Has anyone gotten a sudden case of arthritis....

[pozredbear]

I have been on Truvada and Lexiva for almost 2 years now, and six months after i started them I suddenly had back problems and had an MRI and they found Advanced arthritis and it has now within the last 1 year spread to my fingers and knees and other joints. And all that along with the muscle neuropathy and peripheral neuropathy is just a whole lotta fun. And the arthritis is getting worse. Has anyone else had these symptoms from either of these drugs? please let me know if you have, it would be much appreciated. I have been poz for 14 years now and had aids for 12 of those years. thanks all, bearhugs all around.

[aztecan]

Hey Pozredbear,

I have arthritis in my back (spine) and probably elsewhere. I have never heard of meds causing it though.

I found this:

"Arthritis: Joint pain and stiffness have various causes, from autoimmune reactions to normal wear and tear. Research hasn’t linked arthritis to HIV or its treatment. Commonly used anti-inflammatory drugs don’t appear to interact with HIV meds."

It was in an article published in POZ about HIV and aging.

Wish I could be of more help. I'm there with you.

HUGS,

Mark

[pozredbear]

I have been on Truvada and Lexiva for almost 2 years now, and six months after i started them I suddenly had back problems and had an MRI and they found Advanced arthritis and it has now within the last 1 year spread to my fingers and knees and other joints. And all that along with the muscle neuropathy and peripheral neuropathy is just a whole lotta fun. And the arthritis is getting worse. Has anyone else had these symptoms from either of these drugs? please let me know if you have, it would be much appreciated. I have been poz for 14 years now and had aids for 12 of those years. thanks all, bearhugs all around.

[basil]

This is my first post, just officially joined the forum today. But, I am convinced that my arthritis (back, both wrists, ankles right more than left and sometimes knees must  be caused  HIV itself.  I have been off meds for almost six months with no reduction in the pain and discomfort level.  I just don't know what else to do: tried massages, swimming  and walking when I could, but the pain still persists.  I  estimate  having HIV for about ten years, cd4 1160 and vrl undet.  I must be doing something right  to achieve results like this consistently going higher from   cdr450 and vrl 120000 when I started meds five years ago. Another grave concern I have is fatigue. There are times when I just have to get into bed and I'll sleep  almost the entire day.   At work, I turn the lights off in my office and take a "lunch break". Please any advice would be grateful.

Thanks

B

[ademas]

I've been on bi-monthly Humira injections for 5 months now for the arthritis.

It's helped enormously with the joint pain and inflammation--particularly with the connective tissue swelling at the achilles tendon (which was the worst part for me).  It's also helped enormously with the fatigue.  It's amazing how much more energy you have when your body's not attacking itself at every joint, and fighting inflammation. 

The downside is that Humira (or Enbrel, or any of the biologics--or any medication for arthritis, for that matter) can affect your CD4 count (and %) and leave you more susceptible to infections.  My CD4's and percentage dropped initially, but has rebounded to the mid-600's.  My percentage also dropped at first, but that has also rebounded (to the low-20's).

The other downside is cost and access.  My 3-month perscription is now over $4,200--more than all my HIV meds combined--and some people need to take weekly injections (which, of course, doubles the cost).

I also had to try and fail with methotrexate for nearly 6 months before my insurance would cover the injections.  Fortunately, my medication coverage is good, and I pay only $10 for a 3-month supply.  If I had to pay even 20% out of pocket, I would definitely be sorry-outa-luck.

[pozredbear]

i am not sure about the arthritis not being on meds , what were you on? all i know is since i started on these meds i am on now, i had a sudden onset of it after about 6 months and it continues to get worse. I have been poz for 14 years and had aids for 12 of those years. A warning though, if you ever go on Crixivan watch out, it made me and one of my friends insulin dependant diabetics, when we had no symptoms of diabetes at all. My former meds also raised my cholesterol to 560 and my triglycerides to over 4000 and had to have a quadruple bypass and 6 stents put in. So watch your cholesterol. But with Lipitor and Tricor my choesterol is down to 100 and same for triglycerides. I used to have a viralload of over 2 million and a cd4 of 0.8 but now have a viral load of 20,000 and a cd4 of 200 so holding steady. if you have any questions feel free to ask us, be well, Ron.

[aztecan]

Hey Ron,

I was on Crixivan for 11 years, but I was lucky and only ended up with kidney stones and a buffalo hump - no diabetes.

Sometimes the manner in which different drugs affect people differently still surprises me.

Hang in there.

Hey Basil, welcome to the forums. Have you tried any of those products that contain glucosamine, chondroiten and msn? I have a friend who swears by them. I tried them without much result, but everyone is different and they might be helpful..

HUGS,

Mark

[basil]

Mark & Ron, Thanks. no I havent tried any of those products you mentioned, but I'll go shopping for  them tomorrow. I'd try anything , especially for the fatigue.  I've been on zidivovudine, viramune and lamvudine generic  forms, but good, and they did well for my system. My Doc is thinking about  starting  me on a second regimen, but my argument with him is, if there is no drug resistance, why change. We'll see how it goes however.
Tickles.
Basil

[Rusty]

Yes mine has come on big time in my knee joints over the last two months.  It really cripples me at times and I cannot walk properly. Had xrays which found my knees where fine no obvious arthritis. Been taiking anti imflammatory's for a few weeks which help a bit but not much. It seems to affect me intermittently. My knees look really swollen and puffy around the knee cap and it hurts like hell. I have had nerve conduction study done for the neuropathy side of things but havent had the results yet. I am taking durunavir ritonavir etravirine raltigravir & truvada. Seems to of got worse since I started truvada though 2 months ago.

Rusty

[a2z]

I have been on Truvada and Lexiva for almost 2 years now, and six months after i started them I suddenly had back problems and had an MRI and they found Advanced arthritis and it has now within the last 1 year spread to my fingers and knees and other joints. And all that along with the muscle neuropathy and peripheral neuropathy is just a whole lotta fun. And the arthritis is getting worse. Has anyone else had these symptoms from either of these drugs? please let me know if you have, it would be much appreciated. I have been poz for 14 years now and had aids for 12 of those years. thanks all, bearhugs all around.

Funny you should say this.  I started meds a little more than a month ago, and just before I started meds I started having some calf cramping.  Okay, not entirely unheard of when I was neg.

Then in the last 3 weeks, it moved down to both my feet with no warning.  No tingling, just a constant pain in both feet on the outer side where the bone meets the ankle.  Given I have  a family history of this, I'm suspecting arthritis (or a sudden case of neuropathy) I'm not if its the meds, or just how I'm walking, or just bad luck.  I'm hoping it goes away soon..it makes it hard to drive and I drive 50 miles each workday.

[Miss Philicia]

I had arthiritis (I guess) for about 2 months back in the mid-90's (I was 30) and got a prescription of someting -- then suddenly it disappeared.

[Rural_oz]

I was diagnosed with osteoarthritis in my neck, it caused sharp pains to run down both arms.  (This was before I started on medication but after I became poz, so I dunno about any link there!) I have been taking Glucosamine and Fish Oil tablets (both natural products) for several months now and the pain has gone and the discomfort in my neck has greatly reduced.  I would really recommend giving them a go.

[a2z]

I was diagnosed with osteoarthritis in my neck, it caused sharp pains to run down both arms.  (This was before I started on medication but after I became poz, so I dunno about any link there!) I have been taking Glucosamine and Fish Oil tablets (both natural products) for several months now and the pain has gone and the discomfort in my neck has greatly reduced.  I would really recommend giving them a go.

I actually started this last night and my pain is already much less.

[freewillie99]

I actually started this last night and my pain is already much less.

That would make sense as Fish Oil is a natural anti-inflammatory.  FYI, here's the one I take.  No heavy metals, very high potency (EPA & DHA), great price for such a quality product.  4 months worth for $26. which includes shipping.

http://www.vitacost.com/NSI-Mega-EFA-Omega-3-EPA-DHA-2126-mg-240-Softgels