I am having pain and swelling in the right achilles tendon. I went to an orthopedic Dr. and he perscribed a walking air cast. Even wearing proper foot wear on the other foot, my body was thrown off and I got sorer knees, hips, and back. The pediatrist says I need surgery, yet the RA is so actve I wouldn't even consider surgery at this time. I also had the tendon on the top of my right arm become swollen and extremely painful. The ortho injected it with cortisone and it was great relief. My rheumatologist says the achilles problem is from the RA. Any suggestions?
Q: Has anyone had any achilles tendon inflamation/and pain, and if so how was it treated?
Answers (2)
10/23/09 2:35pm
Many people don't know that RA can affect your tendons, ligaments and muscles, as well as your joints and that often, if you have RA and your tendons are tight, creaky and inflamed, it's the RA. Steroid shots can be a great relief, but are temporary and you shouldn't get them more than about every three months or so. For me, getting a lot of tendon pain is usually read a reminder to increase my RA meds. What DMARDs are you on ( DMARDs are disease modifying antirheumatic drugs such as methotrexate, Arava, Paquinil and Biologics)? Talk to your doctor about increasing the dose, supplementing with another DMARDs or oral prednisone or perhaps switching to something else altogether. In my experience, once my RA is better suppressed again, the tendon pain subsides, as well. It may not subside completely, but it simmers down to the point where it can be managed with applications of icepacks (or heat - although inflammation tends to be treated with ice, for some people, it's just too cold and heat works better), occasional steroid shots and you may want to try a muscle relaxant overnight, as well - sometimes, getting everything nice and relaxed overnight allows you to start over in the morning.
7/13/11 8:26pm
about the Enbrel. I actually had to switch to Humira because Enbrel gave me really bad muscle spasms and muscle pain. Joint and muscle pain can be a pretty simple side effect of the Biologics, however, I have fibromyalgia, as well and Enbrel wildly aggravated it. You might be developing some of the same side effects. I'm now on Humira and it has way less side effects for me. I know thinking about switching, especially after so long on one medication, can be really scary, but as you know, people react differently to medications. Some do really well on a drug while others have every side effect under the sun. For me, Enbrel and Humira have many of the same types of side effects, but my experience is that they are much milder and more temporary with Humira. It might be worth a shot for you...
do you take it methotrexate in tablet form or injectable? If you take the tablets, talk to your doctor about trying injectable methotrexate, as it is much easier on the stomach (plus, is more easily absorbed in the body). it's pretty normal for those of us who've taking RA meds for a long time to have a stomach problem - basically any RA drug out there tends to be hell on the gastrointestinal system. I take Pantoloc every day and don't know what I'd do without it. You may want to check out my post on managing side effects for more tips on keeping your stomach happier.
9/ 3/11 8:53pm
HI I take the mtx in injectable, .07 or equals 6 pills. I had to stop for a week cause mystomach was so bad and am starting again tonight. i just switched from enbrel to remicade, i am not too thrilled but I had MRI of my feet and it showed very active disease I guess is what he said. I asked about humira but he sadi it takes up to three months to work.
My first in fulsion made my interstitial cysitis flare up big time! very discouarging. My achilles seem worse and then sting now when I walk, I have orthodics but do not know what to do. I was told to wait nd see how the remicade works I have my seocnd dose in a week and half. I have to pre medicate with prednisone since it caused me to have itching and low blood pressure.
I am very very discouarged, I just want my life back, i want to exercise and to just be able to at least walk! I know I sould like a baby but to have RA is bad, but to have RA, fibro, Ic, low thryoid, and now the achilles it is more than I can bare!
Thanks for listening!!
9/ 5/11 2:07pm
you don't sound like a baby. RA is a serious disease that can steal your life and complaining about it does not make your whiner. It is a very legitimate reason to complain. Besides, I believe that we cope better when we share our feelings of sadness and frustration, so keep talking!
I don't know much about interstitial cystitis, but... every time I get my shot of Humira, I feel I have a bladder infection for couple of days. I've learned to ignore the symptoms - they are an annoyance compared to the benefits of Humira. I have spoken to my naturopathic doctor who recommended I take cranberry capsules to help with bladder health and she also had a couple of recommendations for homeopathic remedies that may deal with the pain and burning. I highly recommend that you find a doctor of naturopathy - they can be wonderful in terms of helping you improve your general health and to mitigate side effects.
do you get the infusion of Remicade every six weeks? Did your doctor mention anything about when you would expect to see a result? Have you seen any result on your RA? If the second infusion doesn't start the process of getting better, maybe you should have a chat with your rheumatologists about trying Humira after all.
hang in there.
9/ 5/11 9:28pm
Thank you for your reply. I have only had one infusion, I will have the next one next wednesday. Then I see the dr 5 weeks later and will have my third, but i have already deicded if I have the same pain and problems the second time and feel no different I will talk to him about the humira, he was not wanting me to cause he said it takes up to 3 months for it to work, but enbrel worked quicker than that. I too k my mtx last nigth the second dose I spilt it, and my joints hurt way more today, but that alwasy happes the day after mtx. The enbrel gave me so muhc enenrgy but not this, so we will see. It says that remicade and humira have about the same side effects and a lot of people complain of bladder infections with both and also weight gain from teh humira have you noticed that?
I know taht it stings way more than the enbrel but I can handle that, do you take mtx wtih it? i want to be off that more tahn anything but I do know that it helps but my body just doesn't like it at all.
Thanks again for the replies.
Becky
9/ 6/11 11:00am
I have had some bladder infections, but most of the time, I have more the symptoms of the bladder infection without actually having one. Humira stings when it's injected - the best explanation I found is that one of the preservatives in it is citric acid. It burns going in and it burns going out. I talked to my naturopath about it and she gave me some cranberry capsules for bladder health and a couple of homeopathic remedies for symptomatic relief. In terms of the weight gain, there is some, but it's more a bloating thing. I've noticed the times where I've had to cut back on Humira, I lose as size. When I increase Humira again, it comes back. However, it works so well for me that I don't care. Besides, when I was on Enbrel, I lost a lot of weight to the point of not having any body fat at all, so not looking all fragile and anorexic is very enjoyable!
I don't take any other medication to suppress my RA (like methotrexate) - in general, Humira does the trick for me. Every now and again, I do get a steroid shot to deal with a repetitive strain injury in my shoulder and it does tend to take Humira from working well into working really, really well.
9/ 5/11 7:31pm
I have had BOTH achilles tendons operated on. it all started with VERY tender little lumps on the backs of them. then they became so tight and sore I could hardley walk at all. When your up and moving, once you get them stretched out your ok (so-so) then once you sit and then try to get up again they are so painful and stiff it could bring tears to your eyes. you cant even walk normal. Doctor put me in boot and even tried physical therapy. when those didnt work, he suggested the surgery and from waiting so long to have it there wer so many fibrous tissue tears it cretaed an infection inside the tendon. he said it was so inflammed that when he made the incision it actually OOZED with infection. I had ONE foot done at a time and I was out of work for 13 months but it was Sooooo worth it.
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By suezcoe— Last Modified: 09/06/11, First Published: 10/22/09
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I have been asking my RA doc for over a year if my tight achillies and my muscle leg aches could be the Ra, he keeps saying No I have been taking enbrel and mtx for over 9 years, this past year i started feeling stiffer and the balls of my feet hurt, and then came the achillies and super supre tight calves. He now says I can try either hurmia or remicade, which after reading about them scrare me to death, they seem way more side effect liek than the enbrel is. I do not notice much from the enbrel as far as side effects, the mtx I slpit and it still kills my stomach and has caused gastritis so I am trying some prilosec but don't think i can take it and just started cholestrol meds which don't help either. You can't increase the enbrel and I am up to 17mg of the mtx and that is about all I can handle. any advice?