I just wanted to introduce myself. I am new here but not new to arthritis. I have both osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. I've had the rheumatoid arthritis for about 4 years now. I am using , Prednisone 4 mg. (trying to taper down below 3 mg. eventually), Enbrel 50 mg. once weekly, and Celebrex. I am definitely thankful for the Enbrel. I was originally placed on Methotrexate and was apparently overly sensitive to it, even at the beginning dose it would sort of put me in a trance like state for a day or so, very odd. I have seen posts here about the Enbrel and injection site reactions. From my point of view, injecting into the abdomen brings the best results. Injecting into my thigh gave me a huge injection site reaction (hot , red, swollen, etc.). I also find that taking Benadryl the day of the injection helps a lot. I saw a discussion thread about pulling back on the plunger to see if blood is drawn into the syringe. I saw that some people dont do this and some do. I know the Enbrel instructions say to do it and so did the nurse that taught me to inject. I have always done that. I had my first ever case of pulling back and finding blood going into the syringe. I emptied the Enbrel into the garbage and disposed of the syringe into the sharps container. This is what the Enbrel company says to do. I asked one of the Enliven nurses once what would happen if one injected into a vein, she didnt really know. Any one here think they may have injected into a vein? I have to wonder why they say to dispose of the injection if you draw back and find blood, anyone have an answer? It will be my pleasure getting to know you all, even if our common bond is something so painful and horrid.
I have no idea why they tell you to discard the Enbrel after hitting a vein. I have started to use and site and didn't like it and tried another. My nurse told me normally to throw it out, but it's so expensive not to. I take humira, which is 00.00 without insurance!
Iv'e got osteo and RA too. At least I can get treatment for one. Welcome to the forum. I agree with Crunchy. Sub Q injections don't need to be pulled back. There's no vessels to puncture. Strawberry, are you injecting into the muscle or under the skin? You might hit a small capillary but I doubt that also. Welcome, Strawberry. I'm on MTX, so never had to deal with this, but I learn something from every post.
Hi Strawberry, I too have oa and RA as well as fibro and Sjogren's. I'm on 4mg prednisone, MTX(which I hate), plaquanil, and enbrel. The enbrel people tell you to discard the needle if you draw blood but my rheumy said that isn't necessary, so take your pick. I think if I drew in a great amont of blood, I'd probably discard it. I recently nicked a vein in my thigh and had a huge bleed under the skin. Now I'm injecting into my stomach but I don't like it. I have to admit that my site reactions are better though.Welcome to the board. I lok forward to comparing notes with you.Welcome aboard Strawberry. Pull up a chair and tell us more about your life.I inject MTX and Enbrel, and I dont like injecting in my theighs. I always figured it would hurt like hell, but you never know untill you try. I tried, it hurt like hell. The back side of the upper arms are okay and the belly is best. I just have to be careful to rotate sites.
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