Good morning, sorry couldnt post last night, felt so tired, and out of it, must be age lol!
Well i got to the Welcome trust clinical Research Facility, they check you in then show you to hte patients lounge, where there was coffee, mmmm hubby had i couldnt grrr!!
heading of letter was. Study of accelerated atherosclerosis in systemic lupus erythematosus (sle) lupus factors, telomere shortening and progression of atherosclerosis....
A nice male dr called me in his office, asked questions, then passed me over to a nurse who did loads of bloods,
then got passed to another nurse for a neck scan, then a nurse for weight height, bp,then hips messured.
letter i had says your being asked to take part in this study becaue you have sle and we wish to assess how factors associted with sle alter the risk of artherosclerosis over time this will be done by essessing sle at baseline ans aslo studying the thickness of the lining of the major blood vessel in the neck (carotid artery)
A repeat stifness scan will be also performed every 6 months and the neck scan will be performed every 2 yrs after the initian scan to assess the progression of the arerosclerosis and how sle factors including teloere lenght may effect this
In addition to the carotid scan a second scan will be also be prefomed, the second (pulse wave velocity) involes placing a small ultrasound probe at the base of your neck. above the collar bone to measure the wave-form, it does not invole any needles, A second measurement is also taken from the blood vesselat the top of the leg( femoral artry) using the same device, The distance between the 2 proobes is messured, Thescan compares the pulsation n your neck with that in the artery at the top of your leg again this is a painless prcedure and will be repeted every 6 months for 2 yrs...
sorry if that was boring but you asked, :hehe:
then went from there over the the main mri out patients for a coffee and something to eat.
After that over to see dr b , got weighed omg going on a diet, put loads on from last weigh in before xmas, i know the pred as given me the munches grrrr!!!. right dr b as decided to stop the Azathioprine now, not going to use the other drug yet putting that one on the back burner for now,
going to start Mycophenolate in a weeks time, he said i willl need bloods checked every week at first, dont know weather i like the idea of trying another drug, think its the fact im use to the one im on, but if the other is going to better things then i have to try i know.
he his also going to reduce my prednislone down,, by 2and half mg a week,
he wants me to see jo the lupus nurse in 6 weeks, then him again in 3 months i also have local rheumy in march, so at least ive got ppl on my side which i am greatiful for..just hope the manchester appointment comes when dd is off, as i cant drive now, and not the easy of place t get to from her on my own, cant keep using hubbys hols on me
thanks again for all your care you have shown me here, your good friends
take care Lin xxxxx