Balsalazide side effects

Slindsay1015 said...
Hey everyone so i started balsalizide on monday and ever since i jave had a few side effects. I am bloated, lower abdominal cramps, loss of appetite and alot of gas. Has this happened to any of you and if so did it go away on its own. I am currently on uceris for a flare that was brought on by apriso. I am trying another mesalamine before i have to go on immunomodulators.

I get a lot of side effects from mesalamine overall and pretty awful. They all give me pretty severe abdominal pain. I'm on low dose balsalazide and still have abdominal pain, fatigue, gas some joint pain etc. Your side effects don't sound too bad unless the pain is really intense. It's still safer in my opinion than going on an immunomodulator. You can wait a week or two and see if they lessen.

Slindsay1015 said...
Did your side effects go away eventually?

the headaches were the only thing that went away as I adjusted. Unfortunately, not the other side effects for me. They are dose dependent in my case and higher doses make things worse. However, they do reduce for some people so I would stick with it as long as you are not too miserable (give it 1-2 weeks maybe).

I'm more comfortable (despite side effects) taking mesalamine/balsalaside then steroids or immunosuppresents.

Yes the amitriptyline has helped alot! I had alot of stomach pains and going to the bathroom alot now the pain is gone and i go once a day unless my colitis is flaring. It made me more hingry and alit more which was at first because i lost 30lbs from not eating much.

I am not postive but what my dr said is small doses it can help pain and also slow down your bowels which it has for me.

Many of the things you describe could be side effects of having UC more than from that med. We often have increased gas, cramps, stomach discomfort, and a lessened appetite because we associate food with pain when it comes out..

In your situation, I'd skip your Balsalazide for two consecutive days and see if any of your side effects decrease. If they do then you might have a plausible allergic reaction to one of the components of that medication (either to inactive or active ingredients) call ypur doctor and ask for one of the others mentioned below. Each brand is a bit different and you might tolerate another better. If there's no improvement then it's your UC causing your symptoms, and I'd resume taking your balsalazide.

If you believe you've experienced side effects from Balsalazide and they're unbearable then try a different medication. If they're somewhat tolerable then wait another week to see if they go away. Ask for asacol/lialda/mezavant/apriso/delzicol/mesalamine