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Posted 11/2/2007 8:46 PM (GMT 0)
Does anyone know the side effects of Entocort?  Is it somewhat like prednisone?
Posted 11/2/2007 10:05 PM (GMT 0)
It is steroid like Prednisone, except it is mostly absorbed in the intestine, so not as much of the steroid goes into your blood stream. Therefore the side effects from the steroids are reduced. I was on 9 mg of Entocort for awhile and my moon face from prednisone went away. For me though, it also was not as effective as Prednisone and I eventually had to go back to it. Many people however have had great success with Entocort and if it works for you would, should be preferrable to taking Prednisone. 
Posted 11/2/2007 10:28 PM (GMT 0)
I also took entocourt for a few months, felt no side effects, and no real improvement either. But many do well on it, I wish you great success.
Kristine
Posted 11/2/2007 11:03 PM (GMT 0)
Could I jump in here and ask if it gives people the terrible heartburn and gerd associated with pred.I think I will do some searching on it. Bible I find the reflux at night the worst with the pred. hoping the Entocort will be eassier on you. lol gail
Posted 11/3/2007 1:49 AM (GMT 0)
Bible, I have been on Entocorte for about 17 months and I have not had any problems with it. I cannot tolerate steroids, hwever, 95% of the Entocorte is released in the small bowel, which only leaves with 5% roughly to deal with. I went off of it for about 4 days, went right back on it. Susie
Posted 11/4/2007 4:54 AM (GMT 0)

My daughter has been in remission on Entocort for more than 15 months. Just one pill daily since May. No side effects.

At 2 pills, her blood sugar did rise (up to 100) after being at that dose for more than four months, but it went back to normal (83) a month after she dropped down to one pill.

Posted 11/4/2007 1:49 PM (GMT 0)
Watch out for the mood swings, or should I say "potential" mood swings, that's all I've got to say about Entocort...otherwise it works great.
Posted 11/4/2007 3:58 PM (GMT 0)
Like mcleaver, I had some pretty awful mood swings. I started out on 3 pills a day and now I'm down to 2 and they have gotten better. When I first started taking them, like in the first week, I got really, really bad leg cramps and swelling of my feet and ankles. It was so bad I could barely walk. I also had ertheyma nodosum (sp?) at that time too so that could have been causing some of the pain too. It eventually went away, but not before I made a visit to the doctor to check for a blood clot. Other than that Entocort has really helped me. It was definitely worth the side effects.
Posted 11/6/2007 7:42 PM (GMT 0)
I was on entocort for over year. Taking it everyday. Apparently I was that very low %, that eventually had horrible side affects from. My Crohn's was great while taking it, but the rest of me fell apart! If it works, then great. But for myself, I could no longer tolerate it. I still pay the price for taking it as long as I did. I am still trying to get myself back to "normal!" I have been off of it 7-8 mos now, and am trying to cope...Crohn's wise and everything else too. I ended up with all kinds of problems while taking it. I developed jaw pain, was sick, got a staph infection, high blood sugar, anxiety...etc! I had a really tough 2006, let me tell ya...and I feel like 2007 all I have been trying to do is get back to where I was....if that's possible.
Your body goes through alot of stress just having a disease, but to add a bunch of other things...it put me into over load!! I know a lot of people have had success on Entocort...and had I not had all my problems I would still be on it too, it really did help with my CD....it was a matter of which is the lesser of the two evils....and I chose to keep my sanity!!!! I am now having some problems....a possible flare up....and who knows what my next step will be!! GOOD LUCK to you!
Posted 11/6/2007 7:51 PM (GMT 0)
yourmajesty, sorry it has been rough, and hope you are on the mend. it's hard to tell which problems were caused by Entocort (high blood sugar does sound suspicious for Entocort, but am not sure about the rest).

i noticed your reference to duodenal ulcers - just a heads up: the duodenum is where iron is absorbed. any problems or scarring in that area could cause difficulties in absorption, short term and/or long term.

often, before people develop full-blown anemia, they have been iron deficient for a very long time. low iron reserves would also make you very susceptible to infection, both bacterial and viral.

 

Posted 11/6/2007 8:21 PM (GMT 0)
thanks for the input njmom! The only reason i pin point my issues to the entocort, is because before taking that med, I had never had any kinds of issues, even with having the two bleed outs from the ulcers. I do have a lot of scar tissue in my duodenum, that was relevant at my last endoscopy!
I am sure that I have always been mildly anemic, but when i kept feeling horrible and getting headaches I knew something else was wrong. I never fully recovered from my bleed out in 2005. My body could not catch up to where it needed to be. I do think I have a big problem with absorption. I never have a HGB that is normal, I am always consistantly low. But to be above a 9 is good for me, since my last iron iv treatments, which was a year ago, I have managed to maintain an 11, which is still low, but I'll take it!
Another thing, I have to consider, for 10yrs since my surgery(and diagnosis) I was not on any medication for my Crohns, NONE! I think my body was in some shock, to the different medications they were trying to get some control over my disease!
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