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Dr. Andrew Rynne

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Have A History Of Ulcerative Colitis. On Mesalamine. Have Neck Pain, Stiffness. Side Effects Of The Medicine?

Hi, I am a 54 year old woman with a history of ulcerative colitis and have been taking mesalamine for the past 5 years. For the past year I have been experiencing severe neck pain and stiffness which exercises do not help alleviate. I also have the occasional joint pain. Could these symptoms be caused by mesalamine?
Wed, 5 Jun 2013
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Internal Medicine Specialist,  's  Response
Hi,
Welcome to HCM,
Thanks for posting your query to this forum,
You are having Ulcerative colitis and taking mesalamine which is 5-aminosalicylic acid (5-ASA), is an anti-inflammatory drug used to treat inflammatory bowel disease.
Neck pain and stiffness is unlikely due to this drug,your age is 54 so it is possibly due to cervical spondylosis or spasm of neck muscles, please visit a Orthopedic surgeon and if necessary get your X ray of cervical spine and MRI of spine which is best to detect any nerve compression and structural abnormalities.
Other possible differential would be Postmenopausal osteoporosis and joint related osteoarthrosis.
Once your diagnosis is confirmed then analgesics and muscle relaxants with proper physiotherapy will be useful.
Then cervical muscle exercises will be useful in increasing their strength.
This information should help you.
Take care.
Good Luck.
Dr.Akhilesh Dubey M.D.

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Have A History Of Ulcerative Colitis. On Mesalamine. Have Neck Pain, Stiffness. Side Effects Of The Medicine?

Hi, Welcome to HCM, Thanks for posting your query to this forum, You are having Ulcerative colitis and taking mesalamine which is 5-aminosalicylic acid (5-ASA), is an anti-inflammatory drug used to treat inflammatory bowel disease. Neck pain and stiffness is unlikely due to this drug,your age is 54 so it is possibly due to cervical spondylosis or spasm of neck muscles, please visit a Orthopedic surgeon and if necessary get your X ray of cervical spine and MRI of spine which is best to detect any nerve compression and structural abnormalities. Other possible differential would be Postmenopausal osteoporosis and joint related osteoarthrosis. Once your diagnosis is confirmed then analgesics and muscle relaxants with proper physiotherapy will be useful. Then cervical muscle exercises will be useful in increasing their strength. This information should help you. Take care. Good Luck. Dr.Akhilesh Dubey M.D.