An Introduction to Asacol Side Effects
As with any medicine, there are possible side effects with Asacol® (mesalamine); however, not everyone who takes the medication will experience side effects. In fact, most people tolerate Asacol well. When side effects do occur, in most cases they are minor and either require no treatment or can easily be treated by you or your healthcare provider.
Back pain, a sore throat, and abdominal pain (or stomach pain) are some of the most common side effects reported with Asacol. A few less common side effects include drowsiness, shakiness, and hair loss. In most cases, side effects of the medication are minor and either don't require treatment or can easily be treated. However, you should contact your healthcare provider immediately if you experience serious Asacol side effects like gout, depression, or decreased urination.
Common Side Effects With Asacol
Asacol has been studied thoroughly in clinical trials. In these studies, the side effects that occur in a group of people taking the drug are documented and are then compared to side effects that occur in another group of people not taking the medicine. This way, it is possible to see what side effects occur, how often they appear, and how they compare to the group not taking the medicine.
In these studies, some of the most common Asacol side effects included:
Abdominal pain (or stomach pain) -- in up to 18 percent of people
Belching -- up to 16 percent
Pain -- up to 14 percent
A sore throat -- up to 11 percent
Back pain -- up to 7 percent
Joint pain -- up to 5 percent
Muscle tension -- up to 5 percent
Vomiting -- up to 5 percent
Constipation -- up to 5 percent.
Some other common Asacol side effects (occurring in 2 percent to 3 percent of people) included:
Muscle pain
Increased sweating
Worsening ulcerative colitis
Acne
A cough
Arthritis
Conjunctivitis ("pink eye")
Insomnia (see Asacol and Insomnia)
Anxiety
Migraine headaches.
Asacol Side Effects to Report
There are a number of side effects with Asacol that you should report to your healthcare provider. These include but are not limited to:
Worsening of ulcerative colitis symptoms
Gout
Depression
Signs of liver problems, such as yellow eyes or skin (jaundice), dark urine, or upper right abdominal pain (or stomach pain)
Decreased urination
Signs of an allergic reaction, including unexplained rash, hives, itching, unexplained swelling, wheezing, or difficulty breathing or swallowing.
Less Common Asacol Side Effects
There are other side effects of Asacol that can occur less frequently. For these side effects, it is difficult to tell whether the side effect is actually caused by Asacol or something else.
These less common Asacol side effects include but are not limited to:
Anemia
Drowsiness
Vertigo (a spinning sensation)
Shakiness (tremors)
Hair loss (see Asacol and Hair Loss)
Psoriasis
Dry skin
Taste changes
Tinnitus (ringing in the ears).
A Summary of Asacol Side Effects
It is possible that you may experience some or none of the Asacol side effects explained above. Unfortunately, there is no way for your healthcare provider to know beforehand if you will have side effects from a medicine that you have never tried. Therefore, make sure to let your healthcare provider know if you develop any side effects while taking Asacol or if something "just does not seem right." While it may not be a side effect of Asacol, your healthcare provider will be able to diagnose and treat the problem.
Asacol Side Effects
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Asacol Side Effects
Angy ;)
Dear Tex, Angy and others with knowledge of Asacol......
As I have posted elsewhere, my GI wants me to switch from Entocort to Asacol (with an overlap and gradual tapering off of Entocort). I think he believes I have been on Entocort too long (9 months at 9gm per day) and that, possibly, Asacol could be more effective for me.....and a "safer" maintenance drug. Well, I am not yet convinced.
Tex, in another post you mentioned that a possible side effect of Asacol is chronic pancreatitis. Do you have references I can quote on the extent of this risk and/or how Asacol creates this risk?
Many thanks and all the best, Ant
As I have posted elsewhere, my GI wants me to switch from Entocort to Asacol (with an overlap and gradual tapering off of Entocort). I think he believes I have been on Entocort too long (9 months at 9gm per day) and that, possibly, Asacol could be more effective for me.....and a "safer" maintenance drug. Well, I am not yet convinced.
Tex, in another post you mentioned that a possible side effect of Asacol is chronic pancreatitis. Do you have references I can quote on the extent of this risk and/or how Asacol creates this risk?
Many thanks and all the best, Ant
Ant,
The information available is rather sketchy, and it's mostly in the form of case studies. Note that most of these cases are in regard to ulcerative colitis. IMO, that's simply because UC has been treated with Asacol for many, many years, (long enough for a large number of patients to have been treated with the drug, and therefore long enough for these case studies to surface). There are some examples, in the topic at this link:
http://www.perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewt ... ncreatitis
I believe that there have been one or two other members of this board, who have developed pancreatitis, while using Asacol, but I don't recall who they were, and most people in that situation decide to trust their doctors to get them back out of trouble, and so they stop posting, and consequently, we never know how they came out, or even *if* they were able to recover. As you can see, it's not a huge risk, and that's probably the main reason why most GI docs either discount it, or aren't even aware of it. When it happens, though, it can be a very serious situation. The pancreas, as we all know, is a vital organ, for digestion.
If your doctor totally discounts this risk, ask him if he can point you to some research articles, or case studies, demonstrating undue risks associated with the long-term use of Entocort, (not corticosteroids, in general, but Entocort EC, specifically, since Entocort EC is not your typical corticosteroid, due to the effectiveness of the encapsulation, in restricting the budesonide from entering the blood stream).
You're certainly most welcome,
Tex
The information available is rather sketchy, and it's mostly in the form of case studies. Note that most of these cases are in regard to ulcerative colitis. IMO, that's simply because UC has been treated with Asacol for many, many years, (long enough for a large number of patients to have been treated with the drug, and therefore long enough for these case studies to surface). There are some examples, in the topic at this link:
http://www.perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewt ... ncreatitis
I believe that there have been one or two other members of this board, who have developed pancreatitis, while using Asacol, but I don't recall who they were, and most people in that situation decide to trust their doctors to get them back out of trouble, and so they stop posting, and consequently, we never know how they came out, or even *if* they were able to recover. As you can see, it's not a huge risk, and that's probably the main reason why most GI docs either discount it, or aren't even aware of it. When it happens, though, it can be a very serious situation. The pancreas, as we all know, is a vital organ, for digestion.
If your doctor totally discounts this risk, ask him if he can point you to some research articles, or case studies, demonstrating undue risks associated with the long-term use of Entocort, (not corticosteroids, in general, but Entocort EC, specifically, since Entocort EC is not your typical corticosteroid, due to the effectiveness of the encapsulation, in restricting the budesonide from entering the blood stream).
You're certainly most welcome,
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.