Also my neurologist stated that the side effects from repeated use of steroids (solumedrol) could cause bone density loss which of course could lead to hip replacements, etc. He recommends taking solumedrol as little as possible. He will prescribe it for an acute MS attack. Snowdog's advice is good.
Good luck,
Jim
snowdog said...
Steriods.....
I have had a few of these treatments. The only after effect for me was the awful, rusty metal taste in my mouth. Nothing would take it away and everything you eat or drink tastes the same for days.
However, these are steriods. You want to be very aware of the pros and cons and the possibility of
of dangerous problems. Ask questions, lots of them. Make sure the medical people know about any
problems you have besides MS. (Kidney, liver, hypertension etc) and exactly what other meds you are taking.
The main use of this kind of treatment is for the outset of Optical Neuritis and Relapses. It, for some people,
can be almost instant and that is its magic. Stopping a major Relapse or ON in its tracks, saves weeks or months of discomort. However, some people have said he didn't work for them, others not for weeks, and still others have had complications.
In my case I noticed a major improvement the next day. In fact it worked so well, that I have an open prescription of Predisone(same steriod) in a pill form that I carry when traveling. It does not work anywhere near has fast, but has helped (as directed by my doctor) when a IV was not available.
Now I have SPMS and probably won't have another IV unless I have another attack of ON. Yet I still have the prescription...just in case. (I have lost the vision in my left eye to the last ON attack, because they didn't give me the IV until over a month after the ON attack and if I have another ON attack, at least I can
try to do something quickly)
But this is just me. And again.....steroids can be very dangerous. It's great that they can reduce the inflamation and symptoms in an MS relapse......but they can do some pretty bad damage to other parts of your body.
Be knowledgeable, don't be scarred (it is just an IV and really doesn't hurt much. If you have one IV or had
blood drawn and didn't pass out, your will be just fine) and understand the cons as well as the pros of this treatment.
I hope it works well for you.
Just my opinion, Just my thoughts.............
Dog