Can anyone tell me if Prednisone has caused your skin to thin? I now find I am bruising very easily, I just need to lean too heavy on my arms and I bruise or I am bleeding without even knowing how I got cut? I am so tired all the time, although pain is not too bad.
I am taking Methotrexate 10mg, once a week Prednisone daily, Dufloxetine daily 60mg, and 700mg Naproxen daily.
I wonder if your bruising and tiredness is due to something else. Have you had you bloods done recently ?
yes last week doctor thought my platelets were low but no they were fine. Apart from RA I have myostitis, Shogrins and lung problems
How much to you take every day, and for how long have you been doing so? As it can cause skin to thin in moderate to high doses. But so can age…
Maybe talk to your doctors about a medicine review as you are on a very low dose of methotrexate so pehaps that could be increased so your prenisone can be decreased?
I am low dose 7.5 daily. I will speak to consultant see what he thinks
I’m on 3mg a day now. I’m 50kg and when I was on 5mg my Dr said it was way too high for my weight. He said, no matter your weight etc, it’s better to get of it if I can as it’s bad long term.
Hi. I’ve been on Prednisolone on average dose of 7.5 mgs for 33 years (along with most of the other drugs for RA) but have not experienced thinning skin up to now. Am 70 years old so will expect changes due to ageing but have had no bruising or bleeding due to Pred and been remarkably lucky to have very few side effects from it. It can cause thinning of skin depending on dosage and length of time taken though.
It may be an idea to go back to your GP or rheumatologist as suggested by others as they’re the best people to advise you as to what may be going on. Good luck and hope you feel better very soon.
thank you I will speak to consultant
Yes, pred does cause our skin to thin, particularly on the arms and legs. Also, used long term it leaves us open to infections as well as other issues. It’s great to wean slowly off it if you can. Talk to your Dr about it!
I’m down to 3m and will drop another .5mg this week. Slowly, slowly.
Thank you I will have a word
It does make skin thin if taken at high doses, particularly over extended periods. My skin is like paper. Two doses of COVID, multiple chest infections and pneumonia over the last 3 years has meant that each time I was weaning off I had to go back up to a high dose again. I am currently trying to wean off and switch to hydrocortisone if my body will let me, I now have severe asthma also.
Me too Covid & chest infections Have Bronchiectasis & Kidney disease meaning on & off steroids weaning down from 30mgs at present on 10mgs.
I have got bronchiectasis too and spent the entire month of January being pimped full of steroids in hospital. I also bruise extremely easily as I am on anticoagulants after a PE. I am a walking disaster!
Oh bless you I get it 😕 I had some IV Rituximab just before Xmas and have caught every bug & virus going since, just hope it's blasted my kidney condition into remission. Atishoo 😷
P.s I call steroids the " Devil's TicTacs " they send me bonkers, lack of sleep & mouth ulcers/ Thrush, hair loss Arghhhh 😜
You are not wrong there! They are wonderful but absolutely dreadful at the same time. We have a love hate relationship but they keep me alive! 😃
Yep ain't that the truth
Hi! I’m new to this board. I was filling out my own prep work for upcoming surgery next month. Something popped up regarding family history. I began thinking about my mom. She passed in 2002. She had RA like many of you wonderful women live with.
She lived a life on Prednisone for 25 years until 51 years old.
I don’t recall how many mgs she was on but she was diagnosed with Kidney cancer which threw us all for a loop bc it was asymptomatic, no signs, no warnings. It was stage 4. No available treatments then either. 3 weeks later at Sloan Kettering she passed.
I am responding to your post because you had mentioned that you were battling kidney disease amongst other illnesses. I hope and pray you are doing well and have managed to come down off of Prednisone over the last year and perhaps found an alternative. Prednisone was a miracle drug for my mom but also a curse. It’s scary how drugs can be that way.
I wish you all the best and hope you are doing well. All the best to each of you. 🙏🙏🙏 May mom would have been 73 years old this August.
Thank you for your kind reply. Pleased to say the Nephrotic Syndrome is in Remission so the Prednisolone is consigned to the back of the cupboard just in case it is needed.😊Sorry there was no available treatment at that time for her your Mum . Some folks do have a lot to deal with medically.
Do hope your surgery goes really well 🙏🤞
Hattie
Yes I only have to bump into something and I will get a bruise and my legs are very tender to touch. I am on 4mg but when I was on higher dose I used to bleed just by gently catching on something. I was also told I couldn't take Naproxen whilst on Steroids.
This is a well documented side effect. My skin tears so easily but then I have been taking them for almost 40 years. When I am put on higher doses for lung infections I always try and reduce quickly down to my maintenance dose which is 5mg. However, this becomes harder to do each time. I know it is not good going forward but at 70 I think it is a balance between quality of life and potential future problems.
yes prednisolone will cause thinning of your skin. I have adrenal insufficiency, diagnosed after a severe stroke due to an adrenal crisis. I’d been on steroids 6yrs when they caused my adrenals to atrophy. So I take 4.5mg every day, but that’s a replacement dose for the cortisol my body no longer produces. Despite only being a replacement dose my thin skin tears very easily and is slow to heal, as well as bruising easily. I have 3 wounds on my leg, one still not healed 8 months on. I got a small skin tear 2 month ago when my nail caught my shin when removing my leggings. 2 months on it’s not healed. My bruising is partly due to an antiplatlet drug to prevent another stroke. I now need steroids for life and have to have an emergency intramuscular steroid injection on me at all times, and family trained to administer. I unfortunately had polymyalgia and GCA where steroids were the only treatment. I wouldn’t wish adrenal insufficiency on anyone, any stress good or bad can have me spirss as long downwards. Migraines I have to inject, arguments can need me updosing with quickly becoming lightheaded, nauseous, headache and plummeting BP. The steroid side effects are based on accumulative dose rather than current dose. It also raises blood sugar and increases risk of diabetes, and also osteoporosis.
Hi cross2, re Prednisolone. I have been on this Medication for over eight years now. From my experience, I definitely can confirm that it does indeed thin the skin. I also easily bruise and bleed. With my condition I use steroid cream/ointments on my body and steroid scalp lotion. I feel worn out all the time and just wish that I could survive without steroids. May be one day! I wish you well x
Yep on moderate dose Prednisolone weaning down from 30mgs to hopefully off them again.soon .All the side effects you describe I've had including nosebleeds. My Sister joked I look like an assault victim sometimes with so many bruises & haematomas (swelling when blood just under the skin )
I've been on prednisolone a few times, occasionally up to 6 months at around 20mg tapering off to zero, but, if I itch my arms I get big blood mark bruising, I was told this is because prednisolone thins the skin, I still get the blood bruises & haven't had prednisolone since July last year
thank you everyone for your advice and support. X
yes I’ve been on steroids for a while now and my skin is very thin and bruised easily x
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