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Getting more scared of too much mesalamine

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 7/8/2010 3:08 PM (GMT 0)
This post kinda has me freaked out

https://www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=38&m=1843699

I am on ALOT of 5asa in my opinion...12 Salofalk oral a day which is 6g and have been on 4g enemas for over four months nightly. I have also been doing 1g suppositories almost every dasy since MAy...tapering those right now..

So thats 11g of 5asa going into my body..even if 50 percent is absorbed that still alot.

I had blood work done in April and things looked ok with my creatine, liver, total blood count etc..at that time I was only taking 8 oral salofalk and no suppositories..

Had more bloodwork done this week and still waiting for the results..

After reading that post I really think I am on too much and now that I am feeling better maybe I need to really try and taper of as much as possible???

sounds like I am overdosing...and I really dont need anything else to worry about.

Posted 7/8/2010 6:05 PM (GMT 0)
Talk to your GI- if you take to heart what all the posts say, of course you 'll freak out! No one on here is qualified to ease your mind, or suggest that you reduce/increase a med. That said, as long as your labs continue to look good, isn't that more telling than any post?
Posted 7/8/2010 6:39 PM (GMT 0)
I guess you are right...but I worry about later on..or things that may be happening slowly that I am unaware of..I worry ALOT in general as you can see lol
Posted 7/8/2010 6:52 PM (GMT 0)
Krissy,
I'm with you on this one. I worry about the side effects of sulfasalazine which my daughter's currently on. Her GI assured us that there was no rational reason to be afraid of ASA meds but then in the next breath mentioned that one of her patients in the past had had one of the severe side effects (death? renal failure? liver failure? I don't know). To them, it's a statistical game and so worth the risk, but it is your life so in my mind you should be worried. Now, having said that, I agree with Eva Lou, no one here is qualified to give medical advice, but what's in the post you mentioned can be found on any website listing the side effects of the meds your on. It's not made up unfortunately. I suppose, though, that there are benefits of being on the ASAs (potential decrease in colon cancer risk being one I've heard here and was mentioned by our daughter's GI). So, it's not all bad. I assume you're coming out of a flare without pred? That in itself is good news and so you'll be reducing the meds your on I guess? Maybe try to focus on that?
Posted 7/8/2010 7:09 PM (GMT 0)
I am not on prednisone right now..I managed to tackle this one without it. Upping my salofalk to 12 per day or 6g really helped..but I dont want to stay on this amount..maybe a couple more months and then I will reduce..
I am just waiting for my doc to call me back on my latest labs...hope they are still ok..I feel ok..
How would I know if I had something though..pain?
Posted 7/8/2010 7:54 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Krissy -
Just a little wave from me here..... I've been on 6.4 grams for 15 years, have also done Canasa and/or Rowasa for stretches over the years, all my bloods have been fine, and my new GI says he's surprised I am being well maintained on a low level of meds for the level of my disease (pancolitis since 92 I think...?)
So, right, I am not at all qualified to tell you how meds will affect you, but I am living evidence that it can be just fine.
Posted 7/8/2010 8:00 PM (GMT 0)
I think personally, that you don't need to be on the 12 oral. Your setback, again, personally....was because of your crisis month of events.I think as you're tapering the enemas, when you're at every second night for maybe a week and doing well, lower the dosage of the oral by one pill. I again, don't think you needed to be on the Canasa....so, you can probably drop the Canasa or hurry up the taper to zilch.


If you do well on the tapered enemas twice a week, you could possibly alternate them with 2g...so you do have room to go.Worry is OK...and the side effects of possibilities can be endless. I don't necessarily believe you need to be on a high dosage forever, but once you're stable, you can consider to lower the oral dosage by one pill every 2 weeks or so.what do you think?q
Posted 7/8/2010 8:11 PM (GMT 0)
I just got a call from my doc..creatine is 61 which is ok..Liver function tests fine..does that mean they tested the liver enzymes?..Iron 43 fine..
Just the HS CRP is elevated at 4.9 once again. She noted that it says levels over 8 are inflammatory conditions...so again..what does 4.9 mean ..she said its high ..i dont get it..

I am not doing an enema tonight..but will be tommorow so every other night..i think for a month i may stay there..then im gonna do three times a week...and then two times a week..and stay there..

the supps i just wanted to finish the box so maybe another few weeks of those every 3rd day is where i am at now..or maybe just stop??
Posted 7/8/2010 8:16 PM (GMT 0)
I think just stop...you're on a high dosage of 5ASA already and I don't think they're really helping.

Save them...you may want to use one here and there...at least you'll have them. Can you keep them in the fridge or a cool dark place?

I'll have to check what my CRP was, but I don't think I get it checked often.

Yes, your liver enzyme tests are fine..same as liver function tests, for which they test the enzymes.

q
Posted 7/8/2010 8:41 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Krissy...this is helpful for the hs-CRP. I've never had it done.


http://www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/hscrp/faq.html



My CRP levels seem constant as <0.7 (range is mg/dl 0 - 1.0)



My creatinine from 2004 seems to have upped a bit, from 52 - 72, but it's lowered again over the past 2 years of being 60/61. (range is measured rmol/L 53 - 97).



q
Posted 7/9/2010 2:05 PM (GMT 0)
Maybe my doc shouldnt be doing hs crp..maybe for me it should just be CRP. I am going to ask her about that...

Posted 7/9/2010 2:34 PM (GMT 0)
the one thing I always keep in mind is that just because something bad happened to one person, doesn't mean that its happening to everyone. If 5ASA's were that bad then it wouldn't be the first line of defense in this disease. I mean Tylenol can really mess up your liver and kidneys, but people take these like candy. I have been on 5ASA for 15 years, and never once had any problems. So not everyone has problems.
Posted 7/9/2010 3:02 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you!
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