Anyone else develop brochiectasis with PSA?

I have had PSA for 6 years now. I am finally stable and back to exercising then this chronic cough started. CAT scan showed bronchiectasis!
Is it safe to stay on a biologic?
Are they connected?

Hi there Krimā€¦ no, I have never had bronchiectasis, and am only fairly new to the PsA world of meds, but I would say it is always best to check with your doc or pharmacist as to if it safe to keep taking anything, or if something might be connected to a medication or the condition you haveā€¦ as for the meds, your pharmacist will most likely have the answers for you on that scoreā€¦ as for if it is connected to the PsA, you rheumy should be able answer that.

All the best!! I do hope you are feeling better again real soon!!!

I just looked up bronchiectasis and the first sentence in the article said itā€™s permanent damage to your lungs! Have you ever had pneumonia or bronchiolitis, or histoplasmosis? The reason I ask, is because how did your lungs get damaged? I donā€™t think the biologic would cause any lung damage.

This is interesting because my granddaughter had bronchiolitis with RSV when she was a few months old and was hospitalized for about a weekā€¦I remember her SATS were dangerously low when she was admitted to the hospital. She has seemed to have off and on ā€œchest coldsā€ā€“coughs with a lot of phlegmā€“for as long as I remember. Sheā€™s living with us now and it seems sheā€™ll be over a cough and a few days later it comes back again! Now Iā€™m worried she has bronchiectasis.

Iā€™m sure your pulmonologist and/or rheumy will need to get involved and decide whether itā€™s safe for you to stay on biologics.

Good luck, Krim!

2 Likes

Oh gosh, I just followed in your footsteps @Grandma_J, and googled bronchiectasisā€¦ one of the sites I read mention that this can occur as result of immune deficiency, so perhaps the biologic may have something to do with it, I have no ideaā€¦ would definitely be discussing this with your docs and your pharmacist.

All the best with getting some treatment that will help, and quickly!! ā€¦ however this started for you Iā€™m sorry you need to be going through it!!!

1 Like

Thank youJanson and Grandma J,
My Pulmonologist thinks itā€™s ā€œidiopathicā€, I think I might go to bigger
hospital area and get a second opinion. Just hope I can still take my
CimziašŸ˜³

3 Likes

Good planā€¦crossing my fingers for you!

@Krim your pulmonogist might be rightā€¦ sometimes things do happen for reasons other than the meds we take and may well be completely unrelated.

Best of luck with it, where it goes from hereā€¦ and please do keep us informedā€¦ I for one will be interested to see where this goes for you.

Wishing you, and all of those you care about, a safe and happy Christmas!!!

1 Like

Hi Grandma,

Just reread your post and wanted to say
My search came up with a definite yes for it developed in childhoodā€‹:cry::grimacing:.
I had chronic bronchitis as a child which may be related. No real trouble till now though, just recurrent bronchitis that finally never stopped ā€¦then off to The pulmonologist. Saying a prayer for heršŸ™

Hi @Krim. Are you still around this forum? If so, how are you doing?

In recent months Iā€™ve been tested & checked for COPD and then asthma. Results are inconclusive and bronchiectasis is next on the list of possibilities so Iā€™m being sent for a high resolution CT scan.

Rheumy nurse reckons itā€™s a Rheumatoid Arthritis thing, not so much associated with PsA. Iā€™ve never had any chest problems before, no bronchitis, very few chest infections.

Interested to know if anyone else has it and, if so, have you been told that it can be associated with PsA?

I am aroundā€¦and went through re testing for RA etc. The CAT scan diagnosed the bronchiectasis, but the cause??? My doc is blaming it on GERDā€¦I am convinced it is related to all the auto immune stuff I have going on, but docs are not.

I am on symbicort and my chronic coughing stopped, so am stableā€¦just cough up a lot 1-2 x a week.

Prayers for you to get answersā€‹:pray::pray::pray:

1 Like

Hey, thanks for getting back to me so quickly Krim.

Glad to hear youā€™re stable. Evidently symbicort works okay for you, thatā€™s good to know plus itā€™s something I can look up.

I donā€™t have a chronic cough but Iā€™ve been coughing up a lot of gunk most mornings for maybe 6 years or so. Thatā€™s got worse lately and I have started having intermittent breathing issues.

Like you, if in doubt I think ā€˜blame it on the PsAā€™.

1 Like

I developed bronchiectasis also and I am on Sterlara.

1 Like

My CT scan showed lung fibrosis.

The pandemic put investigations on hold. But I was recently referred to a lung consultant & had a telephone consult last week. His view, having reviewed the scan, was that my lung fibrosis has been caused by PsA. He said he sees a lot of it in inflammatory arthritis patients.

@Krim, Iā€™ve been told that bronchiectasis is an inflammatory arthritis thing, but is more likely with RA than with PsA. Hmmm, really? And how reliable / interchangeable are these diagnoses anyway? Iā€™m inclined to trust my lung consultant, he seems excellent. I just wouldnā€™t be surprised if the dx changed.

1 Like

Are you on Methotrexate by any chance? Am having a tough time breathing too, only in my case do not know if it is from the progressive worsening of my chronic obstructive bronchial thingy, if that s English, my heart failure which need to monitor , my partner s cigarette smoking, my asthma, psa, methotrexate, or an equitable combination of all these ingredients. Just hope will not be changed medications in mid september s hospital visit, in the mean time will try to get a few scans if poss, heart and liver and feet x rays, maybe also lung x rays, all the best,

Haha, thatā€™s very much my sort of English! Do you mean COPD?

It took a CT scan to get the dx of lung fibrosis. I donā€™t doubt that - if they see scarring then they see scarring I guess. So the only question is why which is obviously the same question that is vexing you. And I guess if the dx itself is uncertain in your case then a CT scan would be the way to go.

I too could see a 100 reasons why my lungs might be a bit damaged. So it was interesting to hear a consultant identify PsA as the cause with some degree of confidence. Yep, I am on Mtx. Iā€™ll ask my consultant a lot more questions next time I speak to him and get straight back to you if I hear anything that may be of interest.

1 Like

Finally got the radiography report on another CT scan (high resolution this time) which I had back in September. Things move slowly at the moment for obvious reasons.

It confirms fibrosis but also Bronchiectasis. Waiting on more tests and another appointment with lung consultant. The only cheering thing I can find online about Bronchiectasis is on a very good Australian site, itā€™s called a ā€˜Snot Analysis Colour Chartā€™.

2 Likes