Do you respond fairly quickly to biologics?
In the past I’ve responded very fast to TNF blockers - Enbrel was within days, Humira and Cimzia about two weeks - that was when I could see a noticeable difference - longer to full effect. Stelara seemed much slower, but I didn’t respond that well to it for my gut, though I think it was good for my arthritis within about 6 weeks.
They certainly helped a lot. Still waiting for the biopsy results. But thank you so much for asking.
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Glad at least you are a bit more comfortable 
So @Stoney, you got put on colchicine for your pericarditis- despite being already on a biologic? Have you ever noticed if the biologic helps (eg if you have to go off it, do pericarditis symptoms return), or does the pericarditis seem to respond mostly to the colchicine? And are you on methotrexate or similar as well? Cause then that seems like a lot of immunomodulators / suppressants.
Sorry for all these questions! Just trying to be as prepared as I can for the cardiologist appointment Friday. Have started waking up at night short of breath with a high heart rate, and can’t figure out if it’s sleep apnoea cause I have a swollen tongue, or my heart going nuts 
. I want a refund!
The colchicine is definitely what controls the pericarditis. If I miss two doses I’ll have a flare. When the enbrel failed last year I did not have a return of symptoms. When I got put on humira and it started to peter out before arriving methotrexate it didn’t return, even though a million other things did. Even though it’s been a few years, I will still flare up if there’s a gap in the medication. Part of this is likely because I was initially treated with steroids, after indomethacin landed me in the emergency room with the worst migraine ever. Later reading told me that prednisone is likely what has caused it to be so chronic.
Ugh. I’ve been on prednisone for 4 weeks since the episode to get all the other symptoms under control - just coming off those now. Oh well, it’s not certain yet that’s what it is. I guess I was just being hopeful the Remicade would solve all my problems (which it still could, but).
I hope you got back to full or almost-full capacity with the colchicine, seems like it is possible not to, and thank you so much for all the useful info.
Sometimes prednisone is the answer. Especially since you’re in between biologics. It’s been really frustrating for me, seeing that it’s been almost four years since this nonsense started.
That’s what I was thinking, I searched back to the first time you mentioned it and it has been so long! Does your cardiologist or Rheumy say much about whether they expect it to improve or it is now just part of your chronic PsA, or is it just a shoulder shrug and keep taking your medication?
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Basically a shoulder shrug. I started a new rheumatologist about a year-and-a-half ago when my old one retired oh, and one of the first things that I told her was that I would not be stopping taking the colchicine and exactly why. She’s fine with it so it’s all good.
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Verdict so far;
Echo looked good but Cardiologist thought I definitely had pericarditis or myocarditis- cardiac MRI and stress test to be done Monday to make sure it is gone (I do feel a lot better, possibly just really unfit now 
). Do need to consider it’s part of either the vasculitis or other autoimmune disease because it happened as part of a flare.
Remicade so far 
. Arthritis appears to have dropped to zero. Skin which was just simmering along is almost totally clear. Also hungry! Finally time to stop eating half a tub of ice cream .
Still have a very unusual painful foot. Last week the pain was in my hand, but as it just goes away at rest and it’s not arthritis so I’m very unclear what I should do about it. Ignore it and hope the foot goes away too? Hmm, I can see my pulse in my ankle, is that normal?
Wow on the remicade - does it usually work that fast? Goodish on the cardiac issues because I like you’re expressing it all in the past tense. As regards the foot - you know you need to get that seen. Pity they can’t just turn the table around on Monday and MRI your foot after they’ve finished with your heart. That would make decent use of MRI machine time. Things are starting to take on a more rational teint Jen - that’s a lot better. 
I suspect it takes longer for the more set-in symptoms, but because each of my skin lesions is like a 2-5 day process from start to finish, it’s not that surprising they would show a reduction in a short time span.
My arthritis was pretty good anyway (why, I do not know, cause my CRP was even high on steroids), so it wasn’t a lot to get it near zero.
And I had only just started getting stomach symptoms while on the last part of my steroid taper, so again it was almost under control.
Yes, I’d love if they could just pop my foot in the machine . Though the pattern of pain is so unusual that for the life of me I can’t imagine what they would image. If I couldn’t see visible swollen patches, I would think it was all in my head, but the same with my hand really. That’s better than wondering about what’s going on with my heart though
You’re making progress at least, both on the cardiac stuff and on the remicade, so that’s all good news. The foot thing. . . My newest thing has been awful tendonitis on the top of my foot. Change of footwear is definitely helping out. That said, I’m wearing crocs, even for work. Not sure how good of a look that really is, and my husband absolutely HATES crocs, but oh well, my feet are feeling better.
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Crocs are my salavation. Work crocs have the best no slip soles ever too and under a pair of trousers who even notices them??? I have them in every colour they do them in except white (too nurse like for me!).
Work crocs? Really?
Work crocs oh I love that! Wait, I usually wear bare feet to work 
Tendinitis on the top of your foot sounds ouch. Does it show up in a specific spot, or is it like a band of pain and stiffness over the top of your foot?
I really don’t think mine is arthritis, or tendinitis associated with it - the pain gets better with rest and worse with use. So it’s at its absolute best in the morning when I wake up (like not there at all, even when I move my foot all around and stretch it), still very mild when I walk on it out of bed, and gets worse the more I use it. And seems to have started aching up my leg now. Very puzzling. I think I might have to go see a physio when I can get in.
There are a ton of tendons in the foot. Mine is also worse with use and better with rest. And if you look up the tendons of the foot you’ll see they do go up into the lower leg. Hopefully your treatment of them oh, ignoring them, works out well for you. Mine have been bad enough that I’ve had to limit my activities somewhat for the moment. They actually also had me considering asking about the possibility of a handicap parking permit oh, the permanent one. I’ve had temporary permits in the past and really only used it when I’ve needed to. But as my problems seem to keep multiplying oh, and my feet have been turning into a bigger and bigger issue over the last few years, I’m definitely thinking about asking for a permanent one.
Oh, better with rest and worse with use for you too - now you have me re-evaluating everything! I thought because I had a similar pain in my hand a week or so ago that went away by itself this would too…
Oh well, it’ll take me at least a week to get into the physio. I’ll make the appointment and can always cancel if it disappears!