Taking an immunosuppressant while sick

Last month I started taking imuran (aka azathioprine , a kind of immunosuppressant) and after about 2-3 weeks on it I still had a nasty flare-up. I then took 40 mg of prednisone for about a week and it fixed me right up, to the point where I currently have almost no colitis symptoms at all (!). Two weeks ago when the flare-up started, I also came down with bronchitis that hasn't fully cleared up yet. I stopped taking the imuran at the time, and haven't gotten back on it since, simply because A) it didn't seem to help against the flare-up anyway, and B) I was (and still am) afraid of taking anything that would suppress my immune system even more while sick.   I asked my doctor last week if it would be a bad idea to go back on the imuran while I still haven't fully recovered from the bronchitis and he said "of course you can go back on it, we even give that to people with pneumonia!". So… technically that means I have my answer… I ought to go back on it and not be paranoid that it'll worsen the bronchitis… but I have to admit I just don't fully trust my doctor's judgment… which is why I'm here…   Does anyone have any experience with taking an immunosuppressant while sick? Am I just being paranoid that it'll mess up my immune system and cause me a relapse with the bronchitis or is that actually possible?  

Prednisone is somewhat of an immunosuppressant as well, just not to the degree that Imuran is.

Hi Lilypad321,

Find a GI that knows what he's doing. You are absolutely correct for trusting your judgement on this and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Most mainstream GIs are charlatans that go "by the book" when it comes to knowledge of the medications they prescribe.

By virtue of their mechanism, Immunosuppresants put people at high risk for infections, and should only be used for certain situations. Are you not on 5ASA drugs for maintenance? Prednisone may induce remission, but you need to be taking something else for maintenance. Imuran should only be indicated for stubborn cases of pancolitis, which in that case it may be worth taking until it clears.

Post Edited (StealthGuardian) : 11/9/2013 12:25:34 PM (GMT-7)

Imuran can take three months to really work, and in my case requires very carefully tweaked dosage levels. You should not have stopped taking it. It is not unusual to use something else, like Prednisone, to bridge the gap until the drug has time to work.