Anyone tried enbrel (etanercept) for treating rheumatoid arthritis?

What did you like/dislike about it? Did it help you? What were the side effects you experienced? How long did it take before feeling better?

my best friend is on it.
im graduate as a nurse soon, so she comes over to my place once a week to get the shot ( i give it to her)

the shot is VERY painfull she says. im not trying to scare you, but its a very thick consistency and she always is cringing and making weird faces and squeezing the life out of my roommates hand (she wont take the shot if my roomie isnt there to hold her hand) She has a pretty high pain tolerance and i hate having to be the one to do it to her cause it makes me feel like im doing something wrong, but its a very thick consistency which makes it more painfull.

she isnt allowed to get it if she is sick...like if she has a cold, she has to stop the enbrel.


good luck with it, i dont have to take it but from what i notice...its not fun but ont he good note, my best friend went into remission for a while when she was on it but just recently had to go back on it.

I had the injection before and it wasn't painful at all. The injection is very good for the painful condition I had. (SI inflammation) Report It

Although they can save the life of patients with severe, dangerous rheumatoid arthritis, Enbrel (etanercept), Remicade (infliximab) and Humira (adalimumab) are not recommended for most patients.

By stopping most of the immune reaction so that patients can achieve a pain free condition, these immunosuppressive drugs leave your body without defence against serious infections, including sepsis and pneumonia, tuberculosis and cancer. They are also blamed for an increased incidence of congestive heart failure, a condition in which the heart can't pump enough blood to the body's other organs.

Please read the list of side effects before you agree to get an injection!

You are much better off with antibiotics, NSAIDs, Cox-2 inhibitors, Lipitor, codeine, and acetaminophen.

Rheumatic diseases are the result of a defective gene and collagen inflammation, often from a chronic infection. Collagen is present throughout the body, from the eyes, skin and joints to the heart. Hence, the multiplicity of symptoms, depending on the location of the most affected internal organs or body parts.

I have had seronegative rheumatoid arthritis for more than 27 years. The telling signs of seronegative rheumatoid arthritis are the following:
- Joint pain in the feet (or cracking ankles) in the early 20's or late teens;
- Fatigue, especially after a moderate exercise like a 30 minute walk;
- Blood test showing a negative or low level of Rheumatoid Factor (RF);
- Joint deformities of the fingers, after a few years, a specific sign of rheumatoid arthritis;
- Consecutive X-Rays, over several years, showing bone erosion, a consequence of rheumatoid arthritis;
- Generalized arthritis, involving the whole body;
- Blood tests showing elevated levels of C-Reactive Protein (CRP) and Sedimentation rate (ESR).

NSAIDs like Voltaren, COX-2 inhibitors like Celebrex, acetaminophen like Tylenol, and codeine are all used to control inflammation and relieve the pain of arthritis.

Regular exercise like walking, biking and swimming is also helpful for most patients. Make sure that you are not overweight as carrying too much weight can only increase the pain of arthritis in the supporting joints of the hips, knees, ankles and feet.

For any form of arthritis, you should consult an orthopaedist who will order blood tests, joint scans and X-Rays to better diagnose the type of arthritis from which you suffer.

The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons at http://www.aaos.org maintains a public online directory where you can find the address and phone number of orthopaedists who belong to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Orthopaedists are listed by geographic location and family name, inside the USA and in most countries.

The membership directory of the AAOS is located at:

http://www6.aaos.org/about/public/member...

The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons maintains a wealth of information online at:

http://orthoinfo.aaos.org

Lyme disease could be a possibility. Ask your doctor to test you for the bacteria causing Lyme disease.

Are there any other cases of arthritis or rheumatic diseases among your relatives? Chronic forms of arthritis are usually prevalent in families where a defective gene is passed on by parents to their children.

There are a few hundred types of arthritis and rheumatic diseases. The good news is that science is progressing rapidly in its understanding of rheumatic diseases.

Antibiotics are now used to achieve full remissions for at least 40%, if not 65% of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. For more info, please join the antibio group at:

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/ant...