Strange reaction. I have heard of itching from plaquenil...rare...but it has occurred with some on the Sjogren's forum I participate on. And 3/4 of the board is taking Plaquenil, so quite a few people take it (most without a problem). However, I have not heard of the itching turning into pain...and then staying permanently.

If these nerves were in fact damaged and it started with itching, then as the damage got worse the pain ensued. Certainly could have been a coincidence...with your PN. I have never heard of Plaquenil causing PN.

It is well known that Plaquenil takes 3-6 months before levels build up in the body and when most notice ANY improvement. So I'm not surprised if a reaction took months to happen...IF it was the Plaquenil.

If an autoimmune disease is confirmed, I can see them wanting to try Plaquenil again. Not sure what you should do in that case, especially since you don't know if it was the Plaquenil or not...and didn't go away when you stopped it.