What is remission?

[junkboy64]

im wondering what would qualify as remission? a cessation of all symptoms? or a reduction in symptoms? the reason i ask is because now that im on AZA i have less trips to the bathroom, but i still have joint pain, skin rashes and pain in my GI. i was wondering if i should continue to try and get my symptoms down to 0, or if a nice reduction in symptoms is enough. i dont want to try to get my doc to give me medicine that i may not need in the search to get back to how i used to feel, or should i accept this as the new normal?

 

[Cross-stitch gal]

remission is usually when a person has little or no symptoms. The goal is to have no symptoms at all. But, those of us who have been flaring for awhile it might take longer for that to happen. I totally understand your concerns of being on some medication you may not need. But, I would not count you in remission right now if you're still getting symptoms. However, it is a relief when your medications do seem to start working! Take care. :hug:

 

[ellie]

I think there are a number of ways to look at remission. On a day to day basis, significantly reduced symptoms are certainly heading in the right direction! The clinical "gold standard" is mucosal healing visible at endoscopy, or even better,demonstrated histologically in biopsies taken at colonoscopy.
As for EIM's, my experience is they can be a bit of a mixture - some definitely follow the course of bowel involvement, others seem to have a totally independent lifestyle!!


HD

 

[SarahBear]

Clinical remission is determined when tests that previously showed IBD come back clear. This is the goal to strive for.

You could consider yourself to be in remission when you're symptom-free, but I wouldn't stop or decrease medication or consider myself to be in remission unless it's clinical remission. However, I am in clinical remission yet still have symptoms. They're infrequent and far less severe than they were when I was flaring, though, and it seems like there might be another explanation for them.

How long have you been on the Aza? Just from the way your post reads, it sounds like you're still having a fairly significant amount of symptoms. Are your symptoms interfering with your daily life?

 

[junkboy64]

ive been on aza for several months. ive been off predinisone for about a month and usually when im off predisone i go directly to a flare. so having just some symptoms is a huge improvement. but yes, my joints hurting is causing me day to day problems. i had no joint pain when on predinisone of course, but i know the next step the doc wants to do is a Humira or something like it along with my aza. i just didnt know what to expect with remission or if i should keep working with my doctor to get me into a better place.