My Doctor rang me today out of the blue. I mentioned to her a few weeks ago my nails were half yellow. She rang today to say the Dermatology department will be contacting me. And if I notice any chest cough or swelling in my legs to contact them straightaway. I take 22.5mg of methotrexate injection weekly, just thinking could it be this medication causing the yellow in my nails. When I’m out and about it is quite noticeable they are half yellow looks horrible. (I don’t smoke) Has anyone ever had this themselves please ?
Thanks in Advance x
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I remember reading YNS (yellow Nail Syndrome) was associated with RA….when first diagnosed & put on DMards…..not with Methotrexate in particular ….but that was years ago when I was first diagnosed…..& my nails went yellow…..but I think that was probably caused by some cheap nail polish & it went away on its own.Hope yours does too!
Thank you AC for your reply that helped me. I was told it could be related to RA. I don’t wear any nail varnish as I did think it would be that. Maybe Dermatology will see me sooner rather than later and I could get an answer. I won’t bank on an appointment anytime soon that’s for sure unless I went private which I cannot afford.
I think with RA we go through stages of all sorts of different symptoms…sometimes the things that seem serious are nothing to worry about…I have come to the conclusion that wait & see & try not to panic is the way to go…but I still do have the odd wobble!Hope your nails get sorted soon!
I have had white on my toe nails for a while, assumed it was a fungal infection and started using an anti fungal treatment. This made the problem worse and dried out the nails further. I then noticed that my finger nails also have white bits in them, so I asked the pharmacist and he instantly said it would be side effects from the methotrexate. Your problem sounds much more serious, but yes, methotrexate can affect nails.
Yes my toenails used to be beautiful and perfect in appearance. Then i noticed that my big toe nails began to twist, got really thick, began to separate from the nail bed and became very yellow. I had them tested twice for fungus-negative. I was convinced it was the sero-negative RA/psoriatic (unclear). It happened around the time my big toes swelled a lot and were painful. I was on methotrexate at that time and likely another dmard, maybe sulfasalazine. I have read that these conditions can affect nails in that way. They have bever been right since but have improved some. Disheartening…
Thank you for your reply, I’m sero-negative as well and maybe that’s the way they are going due to RA and medication. They took clippings and I don’t have any fungal. It is disheartening.
My big toe nails were awful , lifting from the nail bed, flaking, peeling, discoloured and painful. Someone on here suggested using tea tree oil daily on the nail bed. It took a while but they are now almost back to normal. Hope this helps.
I noticed mine are not looking great. Lifting and dents. I don’t even want anyone looking at my toes. And people wonder why people with inflammatory arthritis get depressed!
Lifting and dents (pitting) are classic of nail psoriasis. Although I have a PsA diagnosis, I only ever had one patch of skin psoriasis, which was on my leg and lasted 12 months when I was in my mid teens: the only sign of psoriasis I’ve had for the last 20 years is my nails, but I only learnt that nail psoriasis is a thing last year.
Hi. My nails where yellow. But this was due to my RA medication, it mentioned it in the med leaflet ( Sulfasalazine). Now I am not longer taking this they are gradually clearing again.
Hello, yes my toenails are, this is due to the methotrexate. It's embarrassing in the summer when you want to wear sandals!!! The doctor/ nurse at Dermatology said there is nothing I can do😣
Aww thank you Flor1ence I knew it must be methotrexate it is unsightly isn’t it. I’m more concerned that it is doing something sinister as when I told the Dr about it they said if you get any chest problems or swelling in legs to let them know. I can’t come off methotrexate because it’s helped me so much but what is it doing to me in other ways. Thanks x
We (and our health team) do tend to blame everything we get on either our disease or the medication. But don't forget that we sometimes get other things...I presume you've looked up yellow nail syndrome? If you haven't: healthline.com/health/yello...
Yes old timer I have and it’s not something I have ever suffered from in my life before. But the link between yellow nail syndrome and lung problems is quite worrying. This could be the start of me developing lung issues and that isn’t a nice thought.
My RA was first diagnosed by my friendly chiropodist. He said the ridges growing across were signs of infection- that nails are like tree rings and tell a lot about your health. I had yellow nails with sulfasalazine tablets. My nails also grew so thick that I could not cut them on my own. My husband started calling me Bilbo so it was time to take action. Mention it to your rheummy team they can help 💐
I know this post is old but I came across it looking for clues... since a couple of weeks I have yellow nails. I don't know what to make of it and I'm reluctant to ask my GP (I live in the Netherlands, where doctors tend to tell you not to worry and send you away). I have seen a GP in October about joint pain I've been having since July. In my hands and feet. Blood tests were done and there were no signs of inflammation and it was negative for the rheuma factor, so we concluded it's osteoarthritis due to the perimenopause. I have Graves' disease but I've been in remission since 2013 and I feel fine. No signs of relapse whatsoever.
Last year around the same time I had one yellow nail and it went back to normal after I had my gallbladder removed. Now I have six yellow nails...
Do you have any advice? How did it end with your yellow nails? Please let me know, thank you very much!! 😀
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