• Welcome to Crohn's Forum, a support group for people with all forms of IBD. While this community is not a substitute for doctor's advice and we cannot treat or diagnose, we find being able to communicate with others who have IBD is invaluable as we navigate our struggles and celebrate our successes. We invite you to join us.

MTX maintenance dose

W

Whit

I have been on MTX for ten months and my Crohn's has gotten much better. My GI doctor has had me lower my MTX shot amount from 25mg to 20mg and wants me to lower it again in six weeks to 15mg as long as things are still stable.
I am hoping to find others on this forum who have been on a long term maintenance dose of methotrexate. I am curious as to the amount of MTX and how long you've been on it and did the side effects of MTX get better.
Thanks in advance.
Whit
 
Clash

Clash

Post my son has been on mtx for close to two years. His dose has fluctuated from 25 to 10. He has been on both oral and injection with the addition of remicade.

He has never experienced the side effects mtx can cause, thankfully. Do you take folic acid daily since mtx is a folic antagonist? It can help lessen the side effects.
 
C

Crohnsmomof3

Location
Indiana
I have been on metho for almost a year. I am still on 25mg and asked if I could lower because of side effects. I was told 25mg is the dose and cannot be lowered. Interesting that you guys have been able to change the dose. I assume it is just differing doctor opinions on the matter.

I do still deal with the side effects, but have learned to tolerate them okay. I get really tired for two days after the shot. I also have to do my injection before I go to bed to avoid the nausea. It made a huge difference as I am asleep when I was usually sick to my stomach. I also feel like I have been hit by a bus on Sunday (I do my injection Friday evening). I have no idea why, but that is a hard day.

I started metho after a surgery, so technically speaking I was not trying to get out of a flare. I have felt great this year on this medication (aside from the side effects). As far as my scans go everything looks great. So, hopefully metho is working for me as well.
 
Clash

Clash

Usually the doses changes come in relation to your blood work or other testing. If your inflammatory markers are down the GI may lower your dose. In my son's case since mtx wasin combination with remicade, there was was a lot of dosing changes related to finding the right dose for him.
 
W

Whit

My GI doctor left it up to me to decide whether to lower the dose of MTX from 25 to 20mg as a result of a colonoscopy which showed the last 3 inches of the small intestine (ilelum) had opened up so there were no strictures and the mucosal inflammation was mild.
This is a wait and see what happens move. I also give myself the shot just before bed and have taken an anti nausea pill two hours beforehand. I do it on Monday and Tuesday night early Monday is rough and I find that the day before the next shot is rough too.
Thanks for the info and I'll see how it goes. In six weeks, if I'm lucky I can go down to 15mg which is why I am curious about what a maintenance dose might be for other Crohn's patients. My doctor thinks I'll have to be on MTX for the rest of my life and I'd like to get it as low and workable as possible.
Thanks
Whit
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top