Prednisone treatment just been diagnosed

Crohn's Disease Forum

Help Support Crohn's Disease Forum:

M

moose185

Joined
May 8, 2013
Messages
132
Hi there

I was just diagnosed with crohns disease this week the doctor has given my prednisone 40mg treatment for 3 months. Is this the normal treatment you get when you have just been diagnosed?

I've only taken it for a couple days helps a little but still not that much. my symptoms are really severe though.

is this the right treatment for someone who has severe crohns?

thanks
Moose.
 
I'm back on meds, and this is the third time I'm on prednisone. Prednisone reduces inflammation the quickest, so they like to use it, the side effects suck, but the good news is they taper it off quickly. I usually take prednisone with another drug. Currently Imuran (aza), which takes longer to work. Now after 1 month on both I''m beginning to taper off the prednisone (I started at 8 tablets 40 mg/ once a day) reducing 1 tablet a week till I reach 3 tablets (15 mg). I meetup with my GI mid August to discuss my progress. Are you taking any other meds besides the prednisone and was it your GP or GI that prescribed the prednisone?

I hope you feel better!
 
I'm not taking any other meds, but so far there not really helping I know myself I need something stronger! Feels like the doctors are treating me with caution. I just want rid of this horrible pain.
 
I'd go back and ask for pain meds too if I were you, there are no medals handed out for suffering! My current flare had me in the hospital for the first time, while there I was almost fainting from the pain and I have a very high tolerance for pain! They gave me cipro and flagyll (sp?) plus morphine tablets. The cipro and flagyll worked fast enough that I only needed 4 of the morphine tablets.

Bottom line is go back to the doc, this disease is so unique to each individual, that your doctor may not understand the level of pain you are in.
 
I was given prednisone when first diagnosed and when I have flare ups. It usually gets the inflammation under control pretty fast for me.
 
Hi my update so far is the prednisone is helping a little with the pain not quite got rid of it, it's a step in the right direction I suppose. Has anyone got rid of the pain entirely from prednisone? if so what dose? I'm taking 40mg just now. I wonder if I need a higher dose.

Thanks.
 
I started out on 40mg and once I tapered to 20mg I had the black stools so he up it back to 40mg and that still didn't work so he up it to 70mg that worked! I hate the side affect my face shows it the most its chunky. Currently tapered down to 10mg and today had black stools blood work is good so the bleeding is not affecting that yet. I did start Humara today praying that these work!!!!!!!!!! I will not go back up on the steriods unless I have to i will wait a day or 2 to see what happens!!!

This is not fun!!!!

Blessings Lisa
 
They started my son on a 40mg dose at diagnosis. I think it is pretty standard. They also started him on a maintenance medication at the same time. Most maintenance meds take about 3 months to start working which is how long the normal course of Prednisone is.

Has your Dr. started you on anything else besides the Prednisone?

Also, my son felt better but it took a while for the pain to subside. Probably about 2 weeks. Until then we used a heating pad to help with the pain. He was 11 years old and 90 lbs when started on the 40 mg dose. Be cautious with pain meds. Some can cause inflammation (NSAIDS).

Hope you are feeling better soon! ((((Hugs))))
 
Thanks yes I have been on a number of oral Meds but allergic to alot start on imuran was on it for one month went toxic so took about 7 weeks for my liver blood work to go to normal I can't take a lot of anti inflammatory because I tend to have low hemagoblin..

I can't imagine having this as a child it's so hard as a adult!!! I hope your son feels better soon I pray for feeling normal I was told today might never be normal!!!!!
 
As far as I know this is pretty normal treatment for when you first get diagnosed. Not going to lie though, prednisone is kinda rough sometimes :/ But the important thing is you've been diagnosed and the doctors have somewhere to go now as far as what treatment to start you off with.
 
Hang in there lblair, it took a long time but my son is feeling normal again. It took about 6 months for him to feel good again and about a year before he felt completely normal. The healing and right meds can take a while.

michigankid, we are from Grand Rapids too. My son was diagnosed at Helen DeVos in October of 2011. We moved to Cincinnati about a year ago. We had a great experience at Helen DeVos, I hope things are going well for you also. ((((hugs)))
 
My daughter was given prednisone....it worked wonders for her physically, but it probably took about two weeks to truly see a difference in how she was feeling. She didn't get many of the side effects that they tell you about, but she had really wicked mood swings...just be warned!

Feel better soon!!
 
Hi Kodles. Can I ask what doseage was the prednisone start at? I'm not sure whether 40mg is enough for me.
 
40 was not enough for me went to 80mg but it seems that was not working either and its a wicked drug!!! So currently on 10mg tapering off!! Started Humara yesterday!!!!
 
They told us he was in remission in February of 2012. But once we moved to Cincinnati in July of 2012 they did a fecal cal test on him and it came back at 586 which is fairly high. So they tweaked his meds a bit and for the last 6 months his fecal cal has been 64 or below. So I would say he has only been in remission for 6 months now, but I have found GI's have different ideas about what they define as remission. I wouldn't say he has ever had a flare up other than at diagnosis. But he got better very slowly and there were ups and downs along the way.

The only difference physically that I have seen is that back in August it was impossible to get him to gain weight. He was eating a lot and drinking Ensure twice a day and still could not gain weight. Now he is gaining normally and eating like a normal 13 year old boy.
 
She actually was started at 20 mg/day. She is only 6, and very tiny. Her weight at the time was 38 lbs. Not sure if that helps, but maybe you can figure it out based on body weight....
 
on a positive note it seems to help on the stomach cramps and diahera point of view however the horrible neck pain and is still there.
 
I had a positive biopsy, colonoscopy showing inflammation, and mri scan showing inflammation at the top of the small intestine.

the doctor still can't for 100% sure say I have crohns he just said he is assuming it is crohns and treating me accordingly.
 
Everyone is different with this disease huh?

Prednisone has absolutely never worked for me even short term. I'm on it again now post-op, and still not in remission. I had solu medrol in the hospital, and that didn't even work.

I started Humira a few weeks ago, and have my fingers and toes crossed for sure.

Anyway, prednisone working does not diagnose Crohns. The had my bowel they took out to diagnose me, and prednisone didn't work.

I also hate the insomnia I get with it. Just don't think it's worth it for me...
 
It's improved my insomnia to be honest my symptoms are really severe which makes me think this isn't Crohn's disease from the way the doctor said it he made it sound quite minor that you only get stomach pain and diahera from crohns.

my symptoms include extreme fatigue where I feel exhausted almost all the time, pain all over the body, dizziness, severe sinus pain, severe eye pain, headaches. The list goes on. The prednisone has helped a little but not greatly. I need some relief I've been sick for too long and missed out on life for the last 5 years.

If prednisone doesn't work what is usually the next step?

Moose.

Thanks.
 
Wow, I WISH We only got stomach pain and diarrhea with Crohns.....

I will let others jump in here, but I'm just amazed at that. Crohns can run the whole spectrum of symptoms from mild to moderate to severe. This all depends on the individual and case. To research, you could even look at the threads and sub forums on this site. There are threads for fistulas, abscesses, stomas extra intestinal symptoms and others. Some people end up with horribly debilitating symptoms from this disease, I was actually basically in bed for a year myself with TPN and no food by mouth for a year. Some have their whole colon removed.

I really don't want to speculate on your symptoms too much, and I bet some of the form moderators will help you out. I wish you the best, and I'm sure glad you found this site. It really helps me a lot!
 
update on my treatment its been a couple of weeks and my symptoms are pretty bad still the pred has helped a little but not much, I'm pretty dissapointed I was expecting a big change, has anyone else experienced the same as me?

what other treatment should I try? is it possible I don't have crohns if the prednisone isn't working.
 
I just wanted to add that putting someone only on prednisone for 3 months is not usual. Doctors often use prednisone with another medication such as azathioprine, 6 mp or others. These other medicines take 2 months or so to begin to work.

Is your doctor an IBD specialist? If not, can you find one?
 
xmdmom said:
I just wanted to add that putting someone only on prednisone for 3 months is not usual. Doctors often use prednisone with another medication such as azathioprine, 6 mp or others. These other medicines take 2 months or so to begin to work.

Is your doctor an IBD specialist? If not, can you find one?
Click to expand...

I completely agree! :)
 
He is an Ibd specialist but I think he's treating on the side of caution and doesn't know if I have crohns for 100%. Should I be given immunosuppressants?
 
The field of treating Crohn's has changed over the years. I started with Asacol, it didn't work, then Pentasa and Entocort, which also didn't work. My 2 past flares and the one I just got over were all treated with prednisone and Imuran (aza). Some doctors are "bottom up" in their treatment giving the lightest less full of side effects drugs first and then stepping you up to the stronger ones. Other doctors are "top down" starting with the stronger drugs and stepping you down once they have controlled your nflammation. :)
 
When I was diagnosed, they put my on 40 mg of pred. It took maybe a week to kick in. It's normal to put you on pred initially to get the inflammation down, but pred is not good for long term use. After you taper off the pred, your GI will most likely put you on something else that is more suitable for long-term use.
 
oh, and being on pred for 3 months IS normal. The reason is because you have to taper off of it slowly. From 40 mg, it will take about 3 months to taper properly. You can't just go off of prednisone without tapering- that can be dangerous.
 
Moose, I'm curious about your diet. What do you eat? Some Dr's say Crohn's has nothing to do with diet, but I REALLY disagree. One thing you can do it switch to a very soft diet.....think babyfood. Right now your gut is struggling and if you give it very soft digestable things, that can help. For example, plain yogurt, avocado, plain fish, roasted and pureed butternut squash, chicken soup. These are the things that I live on. Also, look into taking a good probiotic to balance bacteria in the gut, especially if you've had a colonoscopy recently. Fish oil pills also sooth the gut and reduce inflammation. I'd cut out spicy food, raw veggies (boiled well and pureed might be ok), nuts, red meat, pork, anything artifical, whole grains........these things are all very difficult to digest. Also, peppermint tea is something that is very soothing to the digestive system.

This forum has an excellent sub-group labeled something like "Diet/Nutrition" which may be very helpful for you. i hope you feel better.
 
tzvia said:
Moose, I'm curious about your diet. What do you eat? Some Dr's say Crohn's has nothing to do with diet, but I REALLY disagree. One thing you can do it switch to a very soft diet.....think babyfood. Right now your gut is struggling and if you give it very soft digestable things, that can help. For example, plain yogurt, avocado, plain fish, roasted and pureed butternut squash, chicken soup. These are the things that I live on. Also, look into taking a good probiotic to balance bacteria in the gut, especially if you've had a colonoscopy recently. Fish oil pills also sooth the gut and reduce inflammation. I'd cut out spicy food, raw veggies (boiled well and pureed might be ok), nuts, red meat, pork, anything artifical, whole grains........these things are all very difficult to digest. Also, peppermint tea is something that is very soothing to the digestive system.

This forum has an excellent sub-group labeled something like "Diet/Nutrition" which may be very helpful for you. i hope you feel better.
Click to expand...
Hello,
My husband has just been DX with Crohn's and I asked the Dr about diet & was told it had nothing to do with it. I also assumed that surely some of what we consume would affect a disease that affects the digestive system. I have asked my husband to keep a food diary so we can work by trial & error. I am also going to start him on some supplements too. I will try anything to help keep this disease under control.
 
Yes, diet may or may not have to do with the reason the we GET crohn's, but it had ALOT to do with how we CONTROL our Crohn's in my opinion. There are lots of useful threads on here about that, including one that I really like about what are people's safe and unsafe foods. Just search this site for "safe and unsafe foods" and you'll find it. The thing is that each person is different. One thing that works for me may not work for someone else.

But generally, it seems that soft, bland, natural food are good for most people (soft veggies, white rice, plain chicken) and spicy fried foods are not good, or caffiene, alchohol and artifical things....
 
moose185 said:
Hi my update so far is the prednisone is helping a little with the pain not quite got rid of it, it's a step in the right direction I suppose. Has anyone got rid of the pain entirely from prednisone? if so what dose? I'm taking 40mg just now. I wonder if I need a higher dose.



Thanks.
Click to expand...

Prednisone does completely stop all my pain and other symptoms. ..



2
 
Yes, I was put on like 40mg of Predisone when I found out that I had Crohns and then the added 6mp with the Predisone:) At one point I was on Predisone for almost two years:( GOOD LUCK WITH EVERYTHING:)
 

Similar threads

G
Introducing myself - Hi!
Replies
2
Views
482
valleysangel92
valleysangel92
Crohn2357
Systemic lidocaine and mexiletine for the treatment of a patient with total ulcerative colitis
Replies
0
Views
171
Crohn2357
Crohn2357
valleysangel92
Hello Old Friends
Replies
1
Views
305
my little penguin
my little penguin
Catherine
Dont know what to think - imflammatory arthritis
Replies
8
Views
679
Maya142
Maya142
F
other crohn treatment besides biologic just temporaly
Replies
4
Views
772
my little penguin
my little penguin

Latest posts

Back
Top