RA Treatment Questions
Hi, my name is Katie and I am a high school senior doing a final research project on RA treatments and focusing on biologic medications. My Dad does suffer from some form of arthritis (doctors never said which kind) so I'm somewhat familiar with it. I would greatly appreciate if you guys can answer my questions and provide more insight into this condition. If there are any questions or need any more information don't hesitate to ask. Thank you for your help!
1. When were you diagnosed? Were there specific symptoms that made you visit the doctors?
2. What kind of medications do you take? (Nonbiologics, biologics, dosage, etc)
4. Do you prefer pills or injections/infusions?
5.What are your short and long-term goals in fighting RA?
Hi Katie!
1. I was diagnosed in 2016, at age 30, after having symptoms since childhood. My biggest pains were my knee, hip, ankle and toe joints - they'd hurt, swell, and often get red.
2. I'm currently on Remicade (a biologic at 10mg/kg every 5 weeks) and Azathioprine (100mg/day).
3. I prefer pills for ease, but my infusions are what got me into remission.
4. My short term goals is to maintain remission. My long term goal is to raise education and awareness about RA, especially to in younger females who might not be taken seriously upon first (or second, or third) glance.
Thanks!
Amanda (RheumatoidArthritis.net Team Member)Thank you so much! The information is very helpful
Hi,
!
1. I was diagnosed officially at age 16. I visited the doctors starting at age 10 because my knee and shoulder randomly got so swollen and just froze. I couldn’t use the two even though I didn’t hurt myself. As for when I got to around 16 years old, I was unable to turn a door knob because it hurt my wrist so much! Also, I was playing basketball, and I told my mom that it felt like I was jamming my fingers without actually jamming them with a ball.
2. I take a biologic. It is an IL-6 biologic that I take weekly.
3. I prefer injections! I have a weak stomach; therefore, pils have always been tough on me.
4. Short term goals with RA is just to minimize the amount of high pain days I have. I want to be able to control it enough so that I can workout every day. As for long term, I would love to reach remission!Thank you for responding! This is very helpful
