anyone have experience/knowledge abt remicade for rheumatoid arthritis??

[bobbieinok]

RA is progressing; doctor recommends. I wonder.

[sharp_stick]

1. It worked wonders for me

I took it from November 2000 until March of this year. I still have my cane, it's been collecting dust since January 2001. For me it was a wonder drug, my joint destruction was almost stopped and I was able to live almost pain free. It began to lose effect late last year and I was switched to Humira, which also seems to be working, I should know more about that in a few weeks.

Mind you, I am in the 30% group with dramatic effects from Remicade, most people get a very good response but not quite to the level I experienced.

Feel free to privately message if you'd like to hear any more.

[EST]

2. Quite effective, very expensive, time consuming.

Well worth doing, for those who find it effective.

[WestHoustonDem]

3. I'd try it, but be careful about infections

It worked great for me with Crohn's disease.

[Wonk]

4. My 14 yr old beagle has arthritis. 50mg of glucosamine per meal

or 100mg per day *really* put the spring back in his step. His hip joints don't seem to bother him at all anymore. He went from barely being able to climb steps to jumping up on furniture and liking long walks again.

My mom had recommended it, as she takes 500mg a day for her arthritis per doctor's recommendation (no prescription required), and she said it helps her a lot too.

[MuseRider]

5. Good luck.

Let us know how it goes for you if you do use it. That is my next drug since I have been through all the others.

I stopped my meds the last time I had pneumonia about 3 years ago and *knock on wood* my symptoms have been only mild since then without the meds. I am one of the lucky ones, all my relatives were in wheelchairs and using hand helpers by the time they were my age (52) and I have no obvious joint destruction.

I dread having to start up again, I am sure it will come but for now I seem to be in a long remission and am happy to be there.

[Rosemary2205]

6. Beware the infections.

My sister was on it. It did a good job for the RA but simple things like a cut finger or spider bite was a cause of great worry because of infection. This seemed to be the biggest draw back. After 1 yr of Remicade they managed to "beat it down" enough so that she was able to go back to Arava and Methotrexate together. It's my understanding only about 30-40% of patients experience really good results with Remicade but if one has exhausted all other options it's worth the expense and trouble.

If you have not tried "stacking" meds yet that might be an option. For instance my sister stacking Arava, methotrexate and an NSAID. She has someone in support group stacking Enbrel, methotrexate and low dose prednisone.

Just my 2 cents.

[Avalux]

7. It can be a very effective treatment.

Because it's a steroid, it can impede your immune system and leave you susceptible to infections; probably the most significant side effect. Learn everything you can about the drug and its side effects before making a decision. Good luck!

[bobbieinok]

8. thank you all for your responses

My doctor says the cost is 100% covered by medicare and my medigap insurance.

The infection problem is what bothers me.

I can't help being very angry about having this (diagnosed 2003); as far as we can tell, no one in the family has ever had this. The anger is b/c I had many travel plans for my retirement (so far, the money would cover this); but having traveled in Europe a lot when younger I can't imagine traveling there with such slowed mobility.

[sharp_stick]

9. No one in my family ever had it either

As far as I can tell I'm the only one that's ever had RA and I'm male which makes it even less likely that I should have it.

Don't be discouraged, the treatment options are better now than they were even a year ago. There are a lot of new drugs, including Remicade, that can dramatically increase your mobility. More than 60% of people on one of these drugs report at least a 30% improvement in their joint mobility. Most people that don't respond well to one drug will now respond to one of the others.

Until recently all the "biologics" worked in the same way but some of the newest drugs, like Orencia, Kineret and Rituxan work differently, from the older ones and each other. so even if you don't respond at all to Remicade there are at least 3 others to try.

Infections are an issue with all of these drugs but as long as you're careful and get them treated quickly they can almost always be handled without issue. I've not had a bad infection since I've taken Remicade, maybe I'm a bit more susceptible to colds, but that could all be in my head.

In the interest of full disclosure I work for a large pharma company but not Johnson and Johnson (Remicade) or Abbott (Humira) which are the drugs I've taken for RA. I promise, I have no interest or desire to sell you anything, I'm not in sales either. :-)

Good luck