My brother is 50 years old and has been diagnosed with having Bergers Disease. He has a finger on his right hand that curled under to the extent that he cannot straighten it. Five years ago he had the small toe on his right foot amputated due to infection. Two years ago he suffered a heart attack. Three days ago he had half of one of his big toes amputated due to infection in the bone...    Dr. McLaughlin's Answer

  My question concerns prednisone. My mother (77) was diagnosed with temporal arteritis and prescribed 60 mg per day of prednisone. A month and a half later, she ended up in the hospital with listeria and a brain abscess. The prednisone was not monitored or tapered by the neurologist who prescribed it until he saw how my mother appeared at a later office visit and he contacted a rheumatologist who started tapering the dosage, but by then it was too late...    Dr. McLaughlin's Answer