Sulfasalazine and loss of appetite

[acousmetre]

Hi,

I was wondering if any users of sulfasalazine have experienced a loss of appetite and/or experienced weight loss? I've been taking 2 grams daily (1 gram at night and one in the morning after food) since January. I had no adverse reactions to taking it but I started to lose weight since about March and I've lost about 5 or 6Kg since then (I'm a 187cm 57 year old man and normally weigh around 95Kg and may have been more than that at the beginning of the year. I haven't weighed less than 94Kg for about 15 years. I basically have a much lower appetite than normal but don't feel ill in any way (except for sore joints!).

Googling, I see that it can cause a loss of appetite but one article I read said that this was an early side affect while adapting to the drug. Has anyone who is on sulfasalazine experienced a long-term loss of appetite?

I'll be seeing a GP in the next couple of weeks and I suspect he'll ask for a colonoscopy and run other tests.

Cheers,

[Deeb1764]

I have been on sulfasazine and I checked my notes when taking it and I had nausea and loss of appetite on it. Some of RA drugs make me lose appetite but also I just don’t enjoy food as much as sense of smell and taste changed too.

[janmary]

I was on it for a few months - np appetite, headaches, and lost weight

[sylvi]

I wish darling. No i have had no side affects from taking this drug. xxxxx

[Brikel]

Hi I have been on Sulfasalazine for a few years and like Sylvi I haven’t had any side affect in fact I’ve probably put on a few pounds

[Scottishlad]

I was on 3gr a day and noticed no effect on my appetite. I'm about 80kg.

[BMCV]

I took it for 6.5 weeks and couldn't tolerate it after that. Totally lost my sense of taste (it took almost 4 months to return), lost appetite and was nauseous all the time. I was switched to methotrexate and have had no side effects at all on that so its clear some of the RA drugs just don't suit everyone.

[Hidden]

Unfortunately not!! No weight loss for me 😂.

[acousmetre]

Thanks for the replies. There's obviously a variety of responses to sulfasalazine. Thanks BMCV for the tip on methotrexate, if it's indicated for psoriatic arthritis, I'll ask my rheumatologist about it.

[Chockyuk]

Sometimes I feel a bit queasy, but no weight loss 😖 I’m always trying to lose weight anyway, so if it had that affect on me I’d be delighted 😀

[acousmetre in reply to Chockyuk]

Yes, it's one consolation :-). I was getting a bit concerned about losing weight without trying, but since it can have the effect of reducing appetite, and confirmed here, that'sprobably it. I hadn't made the connection with sulfasalazine until recently.