Things that make you go ???? - RA Link to MS

[Lulu54]

This statement  in last nights teleconference caught me totally by surprise-

the caller asked about his dx- He was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis about 10 years ago.  In the past year he was dx'd with MS.  He wanted to know if there was a connection.

without hesitation, last night's expert said there is definitely a connection.  People who are on agressive therapy for RA with the serious drugs of Enberel and Remicaid stand a very strong chance of developing MS because of the effects of these injections.

she also said, when dx'd with MS the RA drugs must be stopped.

I have never heard this thought before and know it is worth sharing.

best,
Lulu

[Sumanadevii]

I will be watching the board.  Thank you so much for all you share with us.  Your post made me sit up and take notice too.  I know many of us are now concerned about relatives close to us.  My mother was dx with RA years before her death.  She was hardly able to walk.  To this day, I do think she had MS which went undxed.  She died in the late 70's.  I think it was hard to get a dx back then.  I know she suffered horrible fatigue..which of course was treated with Valium back then.  Wasn't just about anything a woman suffered from?

Hugs to you, Lulu for your kindness.

[madmelissa]

This is a great discussion. My mom was diagnosed with RA in the last year. She is on methotrexate though, not Embrel or Remicade.

Wobbly, your ID twin's RA playing a factor in getting your diagnosis is really interesting to me. I am wondering if my mom's RA might help in getting me diagnosed when I see my new neuro.

I find this whole topic fascinating. That might just be the latent researcher coming out it me!

Melissa

[Wobbly]

Hi there, I just wanted to add to this post..

I'm an Identical Twin, I have been dx with MS a few years ago, one of the reasons I got my dx after many years of searching was that I told the Neuro that my Id Twin has RA.  He asked if she was on meds for it.  I said yes, not sure which kind.

he said it's important that I let him know this. Not the meds, just that she has RA.  There is a connection I guess.  He asked if she has MS, I said No.   But that was a big part in getting my Dx.

just for you info... Lulu can you get more info on this one too..thanks
you are full of good info..
take care
wobbly

[shoshin]

This seems to be the abstract of the initial article from 2001:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11762947

Another link:

http://www.mult-sclerosis.org/news/Jan2002/EvenMoreOnArthritisDrugsAndMS.html

I'm not sure any of it is saying that these RA drugs cause MS so much as that they can (possibly rarely, but I'm not seeing the follow up research) cause demyelination like that seen in MS or at least symptoms suggestive of demyelination, which seems to reverse or mostly reverse when people are taken off these drugs.

Because of this if you have MS, the recommendation is that you shouldn't take these drugs since they can potentially exacerbate the problems of demyelination.

sho

[Lulu54]

As I said, this comment made me stop cold in my tracks and really pay attention.  She said there was a direct connection between the two.  My mother has taken Enbrel for a number or years and I know many people on remicaid.  This is an answer I want explained, too.

The talk is on June 9 - I will definitely be asking this question for further explanation.  Stay tuned......

[Sumanadevii]

Lulu, please if you have time to gather more information.  I am worried sick as my sister (you would swear we were twins) takes Remicaid for arthritis.  I did a search and come up with little.  She has been on it for about four years.  She is raising my nieces.  She sure doesn't need MS on top of the arthritis.....

I would appreciate any more information you can find to share.

[Sumanadevii]

Could it just be that there was Rheumatoid Arthritis present...which isn't so unusual...and the monsterous MS just came along?  and it is not the medication at all?  Hell, years before I found out exactly the cause of my back pain doctors were blaming it on Rheumatoid Arthritis.  I knew it wasn't ....and never took the treatments for it.  

[Deb61]

It's funny how I messed up the last line in my post, LOL

I meant to say:
I wish I WAS smart enough to have become a medical research doctor . . .

:)

[Deb61]

I've heard of drug-induced lupus . . . I wonder if MS is kind of like lupus in that it is an auoimmune disease and can be induced by certain drugs.  It's also interesting that lupus attacks can be spurred on by sunlight and with MS possibly the opposite--the lack of.

I wish I smart enough to have become a medical research doctor--I find this kind of thing fascinating!

Deb

[beema36]

Thank u Lu.  That will be helpful.
I was,wondering. Did she say if a med caused the ms does the ms go away once that med is withdrawn?
Beema

[iambus]

Do you think there could be other medications that could cause MS?  That is kind of scary that those meds can cause MS!

[Lulu54]

FWIW - the speaker was Gwen Johnson, and she is the MS RN for Dr. Maria Melanson at the Waddell Center at the University of Cincinnati.  I'm giving you that info, Beema, in case you want to pass that on to your doctor as well.  

Dr. Melanson is giving a talk on June 9 that I am going to and I will definitelly be asking that question there and request a further explanation.  

The answer truly startled me - it made me sit up and start scribbling notes.  Unfortunately she didn't expand her answer very much.  But she did say they have a number of patients who started with just RA and acquired MS too.

[figuerpa]

Very intersesting information Lu thanks for sharing. Definately something to keep in mind.

Paula

[Momzilla]

Wow. I've never heard of a medication combination causing an autoimmune disease before. Maybe I have, but not like that....Bizzare.. I have so many friends with RA.

Thanks for sharing.

Zil*

[beema36]

This us interesting! My rheumatologist tells me its perfectly fine to take those drugs with ms. For my own reasons I don't agree with him. I am passing this information on to him. Thanks.
Beema