I am newly diagnosed in Jan 2023 although had symptoms since Sept of 2022 ( post covid ) with PMR. Initial sed rate of 41. Now down to 22. CRP 10.9. to 5.2 and now going back up to 8.6
Started on Prednisone 20 then 18 a month . rheumatologist states I can go to 16 . I have not had pain since starting the prednisone but dealing with wt gain, moon face , and hungry all the time.
Should I be concerned about the CRP starting to go back up?
I am a retired RN in Tennessee . Thankful for all I’ve learned from these post
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GMA74
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So long as you feel okay in yourself you may well be able to reduce -your CRP markers may just be a blip -but it would be wise to get checked again in a couple of weeks to make sure it’s not an upward trend.
The increase in the CRP may not be a sign of the PMR inflammation worsening - your doctor should repeat it in a week or two while you stay at the same dose of pred, CRP is a very non-specific indicator and can be raised for other things. If you don't have any PMR symptoms it shouldn't result in a kneejerk increase in dose until they check to see if there is a rising trend. If it did, then you would have to consider if it was a warning.
The dose you are on would normally be plenty to manage PMR but since this appears to be a version of Long Covid, maybe the usual expectations don't apply. You will have to wait and see,
But cutting carbs drastically, especially processed carbs and added sugar and limiting fruit should help reduce your problems with weight gain and constant hunger.
This is a really useful site for learning the principles:
Since they don't know much about it as yet it is perfectly possible that for some people Long Covid IS PMR - it is almost certainly an autoimmune condition, that has been pretty obvious, to me (and many other a/i sufferers) at least, since it was first identified. Autoimmune disease is triggered by an insult to the immune system which very often is a viral infection, not necessarily Covid. I don't think a/i disease comes in neatly labeled boxes - it is a whole range of symptoms, what label you get depends on which symptoms are most obvious. That's why it can be so difficult to diagnose and manage.
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SUDDEN increase in Sed rate, or erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR)
CRp
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Different CRP readings
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