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hydrocortisone enema question

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 12/30/2012 8:08 PM (GMT 0)
I've been using the hydrocort. enema for 3 weeks. I started to taper every other night with Rowasa. The last 2 times I have been unable to retain it. Gave me cramps and a huge bm when expelling it. Sorry to be so graphic!
I also felt like my stomach was going to explode. However, it has stopped the bleeding and seems to have put me in remission. I am also taking sulfasalazine 3 times a day. I am considering stopping the hydrocort and going to Rowasa every other night.
Has this happened to anyone else? I was having no problems at all the prior 3 weeks.
Posted 12/31/2012 6:22 AM (GMT 0)
Can you give a little more background info? How long have you been flaring? Left sided or pan? What were your symptoms like that caused you to start the steroid enemas?

The thing is Rowasa enemas are vastly safer in most cases for long term use than are the steroid enemas, so it seems having a goal to switch over is good.
Posted 12/31/2012 5:17 PM (GMT 0)
I have proctitis. I was in remission for 20 years, about 5 years with no meds. Then I was bitten by 2 dogs trying to break up a fight and went on Clindamycin. This happened about 3 years ago and have been flaring on and off. The Rowasa helped but it didn't stop the bleeding so I decided to try the cortenema which really helped. Until I couldn't retain it anymore.
Posted 12/31/2012 7:01 PM (GMT 0)
So is it the Hydrocort enema you can't retain? Sorry I was a little confused. I had trouble retaining those too when I had extreme inflammation in the rectum and sigmoid. I found if you just white knuckle it past 5 or 10 minutes, then it gets easier. Stopping the hydrocort enemas too soon will probably make it ineffective and symptoms will just come back.

Hydrocortisone seems to cause an almost immediate reaction with the tissue of the colon, and if you have bad inflammation it makes you just want to give up and pass it out. Hopefully you can find a way to retain it longer. 5 minutes won't help.

There have been times when I did both. Rowasa at night and Hydrocort in the morning.

What about Cortofoam or Hydrocort suppositories? May be easier for you to retain, especially the foam. It burns too but isn't watery and bulky.
Posted 1/2/2013 2:42 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks C_G_K, I was retaining the Hydrocort enema wonderfully for 3 weeks, then started having problems. I went back to to Rowasa, and after 2 days of being off the Hydrocort I saw a little blood again. I'm thinking of doing Rowasa for 2 nights, Hydrocort for one, etc. I'm not flaring badly at all, so I don't know why I am having problems all of a sudden.
Posted 1/2/2013 2:47 AM (GMT 0)
How many times a day are you having bms?

How long were you on the Rowasa nightly before adding the hydrocort enema?

Is the hydrocort a liquid or foam?

I think doing the Rowasa for 2 and the hydrocort for 1 is worth trying.

Have you done the Rowasa nightly and the steroid daily?

q
Posted 1/3/2013 1:34 AM (GMT 0)
Hi quincy, I am only having 1 or 2 bms a day. I was on the Rowasa nightly for a few months. I still had some bleeding though. I was using the hydrocort liquid. The hydrocort stopped the bleeding after a few days and I was doing great until about the 4th week. Then I had problems retaining it so I am back on the Rowasa. I will try the hydrocort again in a few days. It did make me gain about 5 lbs though. That was the only thing I didn't like about it!!
Posted 1/3/2013 5:38 AM (GMT 0)
How about asking the doc to prescribe a lower dosage steroid enema?

How bad were your symptoms when you started to use the Rowasa?

Was the bleeding throughout the stool?

are your stools formed?

q
Posted 1/5/2013 11:39 PM (GMT 0)
My doc supposedly didn't know about steroid enemas. I asked for them and they prescribed the oral steroids which I didn't want to take. I finally got it straightened out. My stools are formed but I was having problems with bleeding. The Rowasa stopped working for the bleeding issue. My 3 weeks on the steroid enema worked wonderfully, until the 4th week. That's when I had a hard time retaining it. I'm back on Rowasa nightly for now and it seems to be working ok. Only a little blood sometimes.
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