Rheumatologist

[caftan]

Hi everyone, following on from my posts of last week I had a telephone consultation with a doctor at my practice, not my usual doctor, re my swollen ankles which I have been bad for quite some time now. He seemed moreconcerned about my PMR and how long I have been on prednisolone and my current dose which is 10mg. he told me to stop taking one of my medications, Felodopine, and to keep an eye on my blood pressure. This was last Thursday. So now I am afraid to take my blood pressure in case it is unusually high as I won't know what to do, with it being Sunday etc. I did take it last night and the distolic reading was very high. but the top figure was normal, so I did get rather anxious.

Anyway early on Friday morning I had a text from my usual GP to tell me that she is referring me to a rheumatologist following a conversation with the other doctor re my PMR. So after four long years I am finally being referred. I did request this some time ago but my GP was reluctant, to say the least to refer me and didn't seem to think it was necessary. I forgot to say that the doctor I spoke to on the phone arranged for me to have a blood test the following morning (Friday) which seemed to cover just about everything, as far as I could tell and also for vitamin B12 and thyroid. I usually have a blood test every 3 months re PMR but I think the last one must have been missed.I would welcome any advice, thoughts for members and especially PMR Pro. Thank you everyone for your comments and advice.

[PMRpro Ambassador]

It took me more than 4 years to get under 10mg pred and I was about 60 at the time!

If you are worrying about the BP reading that will cause it to go up! Don't worry - a short time of a raised BP isn't the end of the world and if you had a very high BP and felt unwell you call 111 for advice.

[piglette]

I have swollen ankles, when I asked a rheumatologust he sort of humphed and said “yes you would expect that with PMR”. I take my blood pressure every day and put the information into a free app I found. It seems to be called Blood Pressure. It calculates averages and gives you graphs. All you do is put in your systolic, diastolic and heart rate. It does give a general trend of how your blood pressure is going.

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to piglette]

Don't really see why PMR would cause swollen ankles. I had problems - I can only assume that the arrythmia medication was at fault because it has all gone on a different one!

[piglette in reply to PMRpro]

It was the steroids that caused my swollen ankles. My legs and ankles swelled up very soon after I started taking them. You are right it was not the PMR.

[SheffieldJane]

Glad you are in the system and have a sensible sounding GP to call upon.

[HeronNS]

Swollen ankles are a listed side effect of Felodopine. Do they seem a bit better now? Has a different medication for the high BP been suggested? You may be interested to know that over time (like a couple of months) mindfulness training has been shown to reduce high blood pressure. Might be a thing to add to whatever else you are offered?

newsroom.heart.org/news/min...

Hope the referral works out well for you. Best wishes!

[Yogikay]

Hi

My doctor won’t refer me to a rheumatologist as he says no inflammatory markers,

Take advantage of seeing a specialist as I believe it’s crucial for your well bring,

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to Yogikay]

All the more reason to refer you if you have symptoms he can't identify/resolve, It makes you atypical.

[Cantfindanam]

So sorry to ask this but how were you diagnosed with Pmr if you haven't seen a Rheumatologist?

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to Cantfindanam]

In the UK about 75% of patients are diagnosed and managed in primary care and don;t see a specialist unless there are problems, Most experienced GPs are confident to make the diagnosis and a good GP is preferable to a poor rheumy.

[Sl0th]

When I finally saw a rheumatologist, after a long wait, they said I didn't have PMR before they even looked up from the computer. Too young! A few appointments and a CT scan with contrast for them to diagnose likely PMR or large joint arthritis. I am about to start Methotrexate, with some concerns, as Prednisolone had been great for me, with no noticeable side effects. Rheumatology nurses have talked me through it and seem supportive to get my treatment right.