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Prednisone and flare duration

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bikebiddlah

prednisone and flare duration

hello all:

a couple of quick questions:

my first ever "crohn's" flare has been ongoing now for about 2 months. i have been on prednisone for about a month and a half and they have slowly been dropping my dosage as i feel better and better. after my last drop in dosage some of my symptoms (mainly abdominal pain) returned. i fear they will up my dosage back up to a previous level. is it normal to be on prednisone for this long? How long do flares typically last?

crohn's of the temrinal ileum.
 
B

Babs1957

Sorry you are having a flare.

I was on pred. for 4 months when I had a fistula and an obstruction.

Unfortunately, not alot can really be classified as normal about this disease. Yes, generally, treatment and symptoms are common, but the specifics of duration of symptoms and treatments vary from person to person and doctor to doctor.

Typically, a doctor will only keep you on pred as long as he feels it is necessary and safe. I'd have a discussion with your doctor about your concerns about pred.

Hang in there!
 
Rebecca85

Rebecca85

Location
Nottingham, UK
Being on Pred for a month and a half is not that long. In fact I would say that is the absolute minimum time! And don't worry if they do up your dosage, better to have a little increase now and make sure the inflammation is well zapped, than come off completely and have the inflammation come back and need another course a few months later.
 
Jennifer

Jennifer

Adminstrator
Staff member
Location
SLO
Well said to both of you. I was on Prednisone for over a year (high doses of about 75mg) before my surgery. I've used it twice before then and it worked just fine. As to how long your flare will last, no one knows. They will treat it with medication as long as it is necessary and the inflammation and damage done in your intestine is different from person to person. Be sure to contact your doctor and tell them that you started having pain again. No one likes taking Prednisone but it can save your life, literally.
 
Astra

Astra

Moderator
I agree with all of you! A month and a half is nowt!
I've been on this course of Pred for over 10 months, finish tomorrow, and I started at 50mg back in Jan. Once I got to 15mg I started getting symptoms again, this was back in April. Gastro told me the Pred hasn't finished blitzing the inflammation yet, so he upped it to 20mg and I started tapering again.
I don't think there's a time limit on it!
 
fadingsun430

fadingsun430

I took prednisone from may (40mg) all the way up until September 1st. When i dropped to around 15mg i started getting symptoms such as pain and D again. This is pretty normal when you drop to a lower amount, i then went back up to 25mg and tapered all the way down. And since September 1st ive been off completely.
 
L

lynx

I was given a couple of different types of steroids by IV in the hospital is Sept. When I got out I was on 60mg tapering ...and will be on them until end of December....I may have to increase the dosage myself and i think, although there is no "normal" this is a common thing with people...so I wouldn't worry too much...I noticed some of the symptoms that I have had have decreased a lot since the dosage has gone down too.
 
georgiegirl

georgiegirl

I started on 50mg a few months ago, tapering down by 5mg a week. However in the last few weeks I've noticed an increase in symptoms (esp D). Since I'm going to Bali next Friday (YAY!!!) and I don't want to be ill over there, I actually rang my GI and asked if I could go back up.

He agreed that the pred hadn't finished it's job, and that I could go back up (I'm at 40 right now, will see if that will stave the D off) and start tapering again when I get back.

So there really is no 'normal' for this disease - just take it as it comes and if you have any concerns call your GI (I was surprised at how long mine spent on the phone with me - prob more time than I get with him in his office!).
 
Misty-Eyed

Misty-Eyed

Yeah I was on it for 7 years in the end because my crohn's did not want to let go of it! It was wayyy longer than I should of been on it, but they were having trouble an alternative to get me into remission without the use of the pred.

But don't worry, this was before the days of monoclonal antibody treatments so I'm sure that even if they do put your dosage back up, you'll be off them before you know it.

And like other people have mentioned, it was literally a life saver for me. Keep smiling and try not to worry :)
 
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