Just wondered if anyone had advice/experience of muscle cramp. I have had this problem for maybe a couple of months where my hands/fingers seize up but more recently my feet,calf muscles and upper thigh muscles are giving me some serious trouble also. Last night it happened while asleep and I shot out of bed,absolute agony.I'm familiar with cramp as an ex rugby player but this leaves the muscle quite hard and not as flexible as it should after a while.
I am taking 20mg pred' just now with my rheumatologist looking to get me off as she believes the high initial dose has caused me damage. Also have pretty serious Oedema so taking Furosemide.
Is there a possible connection ? I can't find anything connecting Pred' to cramps.
Hope someone can help,thanks.
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yorkieme
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It is not recommended to combine lasix/furosemide with corticosteroids:
drugs.com/drug-interactions....
That could account for your problems. Pred also makes you lose magnesium through the kidneys so a magnesium supplement helps many of us. Or you can try foot baths with Epson salts or spray on magnesium.
If that is the level of your rheumy's knowledge I wouldn't be in hurry to obey her desire for you to taper off pred in a hurry either.
The oedema is probably due to the pred - but reducing your salt intake and simple carbs should both help the fluid retention.
How long did you stay at the 60mg? Last I heard and according to your profile you are at 15mg - have you been back higher again?
I have been taking magnesium supplement since mid March as advised by a natural health pro' she suggested this instead of alendronic acid/Adcal. I also take Turmeric/circumin high potency capsules twice daily.
My G.P. initially refused to prescribe medication for the oedema,it was during my hospital stay that it was prescribed due to how bad it was.
I started on 60mg 14th Feb' but after a spell in hospital mid March for suspected Corona virus was told by the consultant that I didn't have PRM symptoms. Due to this I rather stupidly,on reflection decided to drop the Pred' not realising the importance of reducing slowly. Got down to 20mg but another spell in hospital mid April took me back up to 30mg and been reducing since,now been told 15mg one day then 20mg the next for two weeks.Then stick on 15mg pending the rheumatologists conclusion/forward plan.
Thank you for your reply and advice,will now look at the low carb diet etc,
I was on 60mg at the time,mid March as instructed by my G.P. The consultant,name I cannot remember but I could easily find out,was in charge of five wards at Ysbwty Gwynedd,Bangor.He said that I had presented with corona virus symptoms as in high temperature and a cough and that his opinion was that I did not have PMR symptoms,he then instructed staff to isolate me,clear the route and get me down to the Covirad unit.
I challenged him on the basis that I presented with almost loss of vision,(during the night I had about one hour of complete fog eye sight,as though the lounge was full of smoke, after which my sight returned to normal,also a serious headache,)and that the G.P. sent me to hospital concerned about GCA. He wasn't having any of it and that was when he became rather bolshy,insisted no CT scan etc, until late that evening after the list had been completed.
This was a Thursday morning my second day in hospital and at that time my temperature was 37.6.
Well you aren't going to have any PMR symptoms at 60mg pred!!! I didn't think 37.6C would have rung Covid-19 bells either. Sounds like someone fixated on Covid-19 who probably had a few people die of what they really had ... I assume they swabbed for CV?
They did swab yes,I received the negative result Saturday night from one of the junior doctors. ( I had a second shot at this in mid April by the way,this time I did have a high temperature,40.1 and low SPo2 readings so spent time on Oxygen but bad luck for me was that the same guy dealt with me and again in the Covirad unit,again tested and shown negative and again dismissed when I explained all this had been done before,)He was on a mission clearly.
The whole fiasco was down to his belief that I was a victim of the virus. When discharged for the second time it was on the basis that I had the virus and had beaten it,or that I had picked up a piggy back virus due to the double pneumonia.
I put forward the explanation that I was in the Canary Isles early January to mid February not Wuhan Province,his response ? That the U.K. government had not been given the correct data regarding the release of the virus so I could have had it ??
That was the point when I decided what ever happens I will not be going back to that hospital.
The saga continues,my rheumatologist believes I shouldn't be on Pred',that it has damaged me and that she cannot put me on Methotrexate due to the damage to my lungs,they also discovered an issue with my left ventricle ?
What chance does anyone have with three different views from three medical professionals ? I'm a retired engineer for goodness sake so I know very little about PMR and am totally reliant on those who are supposed to.
I have several doctors disagreeing frequently! It’s maddening. And they are convinced that the others are wrong. Drs are not good with people like us having multiple diagnoses and symptoms. It’s horrible
Been a real eye opener for me reading about people on here suffering with PMR/GCA and so on and having to fight the medical profession just to get acceptance and treatment. I haven't had that battle so I have been very fortunate. I've got three of them bidding against each other.lol.
To be fair, Covid-19 was very likely in the UK before Christmas, certainly very soon afterwards. BUT - the failure rate of the tests in the UK early on was at least 25%, probably higher. Two tests were required for even reasonable certainty, they still do 2 here. My daughter had something, fitted Covid-19 perfectly - whatever it was had been imported from northern Italy, but not Lombardy, in January, by a colleague. It ripped around the department.
I’m on prednisilone, now down to 10mgs and had been having cramping in hands, fingers twisting whenI tried to use them, but the cramping began with PMR, before I went onto Preds. I have also gone into the diabetes zone with raised blood pressure. I’ve therefore followed revised careful diet for two weeks including reduced salt and my hand cramping seems to have cleared past few days. I’ve cut right back on potatoes, no rice or pasta and wholeMeal bread in small amounts. Obviously checked foods for sugar and salt content, nearly all manufactures are wicked. Anyway, quite what helps I don’t know but I’ve lost some weight, cramps are better and I’m planning to reduce to 9mgs next week. It did take some months before the inflammation went low enough to start reducing from 15mgs. Wonder what your levels are, the rheumatologist will check no doubt. This may be of no help at all, but I imagine salt and water retention may be linked to cramping? (I actually cut down salt due to appalling sweats in warm weather, caused by preds causing water retention).
Many thanks for your reply.I can connect to quite a lot of it but it seems more crucial than ever that I should review my diet. I have cut out such as wheat,cheese etc, but looks like far more work to do.
Once again thank you,your comment really has given me food for thought.No pun intended.
No particular reason other than I probably eat too much of it,and been advised to eliminate one food after another to see what happens.I'm happy to try anything really if it works..
Also an ex-rugby player, also started at 20mg Pred, also experienced severe calf cramps. That was two years ago. I'm now at 2mg daily and keeping the general inflammation at bay. I didn't have issues over diet but, with my son's help, began a stretching regime which I continue daily (sort of!). Maybe the type of exercises you would have done pre/post match - calfs, hamstrings and so on. I still get the occasional cramp which spoils my sleep but I can control it quickly and it is not at the "absolute agony" you describe (and I shared in the early days). I also take magnesium supplement as advised by other members. Can only say ... good luck trying to find what's best for you. Just take it step-by-step.
Thank you,I am early on the journey but as yet no definite resolution to what I have .... according to my rheumatologist I'm a complicated case ??? been called many things on the pitch but not that. I have bought an excercise bike,low weights,have a friend who is a sports physio' so pretty fortunate really.My big problem is me, a true O.C.D. type but yes,as you suggest learning new ways.Many thanks for your response.
By the way,PMRpro sent me a link regarding my fluid retention medication so I'm going to ask the G.P. to come off it,it looks like it could be/may be a conflict with the Pred'
I had excruciating lower leg cramps which began during the five months of increasing symptoms prior to diagnosis and pred, so I know that for me it was the PMR. I assumed it was caused by the inflammation in the blood vessels. The foot and whole lower leg used to seize up and I would have to jump out of the bed or car. It usually happened just after I got into the car and put my foot on the pedal. It was like no cramping I had ever experienced. I also had a short period of hand cramps during the first year. I haven’t experienced either for quite a while now so hopefully they’re gone. I did start taking magnesium tablets just in case it was the cause but still think it was the PMR. 🌻
Thanks for your reply. You did make me laugh because a few nights ago my lower calf went into a cramp,I pulled the duvet back to jump out of bed and got my feet caught in it,went head first on to the floor completely naked (don't use pyjamas,) but after the pain passed ended up in stitches laughing laying on the floor. Thank god I have a super king size bed,and a wife with a good sense of humour.
I didn't have leg cramps - just my toes - but I did have a lot of hand cramp, especially my thumbs when gripping something or lifting the kettle. Couldn't even hold a wine glass at one time!!!!
Oh no!!! Not the wine glass! Ultimate disaster!!! I was stuck in banked up traffic for ages on the freeway due to an accident when my hands went into spasm on the steering wheel. Thank goodness I was able to get them working before the cars started moving again.
I too am getting cramps in my hands and calf muscle. It was quit frightening I thought I was developing arthritis in my hands. That would have been the last straw after contracting PMR but reading some of the posts I see we are not alone. I am not sure what is causing it maybe someone knows.
I think it is poor oxygen supply to the muscles - in hands at least, it only happened when I was using them. Legs - not so sure except with pred involved it is probably low magnesium etc.
Back in my rugby playing days I was led to believe it was due,possibly, to a connection between anaerobic excercise,(training,) and a build up of lactic acid.Not burning off the lactate quickly enough caused the problem ? Allegedly.It certainly happened more often during competitive matches.
Having said this I am a retired engineer and simply accepted the explanation at the time.
Thanks to your link PMRpro I cross referenced Pred' against Furosemide and due to the result haven't taken any for two days,the water retention has built up again but no cramp attacks ? So,my next task is to find a way to reduce the water retention as much as possible .................. back to the low carb' diet route for starters and maybe an excercise bike to keep the weight off my joints temporarily. So thank you,it could be the odema tablets.
Interesting to read this , my husband was taking the same water tablet as you , he developed terrible cramp and gout on these !.Dr told him unfortunately this is a symptom of taking a water tablet ! It forms crystals around the joints !. He reduced the water tablets and bingo symptoms dissapered ! She gave him some tablets for gout , invade of a flare up.! Would be worth a visit to your GP . I was reading about my PMR problems , but saw yours hope this helps .Good luck 😊
Thank you for your response. I did speak to my G.P. and he moved me to Bumetanide. When I checked the side effects,(as I am learning to do with all medication and also look for info' on this forum,)guess what ? Bumetanide side effects include cramp.lol Cannot win can we ? Happily I am pleased to say only one cramp attack so far,touch wood.
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