Guest guest Posted October 6, 2006 Report Share Posted October 6, 2006 As for the mtx and folic acid: they must go hand in hand b/c of reduction of side effects. The folic acid prevents mouth ulcers that the mtx can cause...that was the basic I was told about the med by my rheum. With all the immunosupressants, one of the biggest side effects is that it wipes out the B vitamins in the body. Folic Acid is essential to prevent pernicious anemia which can happen when the B's are wiped out. Generally, you shouldn't have to take more than 15mg of MTX a week, either by pill or injection. If you choose the injection, the possiblity of liver toxicity goes way down-- because it doesn't have to be processed by the liver. They've also discovered that more than 15mg a week is not needed. There is no additional benefit at higher doses for sarcoidosis. One thing that is important-- start only one medication at a time-- that way if you have any side effects- you can tell what is doing it. The other reason for having to take MTX with Remicade is that our bodies build antibodies against the Remicade-- so we have to have another immunosupressant to stop that part of the cycle. Hope this helps, Tracie NS Co-owner/moderator Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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