Rheumatoid Arthritis Support Group

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, inflammatory, multisystem, autoimmune disorder. It is a disabling and painful condition which can lead to substantial loss of mobility due to pain and joint destruction. The disease is also systemic in that it often also affects many extra-articular tissues throughout the body including the skin, blood vessels, heart, lungs, and...

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Hospital and side effects

mamoose83
mamoose83
Well, have had my first major bout with how having rd and meds deteriorate your system and an infection kicks your but!! I started out sinus infection, then 4 days of not really keeping anything down other than water, 7up, banana or frackers (and those not so much 4th day); had temp of 104.5 at one point; finally told hubby take me in to ER, I can be miserable there and hopefully get help. Yea, sinus, pneumonia and an UTI. Had hard time getting fever to stay down; was in for almost 3 days. Almost back to 95%, and back up north helping watch my 7 month old grand daughter. Have been on my plaquenil (missed 3 days) and had first mtx injection in 3 weeks this past Sunday. Even with injection, is diarrhea a side effect? With folic acid? Seems this week now that is coming back, trying to figure out if meds or there is something else going on. Any input appreciated.
MarleneJ
MarleneJ
I have never had diarrhea with Plaquenil or mthx or folic acid. But there are lots of antibiotics that will cause it. I would think that might be something to ask your doctor about.

I just went through a huge bout of sinus infection last month. I was on antibiotics for 17 days before it mostly disappeared, it is still in my lungs. But I have never gone off of my meds, and never been told to. But again, my RA is so bad that I would rather have the infection than the RA out of control.

Glad to hear you are feeling better. Do ask your doctor about your symptoms. And I believe there are some resistant bacteria in hospitals that might cause your symptoms. My dad caught one when he was in hospital and he never did get rid of it before he passed away. But that was NOT the cause of his death, so don't worry.
depotblue
depotblue
i have diarrhea all the time with mtx. the higher the dose the more i have. I take leucovorin also, with the folic acid - ask your own doctor - but my doctor instructs me to take the leucovorin about 12 hours after the mtx injection

any chance you have diarrhea from the pneumonia - antibiotic - meds? i get that also.

coming back how so? did they x ray your lungs or cat scan em? what is the extent of the pneumonia? you mean the fever is coming back?

get off DS - call the doctor if so :) please :)

feel better

depot
nonightshades
nonightshades
Very glad you're doing better. Most likely the two-step is from taking antibiotics, had to deal with that last couple of weeks. considering what I've been through this spring my guess is that high doses of MTX injections weekend the immune system. After I'd been on two different antibiotics over a three week period with only slight improvement the Doc has me taking the same antibiotics simultaneously and things are improving rapidly. It occurs to me there is a fine balance we each must find between treating RA and not becoming an infection incubator.

Oh, for the tummy/gut thing, I've found that it helps to eat chicken soup (old fashioned kind made with the bone-in-chicken), drink lots of green tea to help the probiotics rebuild. I probably should eat fresh yogurt but can't stand it.
mamoose83
mamoose83
Thanks for comments. I was referring to diarrhea coming back somewhat, had some consistent before infections and antibiotics, had put on meds, recently switched to mtx injections. After being sick, was pretty cleaned out and since had been doing good (as in no diarrhea), first mtx injection this past Sunday and had started back on folic acid, and then had some issues yesterday. Go to rheumatologist end of month, also see dr to repeat cat scan to be sure lungs all clear, sounding clear. Joys of rheumatoid, right?