Time for Cipro/Flagyl again?

Well, I was doing great for 2 months. I had absolutely no symptoms, and my CRP and SED rate were finally normal, which they hadn't been since I got sick. What seemed to help me was a 2 week course of Cipro and Flagyl in addition to the Humira and SCD.

Well, the last few weeks, I've started experiencing symptoms again. It started with inflamed gums, then a lot of frequency with some urgency and a lot of gas. Thankfully, one of my major symptoms, fevers, have not been appearing yet. I don't feel horrible, my energy levels are pretty good, but the gas, urgency and frequency are slowly getting worse.

I have blood work done every month, and my CRP and SED rate are slowly climbing. CRP is 8.4 and SED 21 (I should be at 20).

I know it's not horrible, but I feel like my flare is brewing and just waiting to get worse. I'm thinking about asking to go on another course of Cipro and Flagyl again. What do you think about that? I know they're not a long term solution, but I feel that they were the catalyst to getting me into remission.

Does anyone have experience with using Cipro and Flagyl semi-regularly? I know it's not good to be on antibiotics all the time, and I don't want to have them lose effectiveness. Do you think I should just wait this flare out and see what happens? I feel like my Crohn's must be bacterial related, because I started my initial symptoms after getting on amoxicillin and then the Cipro/Flagyl combo. helped me get back to normal.

Do you think it's a good idea to ask my GI to try that course again? Is C. Diff. a big possibility if I take Cipro/Flagyl regularly?

Hi Gumby,

Thanks for your input. Do you only use Cipro when your symptoms are really bad? I'm not sure what to do, maybe wait it out? It just seems from the past that this is how my flares start and then they gradually get worse and worse until possibly a hospital stay. I'm not sure if I should wait it out or try and do something now.

I know, I should probably just talk to my GI...just curious how you all handle it.

I am wondering if this is not a flare, but really bacterial overgrowth. I have had 2-3 SIBO infections and the treatment is 10 days of Cipro. Just another thought.

Kiwi- That's great that you're in remission now! Do you feel like it was from the Cipro?

Nanners- Thanks for the input. It could be a possibility, though I'm wondering does that cause a rise in CRP and SED rate and/or inflamed gums? I'll do some more research on that.

Southern Lady- SIBO is Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth

Kiwi- thanks for your input. I'm glad it worked for you! :)

Flagyl jump-started my remission about 9 months ago. I have been trying to remain in remission by watching my diet and taking probiotics daily. Probiotics must be taken every day because they do not permanently colonize in your gut. But they are effective blocking out 'bad guy' bacteria from taking hold.

Saccharomyces Boulardii is a probiotic yeast especially effective at blocking out C. Diff from taking hold in your intestine. I recommend taking it along with Flagyl. You should also take a regular probiotic such as VSL3 (if you have health insurance or something cheaper if you don't).

I think it is dangerous to regularly take antibiotics because perhaps someday they may suddenly lose their effectiveness. So I try to go as long as I can without them by maintaining lifestyle changes such as diet and supplements. So far it works very well.

"Thirty-two patients with Crohn's disease in clinical remission were randomly assigned to receive one of the following for 6 months: 1) mesalamine (1 g 3 times per day) or 2) mesalamine (1 g 2 times per day) plus Saccharomyces boulardii (1 g in the morning). Clinical relapse, defined as a Crohn's disease activity index greater than 150 with an increase of 100 points over the baseline value for more than 2 weeks, occurred in 6 of 16 patients (37.5%) receiving mesalamine alone and in 1 of 16 patients (6.25%) receiving combination therapy (p=0.04). "