[KiwiJen]

I've been getting pleurisy about 4 times a year and just had a chest xray this morning.

I haven't had a bout since before Xmas and it just feels so intense, so painful and so exhausting.

Does anyone else get recurrent bouts of pleurisy?

 

[Maia]

I used to get 3-6 bouts of pleurisy a year, but only 1 in the last year though. I'm not sure if the medication Plaquenil is helping that or if I've just been lucky the last couple of years.

Have you been prescribed anything extra to help you through this bout? Many find prednisone helps for example. My last really bad bout with it was almost 4.5 years ago now, and I had to up my prednisone to get through it.

I hope it's short lived... mine generally didn't last over a week at least. Feel better soon!

 

[calkim]

I sure hope you are feeling better! I also get it, with pericardits. My cardiologist thinks I may be dependent on my colchicine/prednisone. Although I am down to 4mg of pred. I just had a horrible bout of chest pains after stopping my colchicine. I took 800mg Motrin 4 x day(dr. prescribed) which only eased the pain a little. It took a good week of being back on the colchicine before the pain started to lessen. I refused to increase my prednisone, so thats why I took Motrin. It was a very long painful week.
I sure hope you are feeling less pain. and recover quickly
Kim

 

[KiwiJen]

Thanks girls.

It was definently a rough week. My GP didn't want to up my steroid because he knows how hard I've worked to get and stay at 6mg and I was so mad!! I just imagined feeling that awful for the rest of my life and I was cursing him something awful in my mind!

But I did get through it. It lasted for 9 days and phew! It's gone!! And I'm still at 6mg so I'm thrilled.

It is such a relief to know I can get through something like that.

Thanks again.

 

[Raglet]

hi Jen

Glad to hear you kicked that pleurisy in the butt without having to raise your pred.

cheers

raglet

 

[setApart]

I've had Pleurisy for about 2 mo's now, I've had a chest xray(negative) and 2 weeks ago saw my Rheumie and she's listened to my chest and didn't hear anything, so I guess I'm okay but it's moving into my shoulder and neck and hurts really bad by the end of the day, guess me sitting at my desk all day doesn't help and also I'm pretty short of breath now even with taking my inhalers? She told me to call if the pain got to wear I couldn't handle it and they would put me on steroids but I'm trying to avoid it, but unfortunately it's starting to hurt pretty bad, I was hoping it might get better, but all my joints have been hurting pretty bad along with scalp sores and fatigue and I have some protein in my urine so I think I'm flaring.:worried:

 

[tbunny1]

:worried: Oh ouch ... there is just no way to get comforable when it hurts every time you breath or bend over. I had pluerisy and pericarditis for 9 months in 2003.

I know it is a drastic measure, but I ended up having a VATS (video assited thoroscopic surgery) procedure with talc/plueradiesis (sp?). They dusted my plueral cavity with surgical grade talc. Sounds weird, but it worked!

Here's hoping the prednisone will do it's job, and no one else has to go through such a thing. Just wanted to let others know that there are options out there if the pluerisy gets too bad.