A few nights ago I had to take a trip to my local ER because of fainting spells due to drop in blood pressure.while there I was given an ekg just as a precautionary test. To my surprise the ekg showed the possibility of pericarditis (sorry if I misspelled that)... I was told this was an inflammation of the sack that contains the heart. I was not having nor have I had any chest pains... So the Dr ordered an ultra sound of the heart and the results came back negative (thankfully). My question is I was told inflammation in auto immune diseases and carried through the bloodstream.. so even with getting rid of ones colon by surgery can the small intestine become inflamed to the point of being something similar to Crohns disease? (minus the colon of course) I know arthritis is an auto immune disease that's common with UC patients and oddly enough ever since I was diagnosed with UC in 2010 I sporadically get what I believe to be sebaceous cyst on my chest and back of my head... I have been telling Dr for years I believed it to be linked to my UC as it is another form of inflammation, just of the skin but the drs always dismissed that theory. However, we have not found anything to work topically, so when it gets really bad and inflamed I get prescribed a course of anti biotics and they go away temporarily. Has anyone else encountered any large pimple like skin problems with an auto immune disease? I know I can't be the only one....
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I have not had any skin problems due to the auto-immune disease - ulcerative colitis.
I do have dilated cardiomyopathy, ( an enlarged heart ) - I wonder at times if this could be the result of taking prednisone for 7 years?
I hope you get things under control. Keep us posted. Keep on fightin'.
I do have dilated cardiomyopathy, ( an enlarged heart ) - I wonder at times if this could be the result of taking prednisone for 7 years?
I hope you get things under control. Keep us posted. Keep on fightin'.
Manny about 15yrs ago I started getting cysts that went from a pimple to a grapefruit in less than 24hr...I would get them in the 'creases', thigh, both front and back, armpit, neck etc...they would hurt, cause a fever and I would have it drained until it went away...Then they started getting infected and I would end up in ER for emergency surgery...finally they came weekly and in groups...it got scary when my doc told me that it was a systemic infection that could not be treated but only controlled through permanent doses of antibiotics (kind of like chronic pouchitis) and that it would worsen until...well he gave me 3 months. Said that my organs would end up covered in them and that was it.
I changed doctors.
The new one told me that cysts are just symptoms, not a disease and that until you treat the underlying disease they will keep coming back.
They ended up doing emergency pouch/abdominal surgery on me and found that the side of my pouch that was against my abdomen had gone necrotic.
They cleaned out the necrosys and I was fine. No more cysts.
So, if they are coming more often or are getting worse, you need to treat them as a sign that something else is wrong and you need to find that something....
Cysts are not inflamation but infection...you need to find the cause of it.
Sharon
I changed doctors.
The new one told me that cysts are just symptoms, not a disease and that until you treat the underlying disease they will keep coming back.
They ended up doing emergency pouch/abdominal surgery on me and found that the side of my pouch that was against my abdomen had gone necrotic.
They cleaned out the necrosys and I was fine. No more cysts.
So, if they are coming more often or are getting worse, you need to treat them as a sign that something else is wrong and you need to find that something....
Cysts are not inflamation but infection...you need to find the cause of it.
Sharon
Interesting reading on Wikipedia about Sebascious Cysts. It said a possible cause could be excessive testosterone (yippy for you - LOL).
Anyway, I have always been allergic to "strange" things, but mostly weeds. As a young child I was diagnosed as being allergic to the cold. Not a good thing when I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago (brrrr!) I would get huge welts where my mittens did not meet the cuff of my coat and on my cheeks. In the summer, my friends would throw me in the pool to see if I broke out in welts, because that would mean the pool was too cold.
At the age of 40 and living in sunny San Diego and visiting Palm Springs frequently, I developed an allergy to the Sun. Basically every spring, when I start wearing tank tops and shorts, my skin would get really rashy in the parts that have not seen the sun in a year. I took my doctors advice and "harden" my skin to the sun and basically, the symptoms disappear after a month. I have been going through this for the past 10 years. I love the sun and gardening too much to avoid the sun. I do not intentionally sun myself by laying out in it, but I just love the outdoors.
Anyway, I have always been allergic to "strange" things, but mostly weeds. As a young child I was diagnosed as being allergic to the cold. Not a good thing when I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago (brrrr!) I would get huge welts where my mittens did not meet the cuff of my coat and on my cheeks. In the summer, my friends would throw me in the pool to see if I broke out in welts, because that would mean the pool was too cold.
At the age of 40 and living in sunny San Diego and visiting Palm Springs frequently, I developed an allergy to the Sun. Basically every spring, when I start wearing tank tops and shorts, my skin would get really rashy in the parts that have not seen the sun in a year. I took my doctors advice and "harden" my skin to the sun and basically, the symptoms disappear after a month. I have been going through this for the past 10 years. I love the sun and gardening too much to avoid the sun. I do not intentionally sun myself by laying out in it, but I just love the outdoors.
Correct me if I'm wrong but if my testosterone levels were high wouldn't I have an extremely high appetite for sex? It would make sense as I started to body build around the time I began to get the cyst and I know exercising increase testosterone.... I just don't want to ask the Dr for something to lower testosterone and lose my sexual appetite all together. Since my takedown a few months ago, I haven't been real intrested in sex anyways... Lucky for me, I have a very understanding gf....
Not necessarily but you could become more aggressive! 
...But you just said something else that made sense to me...you are body building...which means sweat...And some of us develop cysts from excess sweating or clogged pores that build up excess sebum behind them and cause cysts...are you getting them in the sweat zones or areas that are rubbed by clothing (elastic bands)? (armpits, hairline, crotch, back behind the knees...) If so , you may need to do a couple of thingg: only wear cotton clothing, no synthetics (they irritate), keep a clean and dry cotton towel with you at all times to cover the equipement and wipe your body down...wash your skin with a very mild antibacterian soap (only after your work outs...use a hyperalergenic the rest of the time)...and use a nourishing oil on you skin after showers to give it a protective layer.
Don't know if this will help
sharon
...But you just said something else that made sense to me...you are body building...which means sweat...And some of us develop cysts from excess sweating or clogged pores that build up excess sebum behind them and cause cysts...are you getting them in the sweat zones or areas that are rubbed by clothing (elastic bands)? (armpits, hairline, crotch, back behind the knees...) If so , you may need to do a couple of thingg: only wear cotton clothing, no synthetics (they irritate), keep a clean and dry cotton towel with you at all times to cover the equipement and wipe your body down...wash your skin with a very mild antibacterian soap (only after your work outs...use a hyperalergenic the rest of the time)...and use a nourishing oil on you skin after showers to give it a protective layer. Don't know if this will help
sharon
Manny,
Do you find you sweat more since your colectomy / J-Pouch?
I certainly did. Sometimes when I am doing moderate gardening, I am just dripping sweat from the top of my head. Never anywhere else from my body.
Honestly, it feels like a torrential downpour. I never / hardly ever sweated prior to my colectomy.
Do you find you sweat more since your colectomy / J-Pouch?
I certainly did. Sometimes when I am doing moderate gardening, I am just dripping sweat from the top of my head. Never anywhere else from my body.
Honestly, it feels like a torrential downpour. I never / hardly ever sweated prior to my colectomy.
Dear Manny,
Many of us have found that once you get one autoimmune disease others follow. I have several others myself including fibromyalgia, an under active thyroid etc. There's a kind of arthritis many UC'ers get and I've read about one that does involve sores similar to what you've described but can't remember what it is called. I think you need to go see a specialist.
My BP dropped dramatically after my surgeries. I was on medication for high BP and it fell like a stock market crash after my colonectomy. I test it at home off and on and you might find it interesting to test it yourself, especially when you feel light headed. I now eat more salt and that helps. I went from a low salt diet to a higher salt diet. Salty snacks and V8 juice are good salt sources.
Many of us have found that once you get one autoimmune disease others follow. I have several others myself including fibromyalgia, an under active thyroid etc. There's a kind of arthritis many UC'ers get and I've read about one that does involve sores similar to what you've described but can't remember what it is called. I think you need to go see a specialist.
My BP dropped dramatically after my surgeries. I was on medication for high BP and it fell like a stock market crash after my colonectomy. I test it at home off and on and you might find it interesting to test it yourself, especially when you feel light headed. I now eat more salt and that helps. I went from a low salt diet to a higher salt diet. Salty snacks and V8 juice are good salt sources.