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Perrigo 5-ASA Rectal Med

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 9/22/2010 5:15 PM (GMT 0)
Has anyone used this particular medication?  I was just prescribed it by my doctor and wondered if it is any good. 
Posted 9/22/2010 5:48 PM (GMT 0)
I didn't know what this was so I looked it up. Perrigo are the makers of this mesalamine enema. You might find us calling it Rowasa here on the forum. Many of us take a mesalamine enema to help with rectal/sigmoid inflammation with great success.
Posted 9/22/2010 6:01 PM (GMT 0)
Yes, I use that exact type. They can be very effective, in fact my doctor told me they are statistically just as effective as steroid enemas and don't have all the nasty steroid side effects.
Posted 9/22/2010 6:05 PM (GMT 0)
How long does it "generally" take to start seeing the benefits. I feel 100x better than I did before I was started on Colazal, but I hit a wall, which is why I am now taking this as well.
Posted 9/22/2010 6:41 PM (GMT 0)
It all depends on how bad your inflammation is and to what extent. It can take a week or longer before you notice any improvements. Generally the course of rectal meds are anywhere from 4-8 weeks. Sometimes the mesalamine enemas can even be used as a maintenance medication.
Posted 9/22/2010 7:19 PM (GMT 0)
If you are already taking some form of mesalamine (tablets most likely in your case) you should see a faster response. Sometimes for me it takes as little as a day or two to see improvement. Starting from scratch takes a little longer to get results I believe based on what I have read about it.

Also the longer you hold it in the better, best is overnight while sleeping for most people.
Posted 9/22/2010 8:08 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for all the responses. Yeah I am taking it before I go to bed, I used it for the first time last night and I was about to last about 9-10 hours. I am excited to see if this can get me completely out of the flare!
Posted 9/22/2010 8:44 PM (GMT 0)
For me, a good sign was if I had any bleeding that the blood started to darken up and almost look black after using an enema. Then I knew it was working... but of course it seems everybody responds in their own unique way with this disease.
Posted 9/22/2010 8:56 PM (GMT 0)
I have had no blood for about 2 months, I believe the colazal helped clear that up. I'm still have about 3-4 semi solid BMs a day. So I know there is room for improvement.
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