GCA after PMR

[margiebell4]

I've been meaning to ask this question for a while- when PMR burns itself out/ goes into remission, are we still at the same level of risk of developing GCA?

[PMRpro Ambassador]

Don't really know - except it never really goes away in that the possibility of it rekindling remains so I suppose the risk of GCA also remains. If all you were diagnosed with in the first place was PMR but they didn't do any scans to see where there is inflammation you could have had GCA anyway - it can affect other arteries and if it was only extracranial (outside the head area) you wouldn't get the "typical" GCA visual and headache symptoms.

[margiebell4 in reply to PMRpro]

Thank you, it's a pity there's not more funding for research.

[bettyv910]

My Rheumatologist once told me that once the PMR/GCA was in remission there is a lifetime risk that it can return but the good part was that the risk of it affecting vision is substantially lower.

I'm going on 18 months in this journey and am currently still on 10 mg. Prednisone a day. A couple of weeks ago my CRP was at 17.4 which, even though a couple other medical conditions have cropped up, I think is still from the PMR. I look forward to the time I can be off the Prednisone and enjoy the remission part. In the meantime I am judging success from being able to carry on by managing my spoons and as much as possible, keep my eyes and focus off myself.