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Crohn's and enteropathic arthritis

Hello everyone, I am relatively new to the forum and thought I'd share a little about my story because it may be a little out of the ordinary. I've had a history of recurring bouts of colitis since my college years. Later while in graduate school I had back pain of unknown cause. It was then that a Dr. introduced me to the diagnosis of ankylosing spondylitis. A few colitis flares and colonoscopies later and a new diagnosis of ulcerative colitis. Not too many people at the time put together the back pain and the gut symptoms. I was able to get the colitis into remission with Asacol but the back pain persisted. Finally a rheumatologist gave me the diagnosis of enteropathic arthritis. And although I hadn't had the bad colitis symptoms for many years, I developed a partial bowel blockage and had a small bowel resection this past spring. Currently my gut seems ok but I've had additional arthritis manifestations including back pain and pain in my hands, feet and knees. I recently started on methotrexate to try and help with the arthritis.
 

Maya142

Moderator
Staff member
Hi and welcome!
My daughters and husband all have Ankylosing Spondylitis. My younger daughter has Crohn's too. You said you are on MTX - are you also on a biologic? There is a LOT of evidence showing that MTX does not really work for axial (spinal) spondyloarthritis. It works well for the peripheral joints (fingers, elbows, knees) but not for the spine. For the spine or SI joints, you really need a biologic.
 
Thanks for the welcome. Yes I am on Remicade. Just recently added the MTX because of pain in my hands, knees and feet.
 
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