Comparing Humira vs Pentasa

For Rheumatoid Arthritis I'm a 69 yr old woman with seronegative RA - hence it took a long time for a diagnosis. Many rheumatologists do not understand that you can be seronegative & have RA. Sad. After several years of anti inflammatory drugs & cortisone I was prescribed Humira. Took about 2 months & wow! Not so much pain relief but having so much less fatigue. As I live in Australia my experience with obtaining the drug is different to the US. My rheumatologist makes application through the federal government after other drugs have failed & they heavily subsidise. Thus far no obvious side effects. However, reading other's comments I wonder about the flushes at night - never had them as a menopausal symptom...... Wish you all the best in managing RA

For Rheumatoid Arthritis I think the shots are very painful, they sting, no matter how you inject it. Let it sit out for 20 minutes first, etc. Also- I liked the injectable pen better when I was using Enbrel. This needle is a real needle, no injectable pen. I feel it's harder to use on yourself that way.

For Crohn's Disease, Maintenance I take 1000 mg 2x day along with Humira every two weeks. The combination works very well for me and I'm healthier than I've been in years. The only significant side-effect for me has been anxiety. I am told it is not a side effect but I've been off and on Pentasa over the years and the 3 years stretch where I was off completely, my anxiety went away entirely. It wasn't until I went back on Pentasa that I made the connection.

For Crohn's Disease, Maintenance Was diagnosed about 1 year after an emergency surgery for a mass in my colon due to a build up of scar tissue from inflammation. After a couple months of 500mg 3X a day frequency of flare ups were greatly reduced. Only had 2 noticeable symptoms, one of weight gain and an an elevated liver function test. My dosage was reduced to 2X a day and liver function is normal but weight gain is still issue. Diet and STRESS level seems to be the most important factor in controlling flare ups