Psoriatic Arthritis Flares

When I was diagnosed with PsA in late 2020 I had about 10 months when I had recurrent bouts of immediate extreme joint pain in multiple joints simultaneously whilst the medics were sorting out my medication. I would certainly describe these episodes as flares. I was put on biologics at the end of July 2021 and since the end of September 2021 I've not experienced anything like the same levels of pain in my joints and certainly not the immediacy. However by February 2022 I started getting an aching and soreness in some of my joints. This has continued and seems really quite random. I wouldn't describe these instances as a flare as they build up really slowly - firstly an ache in a single or multiple joints then over days and weeks it gets to the point I'd describe it as sore. It then dies down in that joint and over time I experience the same thing in different joints. For example I spoke to my consultant in late June and at that time my right foot and right elbow were sore and she referred to these issues as a flare and referred me to physio. Unfortunately it wasn't till last week I got a physio appointment and by that time it was my hands and knees that are the joints giving me issues. I feel it's a bit like a game of whack-a-mole.

I know everyone is different but is that how others are affected?

Comments

  • frogmorton
    frogmorton Member Posts: 29,895

    Oh @jamieA I love that 'whack-a-mole' 😃 perfect and to my knowledge not something anyone has ever said before. I hope the physio is happy to help with your current mole? I had a similar situation, but the physio at that time wanted to treat the bit which was ok.

    Your PsA is fairly recent i think I'm right? and the pain is coming and going so not likely to be caused by damage done to the joints due to the PsA yet. Was 🤔 of OA there but of course that tends to be fairly consistent pain.

    Those moles could well be flares if you think about it. Your biologics are doing a great job of controlling them but maybe your consultant is right and sometimes a bit of pain sneaks through the barrier? In my case I woudl call them flares and always have, but as long as they don't become agonising, debilitating and weeks in durationI am happy to take pain relief and get on with it.

    Best of luck

    Toni x

  • Caleb1981
    Caleb1981 Member Posts: 33

    Hi @jamieA ,

    I completely understand what you mean. I’ve been convinced many times over the last 10 years that a random joint is about to flare, but within days it’s gone. It is like it’s just reminding me that it’s still there. It’s strange and was unsettling at first but I think I’ve kinda got used to it. Today the joint behind the metatarsal on my right big to has been randomly sore.

    I hope like me, that your niggles, don’t become anything.

    Cal