Yes it is awful vertigo it can be caused by a myriad of things. They gave me ativan god luck like we don't have enough to deal with.

I'm new here and haven't been diagnosed with RA even though I do have some of the symptoms. Is it possible that you are anemic? I used to have dizzy spells and a blood test showed that my iron levels were low.The doctor did a checkup and said that when I stood up my heart rate drops. The doctor didn't prescribe any medication but I started taking an OTC iron pill 1x a day and that took care of it.

Hello,
I do get vertigo off and on. I am on MTX, prednisone, and orencia.
Take care,
Roni

I have had vertigo for other reasons but not RA related. It does have many causes and it would be a good idea to tell your doctor. All the best to you in finding out what it is and getting a resolution.

I have Polymyalgia Rheumatica along with the RA. The Polymyalgia causes me to have constant muscle aches, weakness and vertigo along with other symptoms. It is an auto-imune disease, quite common with RA. I am being treated with Prednisone for the Polymyalgia and get Orencia for the RA.

What about low Adrenals such as in Adrenal Fatigue in addition to everything else mentioned? I had this problem as well. Could any of the meds make your blood pressure low? How about any thyroid symptoms?

{{{hugs}}}

I have read that one of the worrisome side effects of Actemra is that it can cause your cholesteral to go up a 100 points. If this is indeed the case maybe the dizziness has some correlation? Just a thought and an uneduated guess. ( heard the 100 point thing as hearsay)

If it were me getting dizzy to the point of fainting I would start with a call to my pharmacist to see if any of the drugs I was taking could possibly cause this to happen. Sometimes a drug in and of itself won't harm you but mixing it with something else, even OTC meds you are taking may be the culprit? Can't hurt?

I know that for me personally, my ankles often go out, my rheumatologist said it was the way I walk because of the deformities in my feet from my RA. I also sometimes feel very lightheaded but that is usually only when I am taking pain meds that I already know in advance will make me feel that way.

Hopefully you can get an explanation soon and just start feeling better. I know we always tend to worry when we don't the cause of things. That is why I suggested you talk to your doctors and pharmacist who should hopefully some answers.

Hi,

I had one Actemra infusion and had severe adverse reaction with some known & unknown side-effects (I was also on 25mg MTX). One of the side-effects was lightheadedness & confusion (for me it felt like I didn't know where I was & could only focus on one person's face) but I didn't experience dizziness. After being admitted to hospital via Emergency, the pharmacist & my Rheumy checked with drug company for more details on the drug-related problems I had. There weren't many answers & I realised that there seemed to be a lot of unknowns with such a new drug.

Try & see if your Rheumy can find out from drug co. the latest on side-effects as more patients use this new drug there will be more reports of side-effects.

Cheers, Anna

How's your blood pressure? I've read that Actemra can cause high blood pressure, which can result in dizziness.

Hi Marie,

After replying to your post last night, I checked on Druginfo.com???? about Actemra.

Common side-effect is dizziness. Serious side-effect is fainting & one that you are advised to contact your DR about immediately.

Also, forgot to mention that one of my side-effects was very low BP then very high BP. My Rheumy gave me a medical term for this which I can't remember but he said that the part of my brain that controlled my blood pressure had been affected by Actemra, hence I only had one infusion.

Follow up with your Dr as soon as you can & let us know how you go.

Cheers, Anna