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mesalamine and the kidneys

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 3/22/2011 12:35 AM (GMT 0)
I am taking loads of Asacol and Canasa and doing very well. But I was just reading where some people wrote that mesalamine had wrecked their kidneys. Have you guys heard much about the potential for mesalamine to damage the kidneys? Anyone had it happen? Does your doctor regularly check your kidney function?
Posted 3/22/2011 2:08 AM (GMT 0)
I have read about it on a site where people rate medications. I can't remember the name of the site but I haven't seen any members here post about kidney troubles related to Asacol or other mesalamines. Not sure why so many people on that other site post that as a side effect. I don't think Canasa has an effect on the kidneys, i think it is topical. There are some members here taking 4800mg oral a day and they seem to be doing well. I've been on high doses too, I still am and I take 6mp too. Wish I could stop some of these drugs. hopefully someday! I had my kidneys checked recently and there was nothing abnormal. Do you know if you have to be on it a long time to have problems?
Posted 3/22/2011 3:45 AM (GMT 0)
I just did another 3 pages of lab work thru directlabs. My platelet count continues to improve down to 285 from a stroke high of 688.

Anemia is banished, high iron, high RBC. Running around the lake is no longer 'hard'. Liver metrics great. C-Reactive very low as is my PSA result.

However the kidneys worsened from a month ago. Going back I see they have all, that is BUN, UREA, Creatinine been this high at some point in my past. But I stopped consuming creatine, stopped eating lots of meat and stopped lifting weights and did not eat for 12 hours. I was rather expecting the Creatinine of 1.6 to go back down under the line as it did years ago. Instead it is still at 1.6 and the other two surged ahead so whatever did this counteracted the steps I took on the creatinine so it remained the same.

With the kidney numbers I am trying to justify taking sulfasalazine but it is getting hard.


Also I just found a letter from my doctor that said my 2006 creatinine and BUN levels were elevated from asacol.

Post Edited (aguywithuc) : 3/21/2011 11:04:42 PM (GMT-6)

Posted 3/22/2011 5:54 AM (GMT 0)
yes, there have been a few on here whose kidney function tests were very high just after starting the 5ASA.

I've been on 5ASA for over 22 years....creatinine is checked twice a year...all is OK.

q
Posted 3/22/2011 1:31 PM (GMT 0)
On my follow-up visit I guess I'd better ask for my kidneys to be checked. Does the gastroenterologist usually do this, or refer you to someone else?
Posted 3/22/2011 1:37 PM (GMT 0)
My gastro office does the lab work. And medication impacts kidneys and liver.
Posted 3/22/2011 1:57 PM (GMT 0)
On any prospect for mesalasine here in romania it's written that liver and kidneys tests are to be tested every 3 months during treatment.

From what i've read mesalasine is well tollerated compared to sulfasalasine, in wich liver & kidneys are more affected. As far as i know kidney problems are very rare and i've read some studies that followed UC patients that took mesalasine for a long time. Usualy the problems appear in the first stages of the treatment.

just my 2 cents.
Posted 3/22/2011 4:00 PM (GMT 0)
It is not clear that mesalmine drugs cause kidney disease just that kidney is more commonly reported in people taking the medication than in the general population. It is still rare. It could be that UC causes kidney disease in some people, the drugs aggravate existing disease, or some people have a rare intolerance to the drug. I saw one study where untreated UC patients had higher rates of kidney disease than those on 5ASAs. This might mean that UC related inflammation was damaging the kidneys and 5ASAs prevented that

Very little mesalimine is absorbed into the system and it is not a dangerous drug to start with.It is much safer in testing than many over the counter drugs live NSAIDs. The more ulcers you have and the higher concentration of the drug against the ulcers the more that gets into the system. Rectal meds can have the highest absorption for obvious reasons.

Some of the drugs recommend testing in their labeling and some don't. I get free yearly screening tests including CMP14 and CBC through my insurance so I get them. They look for very low blood protein then do urine tests looking for protein leakage. There are also rare live problems. Sulfasalzine has additional rare white and red blood cell issues that are picked up by the CBC. These show up in the first few months.

I really wouldn't worry about it and the both tests are less than $50 at an independent lab. Ask your primary care doctor if your GI doesn't order them. Oh and don't freak out if a few numbers are off. If you have kidney or liver disease there will be major deviations. Been there done that.
Posted 3/22/2011 9:18 PM (GMT 0)

AZYooper said...
It is not clear that mesalmine drugs cause kidney disease just that kidney is more commonly reported in people taking the medication than in the general population.

What does 'just that kidney is more commonly reported' mean ? Kidney disease ? Kidney elevated results ? That people on meds are getting tested more often and reporting numbers low,med,high more actively ?

I am about 8 months into my switch from mesalamine to sulfasalazine and everything is the best ever except for kidney ( bun, creatinine, Urea ) so given that I do bloodwork every 2 months I noticed this spike which is hard to blame sulfasalazine for but right now it is my key suspect. Next one is on the insurance so I will do this again in just a few weeks after no meat no weightlifthing for several days and a solid 24 hour fast with plenty of hydration. If that is still high across the kidney board I am going to switch back to asacol and see if it changes in 3 months.
Posted 3/25/2011 2:09 AM (GMT 0)
Yes, my gastro orders a complete urinalysis twice yearly & also does bloods. You can read Beth75's posts about minimal change disorder, which her nephrologist thinks she got from heavy dosing of 5-ASA meds for UC. / Old Hat (30 yrs with left-sided UC; presently in remission taking brandname Colazal)
Posted 3/25/2011 2:26 AM (GMT 0)
I've been having some slight pain during urination as well as dark urine for quite some time. I thought it was an STD, actually and I've been meaning to get it checked for awhile. Unfortunately most hospitals won't check for STDs.

I'll have to ask my doctor when I see him next to check my kidneys.

Posted 3/25/2011 4:16 AM (GMT 0)

Wavefunction said...
I've been having some slight pain during urination as well as dark urine for quite some time. I thought it was an STD, actually and I've been meaning to get it checked for awhile. Unfortunately most hospitals won't check for STDs.


I'll have to ask my doctor when I see him next to check my kidneys.

Are you in the right forum ?
Posted 3/25/2011 1:22 PM (GMT 0)

aguywithuc said...

Wavefunction said...
I've been having some slight pain during urination as well as dark urine for quite some time. I thought it was an STD, actually and I've been meaning to get it checked for awhile. Unfortunately most hospitals won't check for STDs.


I'll have to ask my doctor when I see him next to check my kidneys.

Are you in the right forum ?

Yes. I'm on Asacol and I have dark urine in the mornings plus some slight pain. Wasn't sure if it was Asacol related/UC related/something else.
Posted 3/25/2011 3:59 PM (GMT 0)
Call your doctors office. They could order the tests for STDs. Independent labs all do them. Liver/kidney function and a urine test are inexpensive.

If you want a confidential STD test, you can use an online lab service but it costs a little more. I have used this one when between doctors. gads.prepaidlab.com/

The prices are listed
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