Horrible flare

Cagc1978

Hi all.

I have PsA and I'm on both biological treatment and Sulfasalazine. I seldom have a day without some level of pain and, on the back of a nasty cold/chesty cough, I'm now dealing with a really nasty flare.

My condition is normally restricted to my feet and ankles but now my knees are very painful. Does anyone else on this level of treatment still get regular flares? How do you ease the pain and improve the mobility?

Also, could the cold I have have caused a flare? Sorry for all the questions but I'm really struggling.

Thanks in advance.

stickywicket

Please don't apologise for the questions - they are why we'rè here.

In my experiience (I have RA) anything that raises my temp sets off the RA. I don't really think it's a matter of how many / which meds we are on. Flares will happen but will, hopefully die down. If not, check with your rheumatology team but I 'vè neveŕ really considered 'painfree' to be an option.

My usual methods of dealing with pain are exèrcises and distraction. It's quite normàl for arthritis to spread to other joints but, if it's bad, why not call your helpline and see what your latest blood tests xhow?

Cagc1978

Thanks so much for taking the time to reply. Yes, I think I will get in touch again with the rheumatology team at my local hospital. Had a steroid injection a couple of months ago but that hardly helped. I wish I could exercise! It's so difficult and sometimes even a short walk can cause pain and inflammation.

Thanks again ☺️

jamieA

https://community.versusarthritis.org/discussion/59219/horrible-flare

Hi @Cagc1978

Last week I had the cold/flu bug that appears to be doing the rounds here. I also had the worst joint pains I've had since the biologic I'm on kicked in fully in late September 2021. It affected my back, shoulders, elbows, hips, hands, feet and toes. The only joint that escaped was my left knee which was the joint that started the whole slide into a PsA diagnosis in 2020. I'm no expert but I suppose since our immune systems are what's causing our inflammatory arthritis problems getting a cold/flu and having the immune system fight that might be causing it to also step up attacking our joints. Thankfully everything has died down with me this week - and the cold/flu bug has gone.