Why is the inflammation also on my face? My eyes are swollen and the whole face is as well

Hi, !

I am sorry you are dealing with inflammation on your face and your eyes, too. Unfortunately, that can occur with RA. If you haven't done so already, please talk to your doctor about what you are experiencing. There are treatment options which may be able to bring you some relief. Here's one contributor's experience with eye issues and RA that I thought you might find helpful -- https://rheumatoidarthritis.net/living/red-eye-inflammation. However, facial swelling is not a typical RA issue, so you may want to make sure something else isn't going on, like an allregic reaction or other condition that may be causing the swelling.

Either way, I hope you get some relief from the swelling very soon!

Best, Erin, Team Member.

Hi . On top of the excellent information from Erin, I want to ask if you are on any corticosteroids, such as prednisone? I ask because they are know to sometimes cause what is referred to a moon face. This article from our contributor Nan goes into more detail: https://rheumatoidarthritis.net/living/moon-face-side-effect. I'm not saying this is what is happening in your case (only a doctor can do the proper diagnostics), but want to share the information. I can also tell you that when my wife, Kelly Mack (a contributor here), flares she experiences some facial inflammation and extra redness. Hoping you can get some answers and relief soon. Best, Richard (Team Member)

Ah yes that does answer the issue. Prednisone. Dr confirmed it yesterday
He said since this is my first flare as a senior I can expect a lot of different and annoying side effects. Yeah so exciting