Ok, not very good news I'm afraid, Don't know if this is a first for this forum but am currently writing this from my hospital bed.. my son just brought my lap top in and connected to the hospital wifi network, something I'm not teched up enough to do myself. He also brought me in a bag of wine gums.
Anyway, things escalated pretty quickly and before I knew it I was being taken to hospital by ambulance, hence the abrupt ending of replies in my previous thread. As you can imagine..there's so much gone on since monday that it would take an age to write down, especially for a one finger typist like me. So not to beat around the bush ; I've got a badly infected hip joint, which could be related to a UTI that I had a few weeks ago. Result is I've had it operated on and washed out yesterday and have been restricted to bed since. Pain has definitely eased, couldn't have got any worse as it really was that bad!! I'm nil by mouth from midnight as there was a lot of infection so need another wash out tomorrow to clear what remains and possibly a third after that. Not sure how long I need to stay in hospital but I obviously won't be let out until infection clears, which will be at least a fortnight and probably a fair bit longer than that. Had first lot of IV antibiotics tuned to kill the type of bacteria I have and will receive it daily until doctors are happy infection is under control. To further complicate things and dampen my spirits even more.,doctors don't like operating until 2 weeks after your last enbrel injection as it slows down the healing process of wounds. Just my luck to have injected last thursday. My consultant was not very happy about this but said if he did not operate within 2 days then I would be in serious trouble. I think they want to talk with rheumy about my meds, which is something I need to do as well. Not sure I'm happy carrying on with enbrel as this is the third infection I've had within a short time and I've not been taking enbrel for very long either. Not saying enbrel's entirely to blame for these infections but it sure needs to be discussed with my rheumy.
Got to have my BP etc taken now so must sign off
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wishbone
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Oh dear Wishy, not good. You're in the right place though, I wouldn't think they'd let you home you being on IV antibiotics! Maybe it's done you a favour in a way if they're thinking of talking to your Rheumy about your meds, excessive maybe but another look at them can't harm. Most unfortunate you'd had your enbrel but you can't look back now & you weren't to know were you? I hope all goes to plan & you're out before you know it.
You definitely don't do things by half do you? Really sorry you've had such a bad time, but thank goodness they have identified the problem, and you're getting the right treatment. I do hope the infection clears up as quickly as possible. I do think that you are right, it sounds as if the enbrel needs to be reviewed. Fingers crossed that an alternative can be found.
Thank you M, yep, I certainly don''t mess around! Knowing my luck I'll be stuck in here for weeks. As for enbrel, obviously I need it reviewed, but have more or less made up my mind that I won't be taking it anymore whatever's recommended. When first offered enbrel I pondered long and hard about starting it due to negative factors with my other health condition..seems like I should have stuck with my gut instinct, which is what I'll be doing this time and my initial feelings are that enbrel may well have made things worse this time. I've had several previous UTIs when just on MTX and nothing like this has happened. Could just be coincidence and bad luck I suppose, but listening to what the docs have said has really scared me, so think I'd rather put up with the discomfort of a less effective drug than enbrel rather than carrying on with the possible risks of taking it.
Thanks allanah, it's 7.00am now, just hope it doesn't take too long before I go down for 2nd op. I was nil by mouth for 26 hrs waiting for first op, but they should be more organised for me this time..hope so anyway.
Wow that is very scary for you/. Hope the antibiotics start working well for you. I am slightly freaked by your experience with enbrel as that is what I will be starting soon. I sure hope they get it all under control for you
Thanks SM, don't let my experience put you off enbrel - most folk take it without any issues and it works great for them as it did for me. My problem is that I have another chronic health issue and am prone to UTIs, which combined with enbrel seems to have caused this more serious issue.
Thanks Wish. I also am prone to UTIs and have never heard of them causing hip infections. Wow. freaky. I hope all goes well for you today.
Don't know what you're worried about - you've got your wine gums!
But seriously, what a really nasty experience. Sounds as if you're getting good care though, and if the doctors can start talking to each other that'll be very positive.
Glad to hear the pain has eased and good luck with the procedures. Get well soon.
A few hiccups in getting me transferred to a second hospital with the proper facilities to treat me, but was eventually admitted. Other than that things have been fine. Doctors are very informative about what's involved in the op etc. Perhaps too much so for a squeamish and nervous young lad like me.
They are indeed Maynards ..no pale imitations here! Should have op some time this afternoon. Top priority according to what doc just told me, not sure I wanted to hear that though - think I'd much prefer being classed as low priority if you know what I mean.
Oh dear! Really pleased that you are getting treatment though. Take care. I hope you recover quickly. I am sure that your rheumatologist will be involved in your treatment and will review your medication. I must admit, it was worrying when your thread suddenly stopped, so looking forward to following your progress and hoping you will be back home soon.
Thank Vandf, Anetheitist (scuse spelling) just been to see me and asked loads of questions to see if I'm still fit for general anaesthetic, which thankfully I am. Don't fancy being awake one little bit. He told me I'll be going down for op pretty soon, so this could well be the end of my running commentary.
So sorry to hear you are now in hospital but thank god you are . You sound a very strong person and at least they have found the reason you were in so much pain and when you leave you will feel a lot better. Good luck with all your treatments and ops .xxx
Trying to be strong anyway K1. It ain't easy though, especially seeing some of the illnesses etc what other patients have to put up with. Think I'm on some sort of trauma ward.
Sorry to hear this news Wishbone and hope the second op has gone well. Keep us updated and hopefully there's more wine gums waiting for you when you wake up!
Hi wishbone, I hope you start to feel better soon, sending all my good luck!!
I was on Enbrel last year and told my rheumy that I wasn't going to take it any more because I just got infection after infection!! In my experience it is a horrible drug!
Thanks Laura, I certainly tend to agree with you as far as my infections go. I'm pretty sure enbrel is the main cause of at least my hip infection and that's more than enough for me! No more!.. I'd prefer to put up with more RA discomfort from a less effective drug than have this happen to me by a long chalk.
Thanks for the best wishes and kind words everyone.
Returned to ward after 2nd wash out at 1pm yesterday. Waiting for docs to do their rounds later this morning to find out exactly how things stand. It looks promising though, as no drainage tube coming from wound this time unlike the first op. So seems as if they've sewn me up for good, hopefully anyway as you never know with this sort of thing. I'm feeling ok, still restricted to my bed, which is fun as you can imagine. Even worse is having to keep calling the nurses for assistance, can't be helped I suppose but I don't like doing it. I haven't asked them to help me empty a bag of wine gums yet though, not sure I'm going to either as there's only about 12 left in my 3rd bag. Looks like I could have a serious addiction to deal with after I leave here!
I do hope that's that then Wishy. Don't you be worrying about calling the nurses, you've no option being restricted to bed & they'll know how it is for you. The less you move the easier & quicker it'll be to going home time.
Like nomoreheels said, don't worry about calling for a nurse, you have no choice, and enjoy your wine gums. I hope you are now on the road to recovery. Take care. x
Docs are quite pleased with how things are progressing at the minute. Infection markers have fallen a little, which is a good sign apparently, but they need a few more days of blood tests to be sure of continual steady improvement. Apparently I've been given a mix of antibiotics which will kill a wide variety of bugs. If infection markers begin to rise over the next few days they will stop the current antibiotic and revert to the ones that have proved effective when tested in lab from cultures taken when I had my first op. It's all a bit of trial and error by the seem. Physios been up today and got me out of bed and walking short distances albeit with the aid of a zimmer frame, I'm a bit sore but it beats being stuck in bed all day that's for sure. Just hope things continue to improve and I don't get any problems with the healing process, which is a cause for concern due to enbrel slowing things up and who knows..I could then end up with an MRSI infected wound! A bit negative I know but there's always the possibility I suppose. Weather's looking nice from window with any luck I'll be able to get out for some fresh air before too long.........
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Had first lot of IV antibiotics tuned to kill the type of bacteria I have and will receive it daily until doctors are happy infection is under control. To further complicate things and dampen my spirits even more.,doctors don't like operating until 2 weeks after your last enbrel injection as it slows down the healing process of wounds. Just my luck to have injected last thursday. My consultant was not very happy about this but said if he did not operate within 2 days then I would be in serious trouble. I think they want to talk with rheumy about my meds, which is something I need to do as well. Not sure I'm happy carrying on with enbrel as this is the third infection I've had within a short time and I've not been taking enbrel for very long either. Not saying enbrel's entirely to blame for these infections but it sure needs to be discussed with my rheumy.
Further update 
More waiting for Enbrel
Enbrel
Unsure
UPDATE ON SYLVI
