Methotrexate for Eczema

[EEFG]

Has anyone taken methotrexate for eczema. Would be interested to hear good/ bad experiences. I am meant to be starting this in a couple of weeks and am nervous to say the least.

NotBadConsidering This is contact with dairy. Immediate hives on otherwise clear skin. If she consumes even tiny traces her eczema flares up everwhere though worst on her tummy.

Attach fail..

Sorry EEFG, didn't mean to hijack your thread. Wishing you luck!

Yes. Your daughter reacts to dairy. I have not denied this. I am pointing out that the intrinsic eczema started first and led your daughter’s body to develop an abnormal response to dairy. Which you now see. The dairy wasn’t causing the problem when it first started at 3 months.

Please tell me that’s an old photo and you didn’t do that to prove a point!

I'm on methotrexate for a few years and I've had no side effects at all, I had very fine hair and my hair had been thinning for years but my hair is now thicker and in the best condition it ever has been. It was definately a God send for me, my body was about 90% covered in psoriasis and now I'd say it's about 5/10%. I would definitely recommend it.

NotBadConsidering of course it's an old photo. I document all her reactions to show her consultant. Sometimes we don"t even know what she has reacted to but most frequently it's contact with traces of milk at school.
I'm still not sure what your point is. Why is it wrong to suggest to an eczema sufferer to try cutting out certain foods if certain foods are frequent triggers of eczema symptoms, even (as you claim) if the eczema was there before the allergies? My daughter still has eczema but with perfectly healthy skin, until she has a food reaction. So what do you suggest as a solution other than avoiding triggers? There's no cure, so surely avoiding triggers is better than relying on continual steroid use.

Because in the vast majority of cases, foods aren’t even triggers, let alone major contributory factors, and usually food exclusion is done for months at the expense of treatments that actually work. This is especially true in babies and children at the expense of steroids, because of unfounded fears of side effects, and I see it recommended frequently on MN - “exclude this”, “try this natural moisturiser”, “have you seen a naturopath?” - all while the real treatments of barrier protection and immune modulation are being ignored. Steroids are very safe, and if any child still has eczema, they should be using them. Yes avoid triggers, but don’t spend months on end trying to figure out what those triggers are at the expense of real treatments. Very good consensus on steroids in eczema here:

medicinetoday.com.au/system/files/pdf/medicine_today/article/MT2015-12-040-MOONEY.pdf

So you are saying a child with no visible skin problems needs steroid treatment? My child has beautiful peachy soft skin between episodes of food related flares. She had steroid treatment for her entire first year of life but made her skin much worse.

Steroids are not "very safe" at all.
You sound like a very typical allopath, unprepared to consider any option other than medicating. Medicating. Medicating. Unfortunately medication sometimes only masks the underlying problem and can add even more health problems that require even more medication!

Yes avoid triggers, but don’t spend months on end trying to figure out what those triggers are at the expense of real treatments.

"Real treatments" caused my daughter nothing but misery for her entire first year of life. We followed medical advice given by her consultant. Steroid cream after steroid cream, including protopic (because nothing else was reducing the inflammation). Had we weaned her off steroids earlier we would have seen that her eczema was disappearing through diet. The steroids were masking that effect.

NotBadConsidering food is a trigger very much so in my case. If I eat oats - my eczema will flare. My mum makes delicious flap jacks but if I eat them I will flare. Strawberrys and blackcurrant flare me severely. I would be naughty and dive in to the nutella and I know exactly how my skin would respond. Milk and dairy cause me abdominal pain and eczema. I have so many allergies and intolerances but I know that a number of things make my skin bad than when I avoid these and my skin is more manageable.

I found i got bad rebound reaction when i took methotrexate for psoriasis but had no side effects (other than i lost weight from not drinking!!!) Similarly ive tried some biologics including Humira which was mentioned up thread which did naff all for me.

Im now on stelara and its radically changed my life

I take methotrexate for rheumatoid arthritis and it has the fantastic side effect of clearing up my psoriasis. It's a bit rough in the 24 hours after taking it, extreme tiredness, nausea and I do have some hair loss although it's not noticeable. But, on the whole, taking it is better than not taking it.

I feel I have to at least try to come off steroids (in a sensible way). I have terrible eczema round my eyes- I can’t use strong steroids round there due to the risk of glaucoma and cataracts and hydrocortisone is absolutely no use. Personally I would prefer not to have to rely on steroids. I was prescribed dermovate and bandages from a veryyoung age. I’m 34 and the places where I had eczema as a child I have skin of someone in their nineties. I believe there is definitely a place for steroids, but I think personally, I have come to the end of the road with them.

Have you thought about any other potential triggers that are a constant in your environment? Pet hair, dust, mould, smoke?

I've got granny hands from steroid use. I'm 40-something. The skin on my legs is also very thin. Bleeds very easily.

People who say steroid use is perfectly safe clearly haven't had to use them...or haven't used them long enough to see the damage they do.

Triangled- yes, pet hair, mould, smile, even cooking can set me off- more so with very bad urticaria but also worsens my eczema. Even removing all known triggers I get flares for no reason. I come into contact with one my children who is ill- I myself might not get ill but my skin can flare for weeks on end. Hormones, stress, I feel like life in general is a trigger. I feel like my body perceives everything as a threat/ foreign object it needs to fight and ends up attacking itself. That’s the best way I can describe how I feel. Steroids only seem to be masking the problem, and even now, they are of limited benefit to me. 😕

Another question, has methotrexate has any adverse effects in relation to taking exercise. I enjoy going running and have booked onto a half marathon in the autumn. Should there be any reason I might not be able to do this?

My ex took it for 3 months for eczema and it made him feel sick with an awful headache for a few days after taking it and then by the time he felt back to normal it was time to take it again. It didn't really do much for his skin either. Ciclosporin and aziathioprine have less side effects and worked well for him.

Just came across this article. You might find it useful.
drhyman.com/blog/2010/07/30/how-to-stop-attacking-yourself-9-steps-to-heal-autoimmune-disease/

Good article Triangles. I will research mercury toxicity as that is one thing I have not done. Worth a shot.

Not sure about that article. Seems to be written by someone selling something! No clear indication of what was changed except that this person has the answer.

I take it for psoriatic arthritis.

A positive side effect is that it's cleared up the psoriasis, as well as helping with the arthritis.

On the tablets I felt dreadful the day I took it, really nauseous and tired. Changed to split dose so 3 on two days, but the effects didn't change. Now have injection version which I do once a week and no nausea so much better.

I take Methotrexate for psoriatic arthritis. It's meant to treat both my skin and joints.

It's done wonders for my joints (couldn't walk for 6 months last year!!) but my psoriasis is still bad. I'd rather be able to walk though.

Agree it must be a pretty severe case of eczema for Methotrexate to be prescribed!!