It all started April 14, 2015. For a month or two I just ignored the symptoms, assuming it was a variety of other things that was making me diarrhea. Around 3 months in I noticed I lost around 12 pounds - as a 5' 7" 16 year old teenager who weighs 127 pounds I couldn't afford to lose 12 pounds - so my family and I visited a doctor and he determined that I had Crohn's. My doctor didn't really tell me if it was severe, moderate, or mild, but I believe its pretty moderate as its not too bad compared to other stories I read on this page. As of now I believe its been around 6 months since I've been taking Uceris 9mg tablets. Unless I eat terribly, I generally feel good, have no abdominal pain, no diarrhea, and overall I feel like I'm back to being normal with no Crohn's. Now as some of you may know Uceris is a steroid that makes use of glucocorticosteroids, and prolonged usage of steroids can result in decreased natural production of Corticosteroid your body naturally produces in the adrenal gland. Now I have to make the choice of remaining on Uceris or switching to Humira (and I'm not really a needle type of person). Is it possible to slowly reduce my Uceris dosage from like a 9 to a possibly 5 or 4 mg dosage (even such dosage even exists) so it won't interfere with my bodies natural production as much? Also Uceris is more for people with mild Crohn's and I believe Humira is for moderate to severe...so would Humira be too "strong" for me? Lastly has there been anyone in this forum who has been taking Uceris for a prolonged period of time with no severe negative side affect and is it even possible for Crohn's to go into remission and come back as severe...then go back into remission and come back as mild and just keep switching around? Thanks for anyone who reads this and answers my questions, would be greatly appreciated! :thumright:
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Uceris 9mg (extended release) prolonged usage?
- Thread starter ASMH
- Start date
Hi AMSH, Uceris(budesonide) I don't believe should be used as a long term maintenance medication(it's usually used to treat flared). No steroid should be, too many long term side effects(osteoporosis, etc). I was on budesonide for probably a year and my last bone scan showed osteoporosis(I'm 39). No one likes sticking themselves with needles but you learn to deal with it because it makes you feel better. There are young children who give themselves Humira shots. You can also talk to your GI doc about other maintenance meds(azathioprine, methotrexate) that are pill forms. Crohn's has a mind of its own-it can go into remission for a month to years then come screaming back full force severe or mild or whatever it feels like doing. Sometimes there is no rhyme or reason. You can even have ongoing inflammation in your GI tract while not having symptoms. Yet the ongoing inflammation is doing damage. This is why many Crohn's patients go on maintenance meds and get colonoscopies and other test to make sure they are actually in remission and not asymptomatic. You'll have to taper off the Uceris over a couple months to give your adrenal glands a chance to kick back up their production.