Yes. We need to live in a bubble. I run for my life when someone sneezes. This is a facinating story. Be carefull out there everyone!

I feel the same way you do. Because the neutriphil portion of my White Blood Count has been almost non-existent (1.4) for over a year, I too am terrified of getting infections. A slight skin tear while trimming the trees lasted almost 3 weeks for me and like yours, the whole finger became swollen after a few days. A bacterial infection that got into my blood stream from a minor fungal infection in between two of my toes, is now mostly cleared up after 3 weeks and 2 different oral antibiotics! The next step would have been IV antibiotics. Check your finger out with a good internist- I have never had luck with my RA doc on any of my infections.

The bruise I got from an injection site is still "blue" after 4 weeks. Yuc!

I have noticed my body takes MUCH longer to heal since beginning all of these medications a year ago. I take Enbrel, Plaquenil, and Mobic.
Sometimes, after my Enbrel shot, I put a band aid on the injection site. When I remove it a little while later the band aid will leave a mark that will last about a week.

I got out of the hospital in mid-June and I still have a silver dollar size
bruise/stain on my right arm. Bistro is right!

Lynne

Oh no...so sorry to hear about that Rose. I have heard that we get infections easily and things take time to heal as well. I have been lucky so far. I hope your discomfort goes away soon. *hugs*

I've entered a period of my life where skin issues are a real problem. I scraped both my legs last year, and they seemed to heal fairly well, although it took longer than usual, but they left some pretty nasty looking scars. I expected that would happen with the combination of age and long-term prednisone use. What I didn't expect was a skin reaction called nummular eczema, which was significantly aggravated by Rituxan. This condition seems especially prone to attack previously traumatized skin, such as scars and bruises.

Like Pam mentioned, pay attention to lab work. Hopefuly your doc(s) will help you there. The TNF-blockers are all notable for issues affecting WBC counts. A low white cell count can indicate depletion through fighting an infection, or bone marrow suppression, where your body just isn't producing enough of the proper white blood cell type. In Pam's case, she has a long-standing, undiagnosed neutropenia.

I've been getting a lot of what seems to be spontaneous bruising. It's probably due, in part, to getting banged up without ralizing it, but more than I would expect. I just started taking a bioflavinoid supplement. The theory is that this will strengthen blood vessel walls, so they won't rupture, causing bruising. It worked once before, and I'll let you know how it goes this time.

Doug

I think slow healing is just part of the disease. If you think about it, your immune system is compromised by the drugs you take to settle your immune system down. The prednisone many of us take causes easy bruising and slows the healing process, according to my primary doctor. The rheumatologist told me when I was diagnosed that if I got sick, I would be sicker than before, and would be sick longer. My primary physician told me to "stay away from sick people" and to not consider volunteering at a shelter for homeless people that I was considering doing. So all of the postings in response to your query make sense. What an exciting disease, right!!! No, just a devil to deal with. Take care of yourself and be sure your doctor stays on top of your labs.

Yes, our immune system is compromised and more so if you are on a biologic. (which I am) And I always think of this as I work in a nursing home with all kinds of sick people!! I just keep washing hands a lot. I do notice if I get a cut, it does take longer to heal.

well I guess I won't be Substituting this Year. Little ones get sick all the time. Parents send their Children to school sick too, I never could figure that one out Then the poor little ones sit in the Classroom misserable and crying. If you all have Kids, please don't send them to School sick.