I need help with medication

[Buenavista]

Hi All,

My husband has had PMR for 13 years now (he is 73 years old) and I need some advice on a new pain medication he has been given for a trapped nerve in his neck/spine (he's waiting for an operation) The specialist said for him to take his 5mg prednisone alternate days. The medication she wants him to take is called Pregabalin 50mg and she said for him to take it once a day at dinner time for 5 days. And if the pain is still bad, to take it twice a day, breakfast and dinner.

What I need to know is, will this cause a flare if he's only taking his pred every other day? His last rheumatologist said he was happy for him to stay on 5mg a day, as he is still doing physical work all week and that 5mg is a stable dosage which won't cause him any problems.

Best regards,

Buenavista

[PMRpro Ambassador]

Using pred on alternate days rarely works in PMR if it is still active, the antiinflammatory effect lasts 12-36 hours depending on the person. I used pred alternate days early on and it worked well for me then until I had signs of possible GCA and the local rheumatologist said I must take pred daily. And what you usually do with ADD is take a double dose on alternate days. I suspect he is likely to flare and the pregabalin won't help the PMR pain at all. Did they say WHY he is to halve his pred dose? I assume that wasn't the rheumy?

If you edit the title of your post to include pregabalin it should then bring up Related Posts for you and more people are likely to look at your post - quite a few are on pregabalin or gabapentin which is similar.

[Buenavista in reply to PMRpro]

Thank you for your reply to the post.No it wasn't a rheumy, and I think I will just keep giving him his normal daily dose. She wasn't a specialist in PMR, so I don't really think she knows how it would effect him. This was all done in Spanish and I translated the papers and her recommendations when we got home.

Best regards,

Buenavista

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to Buenavista]

If it wasn't a rheumy I wouldn't comply!! They can be so blinkered!

[Buenavista in reply to PMRpro]

Hi,I have spoken with our doctor friends who came for a visit and they agree with you, that my husband should continue with his normal daily dosage. So thank you for your advice.

Regards,

Buenavista

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to Buenavista]

They sound like useful friends!!!!!

[Pixix]

Pregabalin, or Gabapentin, are two drugs frequently used in fibromyalgia. I trialled both, but was unable to deal with the side effects, which, for me, were far worse than anything steroids cause! Lots of people take them, without any side effects, & it helps their pain. But it’s completely different from steroids. When I trialled them It was before I had PMR, so I don’t know the answer to your query. Perhaps she is trying to have days off the steroids in order to find out if the Pregabalin works? Not sure if you’d find out that way, though.

[Buenavista in reply to Pixix]

Thanks for your reply.I think I'm going to stick with giving him his normal dosage. As you said, it probably won't make a difference to the see if the Pegabalin works or not. But it might cause a flare and I can't risk that.

Regards,

Buenavista

[Pixix in reply to Buenavista]

Flares aren’t fun, that sounds wise!

[sidra1968]

Pregabalin was prescribed to me for nerve pain for my spinal problems (had a 2 level spinal cervical fusion). It caused a weird flutter in my upper stomach, so I switched to Gabapentin and have had no side effects. I take 100 mg per day (600 mg 3x per day). Just thought you should be aware how different we all are with meds (in case he has some side effects) I usually get zero side effects from anything, so it was a surprise to me.

[Buenavista in reply to sidra1968]

Thanks for your reply. My husband has had only one tablet so far. So I'll monitor him for side effects and if they appear, I'll ask to switch to another tablet. Thanks for your help.

Regards,

Buenavista

[sidra1968 in reply to Buenavista]

sorry that was meant to be 1800 mg per day! I typed it wrong.

[Barnaby2]

I was on Prednisolone and then they took me off it and put me on Pregabilin and Naproxen which has worked well although my first diagnosis thought PMR and then after MRI scan they found some bits that were likely trapping nerves in my spine so thought all caused by that.Recently after pains in my chest said inflammation on sternum. Sometimes I don't feel like I have had a proper diagnosis. As far as side effects I have put on weight and have water retention in my legs

[Buenavista in reply to Barnaby2]

Thanks for your reply. It does sound like they can't get your diagnosis correct.

My husband has arthritis practically everywhere, including his spine and a herniated disc which is trapping a nerve, hence the new pain medication. I'm hoping this will elevate the pain until they operate. And I will continue to give him his normal daily dosage of pred.

Regards,

Buenavista