Author |
Message |
Wendo
Member
08-07-2000
| Monday, July 11, 2005 - 10:20 pm
I recently had an adverse reaction to a prescription drug. Since a thead doesn't exist here about prescription drugs, I thought a Prescription Drugs Thread here in the Health Center would be a beneficial topic for TVCH members and visitor. I figure anything about prescription drugs would be appropriate, whether they be about drugs that are beneficial or drugs we've had a bad experience with, etc. Basically, an all encompassing thread about prescription drugs. Anyway, I hope this little introduction provides enough information for others to consider posting in the thread. I will post tomorrow about my adverse reaction to Lipitor. While it's an adverse side effect that less than 1% of the population will experience, I figure my experience can help someone else.

|
Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Tuesday, July 12, 2005 - 10:07 am
Waiting to hear about it, Wendo. Thanks for starting the thread. I don't usually get drug reactions, but we are learning that Bigdog does. He went for a long time with a constant cough, like a year. Finally he got worried enough about it that he went to the doctor, who said, "Oh, that's a common side effect of Atenonol," a drug he was taking for blood pressuse. Changed the med, no more cough. Sigh ...
|
Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Tuesday, July 12, 2005 - 4:16 pm
How about this bizarre one that was in today's news? Study Links Parkinson's Drug to Gambling By LINDSEY TANNER, AP Medical Writer Tue Jul 12, 7:03 AM ET CHICAGO - Joe Neglia was a retired government intelligence worker with Parkinson's disease when he suddenly developed what he calls a gambling habit from hell. After losing thousands of dollars playing slot machines near his California home several times a day for nearly two years, Neglia stumbled across an Internet report linking a popular Parkinson's drug he used with compulsive gambling. "I thought, 'Oh my God, this must be it,'" he said. Three days after stopping the drug, Mirapex, "all desire to gamble just went away completely. I felt like I had my brain back." A Mayo Clinic study published Monday in July's Archives of Neurology describes 11 other Parkinson's patients who developed the unusual problem while taking Mirapex or similar drugs between 2002 and 2004. Doctors have since identified 14 additional Mayo patients with the problem, said lead author Dr. M. Leann Dodd, a Mayo psychiatrist. Rest of the story here: http://tinyurl.com/7zrl3
|
Wendo
Member
08-07-2000
| Wednesday, July 13, 2005 - 1:10 am
Ok, sorry it took me to the end of the day/way early the next day to get this posted. Here's what happened... A couple of months ago my doc put me on Lipitor for high cholesterol (runs in my family.) There were no plans to be on it permanently, just long enough to keep my level down while I exercised more regularly and made permanent eating habit changes. And, I have been doing that; in fact, I've lost almost 20 pounds in the last two and a half months (though losing weight is not the primary goal.) Friday night, July 1st, while heading to bed I experienced a little muscle cramping in my left thigh, nothing real painful though. I figured I went a bit too far on my bike the day before (17.5 miles.) Woke up Saturday with plans to go to Taste of Chicago with friends and see Santana but didn't feel that well. So, ended up just staying home and relaxing, cleaning the house here and there. As the day went on, I started having more and more muscle cramping, spasming, and seizing in my left thigh muscles while my right thigh muscles started to do this as well. By late evening it was happening oh, every hour at least. The events weren't happening for a minute or so; they were lasting anywhere from five to fifteen minutes. And, the pain was excruciating. (Felt like long lasting charlie horses, but ten times more painful.) By 2:30 in the morning I figured I'd head to my local Walgreens and get some Motrin IB (the Tylenol I was taking wasn't working.) By now, the moments of pain were so bad that while I was experiencing them, I could barely stand. My thighs were in pain and couldn't support my body. So, I get about a block and a half from home and only a block away from my pharmacy and I just can't walk any further, it hurt that badly. At that point I said to myself, something is up and it's time to go to the emergency room. So, off I go to Northwestern Hospital. Thankfully, I didn't have to wait too long to get in to be seen and they immediately gave me an IV, injected me with Vallium (Yeah!) and Toradol (a powerful pain reliever.) While my muscle spasms and cramping didn't stop, the pain was much more bearable. I figured I would get a prescription for some pain meds and follow up with my doc on Tuesday. But, before I could leave the ER, I had to wait for my blood tests to come back (which took frickin' forever, thankyouverymuch.) Well, they finally come back and the ER doc comes in, shuts the curtain and sits down to chat with me (and I'm thinking, oh man, what now.) He then says, well, Wendy, you can't leave the hospital, we're admitting you tonight. (I'm all like, excuse me??? It IS a long, holiday weekend you know?) Apparently I'd had a rare, severe, adverse reaction to the Lipitor which attacked my thigh muscles (the largests muscles in the body) causing the spasms and cramping. Specifically it's a condition called Rhabdomyolysis. It causes ones muscles to breakdown and release extremely high levels of CPK enzyme (creatine phosphokinase) into ones bloodstream. Normal levels of CPK (75-150) are fine. Elevated levels can be dangerous because it overloads the kidneys which cannot clean your blood properly. Finally, if the situation is not rectified, it can lead to kidney damage and renal failure (which would mean dialysis and kidney transplant.) And, in an extreme situation it can be fatal. Anyways, fortunately, while I am suffering from the Rhabdomyolysis, I have not experienced any renal or kidney problems (thank god.) I had to spend a day and a half in the hospital on an IV bicarbonate drip; so, basically my holiday weekend was royally screwed. (Figures.) My thigh muscles were in excrutiating pain, but they're definitely better now. I was a bit unstable while walking but it's so much better than when this began last week. All last week I went in for daily for blood tests to monitor my CPK levels. When they admitted me into the hospital early Sunday morning, my level was over 15,000. When I went home Monday afternoon, they had gone to over 42,000. (They said I could stay but I just wanted to go home.) When I had a follow up test at my regular docs, they spiked to 57,000, but, the stat blood test the next day showed a drop to 35,000. I had another test last Thursday and they went back to 41,000 and I thought I'd have to go back into the hospital, but another stat blood test showed that they dropped to 19,000. (My doc had said that if they go up on Monday's blood test that she would throw me back in the hospital, period, until they're normal.) However, as of today they're a bit below 2000 and definitely appear to be heading back to normal. As I wrote above, I have very little pain, only if I squat too far. Overall, my body feels like I over exercised or was beat up. My muscles were damaged but it's not permanent since muscles do heal. I figure another couple weeks and I'll be almost back to normal and can resume my exercising. (No exercising is allowed or strenous exertion because that increases CPK levels. Must be normalized first.) So, that's where I'm at. My arms are full of needle marks and I'm sure that people on the street think I'm a heroin addict. I'm continuing to consume copious amounts of fluid to keep my kidneys going so I wouldn't be surprised if I float away sometime soon. Ha! Overall, it totally stunk, but I'm trying to keep a positivie attitude. As far as the Lipitor, I'm obviously not taking it anymore. Additionally, I will not be able to take any drugs in the statin family since my body cannot handle them. I do want to note that I was aware of the side effects before deciding to go on the Lipitor. I did my research and made the choice to go on them because the benefits outweighed the side effects. (The side effect I experienced happens in less than 1% of those on the drug.) In fact, because I had done the research I was pretty sure that I was having a problem with the Lipitor that Saturday. I spoke to my sister who works in the pharma field as a consultant and we both decided it was best to not take anymore until I spoke with my regular doc (this was before I needed to go to the ER.) Lipitor can cause mild muscle pain (and other side effects), however, as my docs have noted, not the extreme pain I was in. (You couldn't even tap my thighs with a finger, it hurt that much.) If anyone has any questions or wants more info than I've provided, please post away. I really think a thread like this is important. If you or a loved one is, for instance, taking Lipitor, now you know to keep an eye out for this extreme reaction. (Oh, and btw, on top of this, my frickin' cat bit me on my finger the other day - not on purpose - and it's totally infected (though better!) Argh! LOL! I'm on an antibiotic for that. Love her to pieces but what bad timing! Hahaha!) (Oh, and just one other thing, I do have a rare disorder called Malignant Hyperthermia (diagnosed when I was a child when my tonsils were to be removed.) It's an allergy to certain anesthetics, muscle relaxants, and inhalants; ones you would receive during surgery. What's interesting is, when that happened (it's called an MH crisis), the same result happened, my CPK levels spiked (though not as high as this time.) So, it's possible that this condition could've put me more at risk; that there's a connection, though there's no way to know with certainty. When I discussed it with my doc (she is well aware of my MH), she said it's possible and would do some research. I also encouraged her to inform Pfizer, the maker of Lipitor. Finally, I want to add that Lipitor is considered a relatively safe drug; millions of people are on it and reaping the benefits. (Keeping their bodies free of damage from high cholesterol.) While one can go online and read websites decrying Lipitor as "evil" (along with every other drug), I don't feel that way. Technology wise, we're just not at a point where drugs can be tailor made for each and every person. Someday I imagine we'll get there. Just not yet. (Of course, I wouldn't be happy if hidden secret documents came out suggesting that this adverse reaction happens often; meaning that the benefits aren't worth the risk. Heh. So far, nothing points in that direction.) Anyways, that's my story of my recent medical crisis. Hope it's helpful and I hope others post their own experiences and/or information and articles as Juju did.
*sorry for the length*
|
Texannie
Member
07-16-2001
| Wednesday, July 13, 2005 - 4:35 am
Juju, my doc mentioned that side effect when we were trying to decide which bp med for me to take. Decided against a cough! LOL Wendo, how totally scary. Glad you are slowly getting better.
|
Goddessatlaw
Member
07-19-2002
| Wednesday, July 13, 2005 - 5:10 am
Wendo, I'm so sorry you had to go through this it sounds very frightening. I'm also glad you didn't hesitate to seek help and had educated yourself on side effects so you pretty much knew what was happening when it was happening. I think my dad might be on Lipitor, I'm going to check with my mom on that. I'm going to watch this thread like a hawk. Colossus is extremely sensitive to any type of medication. If there's a side effect to be had, he gets it. I read the hell out of any literature I can find on any drug he is prescribed or takes over the counter so I can intervene when the side effects start cropping up. I can't figure out why guafenisen (sp?) is still a regular ingredient in over the counter meds. The stuff literally makes Colossus psychotic. We had his file at the pharmacy marked "allergic" to guafenisen. It did the same thing to my law partner, she had no clue what was happening to her even though I'd warned her about the stuff. And these are adults, they put that crap in kids' medicine over the counter AND pharmaceutical.
|
Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Wednesday, July 13, 2005 - 7:58 am
Very scary, Wendo.
|
Herckleperckle
Member
11-20-2003
| Wednesday, July 13, 2005 - 10:47 am
Wendo, my goodness. I am so glad you shared your story--and that there is good news about your body's ability to heal itself. I just read your post now, so haven't shared with my dh yet--who has a bottle of Lipitor on his night table. I can't recall if he still takes it and forgot to ask him the other day. But if he is, he evidently is not having that same, scary reaction. But my goodness, good to know! You know, you would have thought that there was already some documentation revealing problems with the drug for folks like you with that MH condition, wouldn't you? You were smart to respond to the worsening symptoms and go to the hospital. Your story was eye-opening to me, particularly, because, like you, I doubt if I would have associated muscle pain with a reaction to a medication. Yi, yi, yi! Very good thread going here! Yay for you for thinking more broadly than just your single issue. Juju, that is weird! You might recall that my FIL died from Parkinson's. He did lots of risky, really off-the-wall things once his Parkinson's became more serious, but actual gambling wasn't one of them. Thanks for sharing, Wendo, Juju and GAL. Totally frightening to think about voluntarily ingesting a medication that actually threatens your life. Maybe developing a healthy dose of paranoia is not such a bad thing when it comes to medical 'stuff.'
|
Wendo
Member
08-07-2000
| Wednesday, July 13, 2005 - 9:05 pm
Thanks for the responses everyone and thanks for posting your experiences. Herck, maybe not paranoia but knowing that we need to take responsibility for ourselves and our bodies when we take medication. Ask our doctors what the side effects are and educate ourselves about what were taking. And, being aware of our bodies and recognizing when things aren't feeling right. It's better to be checked and ok than not go and have something serious happen.
|
Wargod
Moderator
07-16-2001
| Wednesday, July 13, 2005 - 10:42 pm
Wow, some of the side effects ya'll have suffered are downright scary! I'm so glad they were recognized for you guys. Dakota had a weird one a few months ago, though nothing real serious. She'd been getting sick off and on for awhile, back and forth to the doctor with sore throat/ears, sinus infection and vomiting. They started her on allergy pills, nasal spray, and upped her dosage of singulair (between the allergy probs and asthma probs plus her getting sick everytime we turned around it was to the point we were all worn out.) Anyways, the allergy pill they gave her was zyrtec chewables. The doctor suggested giving it at bedtime (once a day pill) because a common side effect was drowsiness. She took it for a week or so, it was a nightmare. We kept giving it to her earlier and earlier in the day because when she had it at bedtime she could not go to sleep. My baby was absolutely wired. Finally one night (and she'd taken the pill a few hours earlier!) I went back to check on her. She'd been so sick all day with the sinus infection, just laying around on the couch crying in misery, even with her meds and ibuprofin for her fever she was still feeling pretty lousy. I found my sick sick little girls jumping up and down on her bed, sobbing, she felt so lousy and at the same time she just couldn't settle down at all. That was it for us. She's now on an over the counter allergy pill and two different nasal sprays, plus the asthma meds and has been fine. I had read the info on Zyrtec and knew the uncommon side effects were restlessness and nervousness, but what we saw of Kota on it went way beyond that. Darren started the zyrtec and loves it and my neighbors teenage son uses it and says it really works for him as well. She's been taking albueterol since she was about 18 months old and we have seen her get hyper during times she has to use it more than normal, but again, nothing like what we saw that last night with the zyrtec. It sucks to have to put all this medicine in her, even more so when she has such a bad reaction to one of them!
|
Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Wednesday, July 13, 2005 - 11:00 pm
Oh, HP? When you get back online. Here is something I posted about Lipitor in Wendo's folder before she started this thread. Bigdog took Lipitor for about four or five years, and during that time he always had back problems. We thought he had a bad back, and maybe he did. Then he went on Vytorin a couple months ago, and during that time I read HERE at tvch a conversation between a couple members about a side effect of Lipitor being back pain. First either of us ever heard of it. Bigdog's back seems to have experienced a miraculous cure since he got off Lipitor. So, HP, if your dh has back pains, he may not really have a bad back!
|
Supergranny
Member
02-03-2005
| Wednesday, July 13, 2005 - 11:32 pm
Okay...my husband is calling the doctor tomorrow...period!! He is on Zocor and he keeps complaining it is making his legs hurt. Thank you so much for sharing this Wendo.
|
Herckleperckle
Member
11-20-2003
| Wednesday, July 13, 2005 - 11:49 pm
Thanks so much, Juju. Still haven't talked to him! (He got in late and was ready for bed.) But I will tomorrow. He DOES have back pain--sees a physical therapist for it. Shaking my head here. Signing off! See you all on Sunday evening!
|
Lumbele
Member
07-12-2002
| Thursday, July 14, 2005 - 6:17 am
That Lipidor may work great on cholesterol, but its side effects are obviously numerous. My dh also suffered from muscle and joint pains. For some reason his doctor was very resistant to believe Lipidor was the cause (in spite of all the info out there) and taking him off, but he stood his ground, and she ended putting him on Lipidril, a non-statin version. So far so good with that one.
|
Wendo
Member
08-07-2000
| Thursday, July 14, 2005 - 9:48 am
Lumbele, thanks for the info about Lipidril, it's one I'll discuss with my doc. Yes, Lipitor (and other statin drugs) do have side effects, but as I've written before, there are millions of people on it feeling fine suffering no side effects whatsoever. Some people just can't tolerate the statin drugs unfortunately. Supergranny, keep us updated about hubby. If he didn't have pain in his legs before the Zocor, tell the doctor that. Don't let the doc tell him it's not the statins. One suggestion is going off the drug for some time and seeing if the pain subsides. If it does, that's something to consider.
|
Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Thursday, July 14, 2005 - 1:16 pm
Lumbele, I think you might have been the one who tipped me to the fact that Lipitor can cause back pains.
|
Tishala
Member
08-01-2000
| Thursday, July 14, 2005 - 1:18 pm
I just wanted to let yall know that I have found this thread fascinating. I was going to put it into my update last night, but then I forgot and when I tried to edit it in it was too late. Lots and lots of good information in here.
|
Wendo
Member
08-07-2000
| Monday, July 18, 2005 - 1:09 pm
Thought I would give an update about my prescription drug reaction. My muscle pain is completely gone and my elevated CPK levels are almost normal (190). This weekend I was able to resume biking and didn't experience any problems. So it seems I've rebounded from what happened without any serious after effects. My thigh muscles are a bit weak, but that'll go away in no time. I have one more blood test next week to check everything, including my cholesterol. It is going back up though, last weeks blood test showed that. The next day I see my doctor to discuss the situation and other options. Although, I said to her nurse who called that I'm obviously a bit wary of trying another cholesterol lowering drug. But, we'll talk and discuss what I can do. Thanks for all the support and well wishes all. As far as other prescription drugs I'm on, I haven't experienced any problems to date.
|
Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Monday, July 18, 2005 - 10:35 pm
Good luck, Wendo.
|
Lumbele
Member
07-12-2002
| Tuesday, July 19, 2005 - 5:45 am
Glad you are feeling better, Wendo. Let us know what you and your doctor decide.
|
Hypermom
Member
08-13-2001
| Thursday, July 21, 2005 - 12:45 pm
I'm so glad you are on the mend, Wen. I'm also glad you posted all of this about Lipitor, because I just started taking it on Friday. My endo dr. had warned me last month that Grave's patients usually have an elevated cholesterol level and my tests through my GP confirmed that. I read on the drug interaction website that I use, that grapefruit is a big no-no when on Lipitor. This may be a stupid question, but in multivitamins, where does the ascorbic acid for vitamin c come from?
|
Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Wednesday, August 10, 2005 - 1:05 am
Grapefruit is a no-no for any number of drugs, although I've heard some people say just don't eat it close to the time you take the med, but since I'm not a huge grapefruit devotee, I just don't eat it. Wendo, that is a very scary reaction. I had a friend who went on Lipitor and had a multitude of horrible side-effects and had to be taken off it. I've been on it (40mg) for a few years and my cho is 159 (it was 365). At least since I had my knee surgery I can exercise too. I do have jumpy thigh muscles but my bloodwork has been good.. I had one elevated liver function that was making my doctor crazy so I had a workup with a rheumatologist and of course that particular level went normal for him. He sent me to a neurologist for the jumpy muscles and that doctor tested up and down my legs.. both looked at my full body scan which confirmed why I've had back pain much of my life and I had regular x rays also, abdominal ultrasound, bloodwork and they think I'm in pretty good shape except the problems with my lower back. AND oddly enough, the neurologist put me on that Parkinson's drug, Mirapex, for the jumpy thigh muscles! I don't seem to have developed any new compulsive behaviors so that is a good thing.. but I did read that article in the paper, the one Juju provided. I haven't had any increase in back pain (which isn't constant at all) since Lipitor, so I think I'm ok on that symptom. My BP med is a generic lisinopril and seems to work fine too. I need to talk to my doctor to see if I should go off it and monitor my BP since I've been able to exercise and have lost weight, perhaps I don't need it any more. Naturally that is the least expensive of any of my meds, being generic. I love this thread; we should be able to collect some very helpful info. I have a friend I met at a class for people with various chronic illnesses or conditions and she had a stroke just two weeks after starting some medication.. it has really changed her life and unfortunately she didn't get anything out of the company that made the drug.. I guess it was hard to prove. She's unable to afford at least one medication she should be on
|
Wendo
Member
08-07-2000
| Friday, August 19, 2005 - 10:54 pm
So, I've been meaning to give an update. The week after my prior post, my CK (CPK) levels went back up again, to about 5500. I experienced muscle pain like the first incident, although it wasn't quite as bad. My GP had me go in the hospital to be hydrated again (to protect my kidneys) and see a Rhuemetologist. Even though the Lipitor was the cause of the first event, the second event shouldn't have happened. I was in the hospital for two days (though it was initially to be one; paperwork mess up.) The Rheumetologist I saw felt it wasn't Rheumetology related and referred me to a Neurologist who specializes in muscle disorders. (I'm still waiting to hear from them to schedule the appointment.) Basically, there's two opinions were going on. One, the Lipitor unmasked another underlying disorder I had but wasn't aware of. Or, two, the Lipitor has caused another disorder to develop. The Rheumetologist thought I might have a muscle enzyme issue going on. I also had a god-awful EMG test on my right leg. Let me tell, that test was the worst thing I've ever experienced. They jam needles in to your muscles to test them. Ugh. Apparently, the test was normal, although I wasn't experiencing any muscle problems at the time. So, at this point, I'm waiting for an appointment with this specialty doc. No exercise at all since it's possible the exercise I did before the second event could've brought it on. I think that's what happened but, as has been pointed out to me, the Lipitor was out of my body by then so I shouldn't have had another Rhabdomyolysis event like I did. Seamonkey, yeah, I'm not a huge grapefruit fan either so it wasn't a big deal for me. Lipitor is a great drug actually. Unfortunately, some people, like me and your friend, just can't take it. I, too, have jumpy muscles. I've always had them; I thought it was normal but, apparently it's not. I also have another underlying muscle disorder called Malignant Hyperthermia (an allergy to certain muscle relaxants and anesthetics.) So, it's possible something is going on that, until the Lipitor, wasn't pronounce. Sorry about your friend with the stroke. That's certainly a tough one. There are just no easy answers for such a situation. Like I wrote earlier, drugs do carry risks and one needs to weigh the risks versus the benefits. Honestly, I don't regret going on the Lipitor, despite the outcome. I knew about the rare side effect but felt the benefits to my heart and vascular system far outweighed it. And, had I not been in that 1%, my cholesterol would be rawkin' right now. LOL! Oh well.
|
Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Friday, August 19, 2005 - 11:17 pm
Wendo, I'm sorry that test hurt so much. I had the needles stuck in my legs from top to toes but was fortunate that it didn't hurt too much. The neurologist put me on Mirapex, which is actually used for Parkinsons symptoms (I went through a rheumatolgist for a workup first). I didn't have aything like your symptoms (and wish you didn't either). Mirapex has a recently reported side effect that it can trigger compulsive gambling or sex or whatever.. I haven't had those symptoms (but wonder about compulsive money spending).. I just wish it did a better job of controlling the jumpiness. I hope they can do more for your symptoms.
|
Wendo
Member
08-07-2000
| Sunday, August 21, 2005 - 3:42 am
Seamonkey, thanks for the post, much appreciated. Yeah, that EMG test wasn't fun, at all. LOL! When I finally get to see this doc I'll make sure to tell him about my jumpy muscles. Thanks for telling me about your situation, it's helped me a lot.
|
Kristylovesbb
Member
09-14-2000
| Sunday, August 21, 2005 - 9:28 pm
Hi Wendo, sorry to hear you are having these problems and had to have such horrid tests. I had an allergic reaction several years ago to Naproxen an anti-inflammatory drug I had been taking for several years. I had been in a wreck that caused ruptured disks in the c4 and c5 of my neck so I had to take it on and off as I needed it. One morning my neck hurt so I took one, 30 min later I start itching. I ran down the hall and grabbed a hair brush and was scratching everywhere I could reach. Dh was sitting on the sofa looking at me as though I had finally gone bonkers. Then all of a sudden I get so hot I start yanking off all my clothes, turn red as a beet and sweating profusely. My tongue swelled also. DH called paramedics, they get there check BL pressure, it's 60/40. They took me to the hospital and I received some sort of shot, don't remember, told to never take anti-inflammatory drugs again and sent home. At this time I have carpal-tunnel in both wrists, tendinitis in my left wrist and right elbow and cannot take the very drug that helps the most, short of taking steroid shots, with these conditions . My luck.
|
Herckleperckle
Member
11-20-2003
| Tuesday, August 23, 2005 - 4:46 am
Kristy, can you bite the bullet and have the (relatively) easy surgical interventions to fix the carpal tunnel and tendonitis? (That's why I have done--but I didn't have complicating factors then, either.) Btw, I took Naproxen for over 10 years for extreme premenstrual pain--and, though not allergic to it, from what I have read and my doc told me, it may well have been a huge factor in my development of an ulcer and Crohn's. I don't think (for me) that it was the naproxen so much as it was my overuse of it. (Turns out I had other, unrecognized gyn problems that contributed to my pain. And I supposedly had one of the best gyns in the area, too. Infuriates me that I didn't know more then and that she didn't suggest some basic tests to identify the problem earlier.)
|
Herckleperckle
Member
11-20-2003
| Tuesday, August 23, 2005 - 4:49 am
Source: Ivanhoe.com Reported August 22, 2005 Genetic Test for Your Meds SEATTLE (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) -- We've all heard about the potential dangers of prescription medications. In fact, more than 100,000 Americans die each year because of adverse drug reactions. Now, a simple test could tell you how you'll react before your doctor writes a prescription. "The drug reaction testing is clearly going to help solve the adverse drug reaction problem and save thousands of lives per year," says Howard Coleman, founder of Genelex Corporation The genetic test Coleman's referring to determines how your body metabolizes drugs and can detect potential reactions to medications that travel through the liver, including antidepressants, anti-seizure drugs, blood thinners and pain relievers. "If your liver doesn't have the capacity to process this drug, it can build up to toxic levels or it might not work," explains Coleman. The blood test spots tiny variations in your DNA, helping doctors tailor treatments and customize doses. Brooke Shiotani took the test when she was having problems with antidepressants. "I'd be on a quarter of the starting dose and I would still be completely wiped out for 10 to 12 hours," she says. The test showed she metabolizes drugs normally; meaning the cause of her reaction was not genetic. Shiotani says, "It helped kind-of eliminate a possibility of what was going wrong. It's just another piece of information about myself that if I need some sort of health care, hopefully the people treating me can use it." If the cause of a drug reaction isn't genetic, it could be due to age, sex, weight or general health. The drug reaction test costs between $250 and $800 depending on if you need one test or up to four tests. The test is sometimes covered by insurance and available to anyone who is willing to pay for it. If you would like more information, please contact: Kristine Ashcraft Director of Client Services Genelex Corporation 3000 First Avenue Seattle, WA 98121 (800) 523-6487 info@genelex.com http://www.genelex.com/
|
|