HepC & FM

Hi all

I've read on other Forums about post-treaters have been suffering from Interferon-induced Fibromyalgia as "Post-Tx Syndrome".

How many of us here have FM diagnosed prior tx?

I am still awaiting for tx and am already suffering from FM, Tendinitis and PMS..gosh.

 

Hi, dor, and welcome to the forum. We have some members with hep C who also have fibromyalgia. However, they seem to have had FM prior to diagnosis of HCV. Of course, since most heppers have had HCV for decades before being tested for it (no test prior to '93), it's difficult to say which came first, the HCV or fibro. I do know that there is nobody on the forum who was diagnosed with fibro after treatment for C, as far as I can recall.

Hugs,
Connie

Hi

As the symptoms of HepC includes muscle aches, are these pain as intense as Fibro pain or doubled?

Im preparing for HepC tx and waiting for blood tests results for Lupus to be ruled out, im just hoping and wishing that my pain will be gone after completing tx.   Need some consolation.

Wondering if there are meds, besides Tylenol to prevent further aggravation of the muscle aches that i can take during tx, or will i have to be prepared for the worse pain and grit my teeth beneath the blankets?

Any input is much appreciated.  Thanks in advance.

 Hi Dor. Sorry about your probs. I can't tell you what can be done for you but I can tell you what my Dr.s have done for me. I have been rx Lortab for my pain. It's actually hydroco/apap 10-500mg. Can't tell you what to compare them to because it's the 1rst pain rx that doesnt make me sick. BTW it's acetiminophene free lortab, it doesnt get all the pain but it's better than nothing!  I have lots of muscle aches, osteo arth,collapsed anckles/arches.  This is the best site and moderators on the web!!!!

Connie sorry to hear about your leg! Its good that atleast theyr'e options to take for pain! My Rx doesn't help as much as it used to tho. Talking to orthopedic surgeon next month. I have bad luck with the stronger meds. Thanks for the correction! I always ask my Dr. anytime I get prescribed a new Rx if it is liver friendly. I don't want to take any steps backwards! BTW you can call me Jimmy.

Thanks Connie and Jimmy

I think some with advanced liver disease may have muscle aches, correct me if im wrong.  Even ive been telling my Gastro doc during the monthly visits about my pain, he won't prescribe any meds stronger than the Tylenol which can be bought OTC.  Living with this pain with no relief is agony and depressing.  The Rheumy i just saw last week also said she can't give other meds other than muscle relaxers which doesn't help much.  A friend with Crohn's gave me her share of Ultracet (325mg Paracetamol & 37.5 mg Tramadol) and taking double dose helps me function better for 8 hours.  But its defintely not advisable to be on such regularly, i supposed...

Still wondering what i should do to deal with the pain now and ever...

Hi Connie

I woke up this morning with the usual intense aches and fatigue.  Had breakfast and took my Amlopidine and Diclofenac.  After an hour still no pain relief and so took 2 Ultracet (Tramadol + Acetaminophen).  After about an hour, all the pain is reduced by 80%!

Do you think this new cocktail is advisable to take everyday and through tx?

Thanks Connie and apologise for my late reply.

Just an update.  Went to the Rheumy yesterday, all test results are negative for auto-immune and therefore, no diagnosis for my muscle aches.  She used her stethoscope to listen to my back muscles and gently pressed on my lower back, made me bend low to almost touch the feet and checked my back.  She did not pressed on the tender points.  The outcome is no pain or inflammation.  However, i feel the deep ache inside my back muscles which couldn't explain or describe to make her understand.  Requested for a referral to Pain Clinic but she said no cos i haven't even started on pain meds yet.

So she prescribed Diclofenac, Suniton (Acetaminophen + Orphenadrine) for pain and Amlopidine for my "Raynaud's" hands.

Went to the gastro also and got my pre-tx blood tests results all came out negative.  Took HBV test and scheduled to start tx 2 weeks later at his office.  Wondering, no HCV RNA/viral load baseline test taken? ive missed and forgot to ask him.

My concern is still... the lingering pain now and ever.

Thanks for listening.

Thanks Connie

Yes, baseline viral load must be taken before starting HepC tx, after first or second week, 4th, 8th, 12th, etc (can't remember the exact frequemcy) to monitor the logs drop.

Doc probably will order when i see him or i'll question him then.

Hi

Im 2 weeks into tx experiencing the common side effects like nausea, fever on the following day after the shot. Muscle aches gettin more intense but still tolerable.  the worse is the short term memory loss, dehydration when i always feel water is never enough and gotta be holding a water bottle all the time.

Eyes and skin are gettin drier each passin day.  Sweating and Temperature risin and fallin as usual prior tx.  Fatigue is same too as prior tx. 

As my first week's blood results shows a steep drop (its been droppin since 2 months ago),  doc said its normal reaction to tx but wants to monitor me every week for at least a month.  Does this means that im facing some risk?

 

dor, sorry for how bad you are feeling. during my Tx I drank 1/2 my weight in ounces of water daily...this doesn't include juice, tea ect. when I lapsed on the water is when I felt the worse. I took tramadol immediatly following my shot and went to bed to sleep through the worst Sx. The next day I just took it easy and took 1/2 vicodene in the am and sometimes the other 1/2 later on if I needed it. The rest of the week I was able to deal with the Sx but an occasional aleve worked well enough along with gentle stretching & short (slow) walking. I fixed up a nice shady spot on my patio and just mostly watched my flowers grow and the world go by.

I was experiencing muscle weakness and calf pain before Tx and after the very first shot that is where I felt it most; heavyness, muscle weakness, pain, spasms, twitchiness...I had what they called large muscle necrosis over my entire body (mostly my legs) and the pain was unbearable untill I enrolled in yoga classes. I started out in a chair and after 3 weeks moved to the regular class. I took me a couple months to be able to do the standing postures without having to sit down in the middle of it. In november I took an 8-week mindfulness based stress reduction (MBSR) course. I learned alot about breathing through the pain and stress of chronic illness...things I carry on with and have helped me get through some pretty tough times.

Things are still tough, I am now grappeling with a fibro Dx...maybe I had it before, maybe not but it is what it is and I am still UD and that is, after all the prize we all seek.

Find one small thing today that makes you smile:)

Donna