All posts filed under: Methotrexate

Methotrexate Injection

Why injection?                                                                                                                                            To avoid side effects or to have more of the medication absorbed by the body. There is 25 mg/ml of medication The syringe is either tuberculin or insulin Both have a one ml capacity Both have very thin needles Have all your supplies ready Vial of methotrexate, syringe, alcohol swab. Also access to your upper belly or outer thigh. It’s easy as this Wipe off top of vial with alcohol Remove covers on syringe Draw back on the syringe to add about .5 ml of air Insert needle of syringe into vial Push in the air(avoids med leaks) withdraw the correct dose of your medication( …

RA Drugs-Methotrexate

I take my 10 little pills of methotrexate on Sunday afternoon.  I put the ten 2.5 mg tablets in a little white bowl.  I take them over a 4-5 hour period.  My little ritual makes a major difference.  I have no nausea from the medication. My first dose was 2/17/2013.  It was 10 mg.  My dose was increased gradually to 25 mg on 4/28/2013.  Nausea is the most common side effect.  I did have some initially  but as long as I followed my ritual,  I was fine.  Additionally,  for the first year I was  tired on the day following the dose. Low dose methotrexate has been the drug of choice for the treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis for 30 years.  It is safe and generally well tolerated.   It is a DMARD, disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug.  It helps with pain and swelling.  It slows the progression of RA over time. Methotrexate was one of the first products of ” intelligent drug design”.  It was introduced as a treatment for cancer in the 40’s.  It was introduced to treat …