Psoriatic arthritis

[Trillian]

Hi AMT and welcome! I think that you have to take the best course of action for your situation. If it flares up really bad afterwards, then as much as you know breastmilk is the best source of nutrition for baby, it's not much good if Mum can hardly move or pick baby up because of her arthritis, so you have to take a holistic approach and look at the entire picture.

BW, if you do have to go on MTX, then you would have to have given up breastfeeding anyway - it will have adverse affects on bubs and you can't BF while taking it. But I really hope that it works well for you and you don't get any side effects from it. I imagine you would be taking a much higher dose for your arthritis than I am taking for my p.

[Mum030709]

Hi,

Sorry to butt in here.. I am not a sufferer of psoriatic arthritis..

My 5y.o DD however is on Methotrexate for Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis. I really am hoping she goes into remission before she reaches adulthood. She was diagnosed over 12mths ago & it affects her right knee.
I of course cannot give her the medication, due to being pregnant & depending if I breastfeed this little one, I'll have to continue to avoid it..

I guess the point of me crashing this thread is to be able to talk to someone who has had experience with methotrexate or even find someone else whom has a child on the medication..

[Trillian]

Hi Mon, I don't personally know of any children on it, but there is a site I go to for p and PsA sufferers and I know some of them have children on MTX. If you like I can give you the link.

[butterfly_warrior]

Trillian, I knew I'd have to give up BF if methotrexate came on to the scene... In fact, that's about the only thing I know about it! I've been flat out refusing to discuss it as an option with my rheumy until we finally got IVF to work so now the only thing I can remember is that it's taken weekly instead of daily. I have no idea about side effects or anything else - I simply can't remember! Of course, it's much more important that Samuel have a functional mother than be breast fed... If you can call the current limping about on high doses of pain killers functional.

BW

[Trillian]

Yep, it's only a weekly dose and you need monthly blood tests to check liver function etc as it can wreak havoc on your liver, but I've been fine. Its not nice to read the info you'll find on it, but like with anything you have to weigh up the risks v benefit. And you deserve to be fully functioning too, not just for his sake (but that's important too) but for your own, I can't imagine how you're feeling atm.

[Claire_A]

AMT I just thought I'd let you know that my bubs is almost 6 weeks old and I am still managing without any meds apart from voltaren. My PA is creeping back in but so far it is manageable - fingers crossed I can keep going for a few more months. I guess the difference with us is that my PA went into remission as soon as I fell pregnant. But here's hoping for you that yours does the same.

By the way, congrats on your pregnancy!

[Mum030709]

Hi Mon, I don't personally know of any children on it, but there is a site I go to for p and PsA sufferers and I know some of them have children on MTX. If you like I can give you the link.

That would be absolutely fantastic if you could please

[LeighBee]

Hi,

Im 21 and have psoriatic arthritis and planning to start a family, am currently taking diclofenac but would like to know if this is still safe to use during pregnancy as i am afraid i will be unable to cope without them.

Any info would be a great help

Thanks
Leigh

[butterfly_warrior]

From the drug information on diclofenac...

FDA pregnancy category C. This medication may be harmful to an unborn baby. Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant during treatment. Taking diclofenac during the last 3 months of pregnancy may harm the unborn baby. Do not take diclofenac during pregnancy unless your doctor has told you to. Diclofenac can pass into breast milk and may harm a nursing baby. Do not use this medication without telling your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby. Do not give this medicine to a child without the advice of a doctor.

Being a category C drug, there's no way I'd risk taking it. Before you start trying for a baby, I'd suggest you really need to chat to your doctor and find some other alternative. It may mean prednisone - a steroid rather than an NSAID, but there are safer drug options during pregnancy.

BW