your steroids as there is enough calcium in it to interfere with absorbing the steroid! [QUOTE=MrsE]If you are taking omeprazole (the active ingredient in Losec) that should take care of any steroid irritation. However, some people don't get on with the inactive substances in the pills and get an upset stomach - gas, diarrhoea or constipation. Often another PPI (that's the type of drug) is better tolerated because it has different things in the pills. If you can manage, try not to eat your yogurt until an hour or so after taking your steroids as there is enough calcium in it to interfere with absorbing the steroid! Hi Rick, I just finished a course of Nystatin (swish and swallow) because my PCP saw some white spots in my mouth and thought I might have thrush as a side effect of taking the Prednisone. Not sure if that is helpful, but you might want to look in your mouth or have your PCP do it. That's what I had understood also Rick.  I don't like yogurt so this is not a problem for me.  I eat Total or Wheaties everymorning then take my prednisone with no problems so far.  Hopefully the milk in my cereal won't affect the steroids, there is calcium in the milk.[QUOTE=MrsE]If you are taking omeprazole (the active ingredient in Losec) that should take care of any steroid irritation. However, some people don't get on with the inactive substances in the pills and get an upset stomach - gas, diarrhoea or constipation. Often another PPI (that's the type of drug) is better tolerated because it has different things in the pills. If you can manage, try not to eat your yogurt until an hour or so after taking your steroids as there is enough calcium in it to interfere with absorbing the steroid! [/QUOTE] thanks for this advise ... Winnie, have you tried Zantac? Not sure what it would be called in NZ, it probably has a different name. I've tried "losec" --here in the States it's called Prilosec--but it doesn't seem to work as well for me as Zantac.

I get that mucous thing in my throat, too. I know that milk can thicken the mucous and could cause that , but maybe it does have something to do with the prednisone. I am not sure!

Nanatjjj, I have been prescribed that Nystatin swish and swallow medication  by my doctor, too, while I've had PMR--I keep forgetting about that--but maybe the thrush causes that mucous thing going on the the throat, too...

freesia
freesia2011-02-28 17:40:14Hi freesia, not sure if what she has might be thrush, but I do know that it can affect the throat as well as the mouth. Just something else to think about. If you have a problem with one PPI ask to try another until you find one that suits. Never having taken one I can't say anything about any particular one or how to take it. But several are available OTC so you could experiment a bit without having co-pays for doctor's visits and scripts. Ask the pharmacist - they are the experts there.

my stomach was driving me mad with pain so i went to see dr and he's put my prednisone down to 10 mg and has prescribed me Ranitidine HCI 150mg to take twice a day and boy oh boy they are greatt! and some gaviscon if i need it four times a day. He's going to try and get me down to 7.5 prednisone as quick as he can but he said the dose i'm on is low compared to some so i feel better about that. I thanked him so much for being onto the poly so fast and that he'd really turned my life around within a week! ... i do feel hyper but forgot to mention that, but i go back in 10 days so will mention it then if not before.

Nantjjj, that is absolutely right about thrush affecting the throat. In fact, my doctor told me that sometimes it isn't even visible in the mouth or throat, and it requires an endoscopy to reveal it (thrush) is in the esophagus!

Winnie--I believe that the Ranitidine your doctor prescribed you is the generic name for Zantac, which is what I take. I've tried other acid controllers, like omeprazole, but Zantac seems to work the best.  I'm glad you are doing so much better.  What a good feeling freesia2011-03-02 21:01:09can someone point me in the direction of the 'tapering' off prednisone thread please? Winnie - why has your friend been on 40mg for that long? Is there a medical reason for needing to be on that much /having needed to be on that much - if there is, fair enough, but otherwise there are often other drugs which should have been considered to help wean her down to a lower dose.  Generally, however, I would say she needs to discuss it with a doctor before embarking on a reduction programme of her own - there may be a good reason for the high dose. If her current doctor isn't helpful - find another! That would be me, Mrs. E.  I think it was when I was tapering from 12.5 to 10.  My rheumy had me doing every other day 12.5, 10 for a week then start the new dose.  I started feeling unwell and fatigued but kept on going not knowing any better I guess.  I finally got so weak that all I could do was lie down and it was time to go to the emergency because it was a weekend.  I also am taking methotrexate and this is also something you have to watch for with this drug. Hi all

I very rarely eat yoghurt just thought I would let you all know but I do know its beneficial if it is 'proper' yoghurt.

But as you must have something to eat before taking steroids, I have a piece of toast with Manuka Honey (+15) expensive but fantastic.

Now what I do know is that acid reflux can be a problem and rather than take any more medication I tried this tip and it worked.

Suffer from Acid Reflux, juice of one lemon, divided into three, add to glass of water three times a day—acid reflux gone. The acid in the lemon turns to alkali. If you put the lemon in the microwave for 1 minute– twice as much juice.

MY Consultant Rheumatologist would not contemplate a drop of more than 1mg once I reached 10mg.   His pattern was a 1mg once a month (providing you were OK with that) until  you got down to 5mg, then a 1mg drop every three months.

The caveat is that if something else is going on  ie I had a kidney infection, everything stopped where it was.  So once I was on 8 mg for six months before I could contemplate the next drop. 

Everyone is different, but remember the steroids are not a cure, they are there to enable you to have some quality of life back.

Russellcat,  I assume you were on 10mg or under when you started on Metho.


russelcat - your new rheumy sounds a treasure! I thought it was you. 7mg is well known to be a hurdle - maybe it needs 1/2mg drops then. I'd been down to 13.5mg/2 days last summer and was doing fine then I had to go back up to 17.5mg/2 days - I was sure I had a urinary tract infection but the GP here wasn't convinced. In Nov the UK GP said yep - here are antibiotics and I started to feel better. I've had another UTI for about 4 weeks I think and that plus the weather (2 weeks winter, 1 week spring until a few weeks ago, now 3 days winter, 3 days spring!) sent me back up to 20mg/2 days. Any attempt at a drop and the pain is just not worth it. I've just had 3 days antibiotics so we'll what happens next.