Statins

[Bper]

8 minutes ago, Roy124 said:

Ivan, in UK it is illegal to kill deer or hare with your car and then take the kill home.  However it is not illegal for the car behind you to pick it up and take it home.

I suppose someone has to pick these up from the road as

oh deer it will be hare today gone tomorrow 

[Mjolinor]

5 minutes ago, Bper said:

I suppose someone has to pick these up from the road as

oh deer it will be hare today gone tomorrow 

Let me help you with your coat, please.

[Roy124]

Don't badger him

[Hybrid21]

20 hours ago, Roy124 said:

Iain,  do you know what they call high side?

I was called in by my GP 10 years or so ago.  I duly reported but saw a different GP.  He asked why I was there.  I said because I had been told to and suspected  it was for cholesterol. 

He looked at the figures and said he didn't see a problem. 

Looking at my med notes from decades earlier by level was 5.6.  For Christmas I got a smart watch.  My cholesterol is between 5.8 and 6.8 and varies throughout the day. 

The watch also measures blood pressure which is around 124/78 and just touching pre-hypertension levels.  

I am 81 and not on statins or other meds.   Before you accept statins have a look at your figures against norms. 

Statins for the over 40s is Government policy and GPs get paid for each prescription.   Go figure.

thanks Roy, I didn't realise that the cholesterol level varied so much throughout the day.

I would rather not take Statins if possible, good to hear other people's views and comments on this 👍

[Roy124]

Iain,  if you think about it, it is logical that there will be regular variation.   A fasting blood test may be after 12 hours or more, typically 9pm to 9am.  The level will then increase after your delayed breakfast.

If you then eat throughout the rest of the day it follows the level will increase.  If it did not reduce between meals why would it drop hugely over night.

Typically a blood test is done in the morning to enable them to get the bloods to the lab.  As a matter of interest, when had you eaten before your test and was it a fasting test?

You might ask for a second test before accepting statins.

E2A, at breakfast my reading was 6.0.  It then settled at 5.7 until noon when I had coffee and two biscuits.   It shot up to 7.0 but 45 minutes later down to 6.8.  As I say, the values are unimportant,  it is the variation that is more interesting. 

[Haliotis]

I have been on a BP tablet since I had a TIA whilst in France in 2008.  It happened on a Saturday night at about 10 pm, and we were on a camping site.  The emergency services arrived in minutes and I was taken to Avranches hospital, a distance of some 25 km, and was in a scanner within an hour of the emergency call being made.  Treatment commenced immediately and was thorough during the next few days, resulting in my being discharged on the Thursday afternoon, so less than six days.  When I explained that I was driving, the doctor told me that everything was fine, and I could drive and continue with our holiday, which we did.

When I got back home  and advised my doctor of the situation I was given a hospital appointment for a check up, and told that in the UK I would not have received treatment until the Monday.  I have always believed that the rapid treatment in France saved me from losing a substantial amount of my faculties, and I am truly grateful to the French medical staff for the care I received.  The food was excellent, too, and the nurses were very attractive - the weather was hot and one day they gave me a bed bath.  My wife has never approved of my enthusiastic description of this experience.  Got to have a bright side, haven’t you? 😃

[Hybrid21]

5 hours ago, Roy124 said:

Iain,  if you think about it, it is logical that there will be regular variation.   A fasting blood test may be after 12 hours or more, typically 9pm to 9am.  The level will then increase after your delayed breakfast.

If you then eat throughout the rest of the day it follows the level will increase.  If it did not reduce between meals why would it drop hugely over night.

Typically a blood test is done in the morning to enable them to get the bloods to the lab.  As a matter of interest, when had you eaten before your test and was it a fasting test?

You might ask for a second test before accepting statins.

E2A, at breakfast my reading was 6.0.  It then settled at 5.7 until noon when I had coffee and two biscuits.   It shot up to 7.0 but 45 minutes later down to 6.8.  As I say, the values are unimportant,  it is the variation that is more interesting. 

Hi Roy, it was a fasting test at 8.30am. He was testing for other things like diabetes, etc as well.

[Primus1]

I’m on statins and blood pressure tablets, had to go back to the doctor with a strange side effect….I kept thinking I was Tom Jones…the doctor said it’s not unusual…

[Rhymes with Paris]

15 minutes ago, Primus1 said:

I’m on statins and blood pressure tablets, had to go back to the doctor with a strange side effect….I kept thinking I was Tom Jones…the doctor said it’s not unusual…

Aye, I went to that same doctor and showed him a strawberry birthmark on my forehead.

He said, I can prescribe you some cream for that.

[haelewyn]

Don't feel it's bad to have a side effect and you complain about that to your doctor.
I had a lot of them .... took them years to change my cocktail to one that is bearable for me.

Diabetes, heart problem, blood pressure prob, cholesterol, gault, eye problem, ... 
Stomach and bowel problems probably from taking too many medicine.

In a combination of several medicine, there's nearly always something going wrong.

And some things, you just learn to live with it cause there is as good as no other way.

[Roy124]

1 hour ago, haelewyn said:

In a combination of several medicine, there's nearly always something going wrong.

I thought of that years ago.  I think only recently have the medical experts realised  that A+B+C might have caused a problem for which D had been prescribed and that E was necessary  etcetera.

I went to a GP (from the sub continent) who prescribed me a pill.  He also prescribed me for another pill but neglected to say what it was for and the box gave no clue.  I found out it was to counter side effects from the first.  I never felt the need to take them. 

[dannyboy413]

One of the side effects of my prostate tablets can be rhinitis. I quite often had bouts of my nose 'leaking' so I mentioned it to the Doctor on one of my visits. She told me that she could give me a tablet for the rhinitis. I said that the extra tablet might have side effects as well and she agreed with me. I politely told her 'thanks but no thanks' and that I would just buy some more hankies! I still have bouts of rhinitis, but I have a lot of hankies in my sock drawer. 😊

[Nick72]

Taking some bile acid binders. Gall bladder removal. Apparently they reduce cholesterol as a side effect. Otherwise I'd be on statins!

 

[Rhymes with Paris]

Oh

3 minutes ago, dannyboy413 said:

One of the side effects of my prostate tablets can be rhinitis. I quite often had bouts of my nose 'leaking' so I mentioned it to the Doctor on one of my visits. She told me that she could give me a tablet for the rhinitis. I said that the extra tablet might have side effects as well and she agreed with me. I politely told her 'thanks but no thanks' and that I would just buy some more hankies! I still have bouts of rhinitis, but I have a lot of hankies in my sock drawer. 😊

Oh ,a few older people finish up on so many medications and counter medications,it makes my head spin.

Sometimes it can be beneficial to have a prescription review with a pharmacist, they are properly qualified, and usually helpful .

So many of us have so many scripts that it's easy to lose track of what they are for.

[dannyboy413]

My late Mum used to take 20+ tablets a day - the majority were to counteract the side effects of other tablets! 

[Primus1]

I’m on statins and blood pressure medicine, I used to get a lot of headaches that over the counter painkillers wouldn’t touch, I was eventually diagnosed with high blood pressure and cholesterol, thankfully the headaches have stopped and I don’t seem to have any adverse side effects apart from feeling the cold more..

[Hybrid21]

12 hours ago, dannyboy413 said:

My late Mum used to take 20+ tablets a day - the majority were to counteract the side effects of other tablets! 

Hi Danny, looking back my mother was the same, it became too many tablets for her to work out herself what and when to take. ( this did cause problems) 

I remember we had a wee west highland terrier at the time and when visiting her it spotted something under my mother's chair and went for it. It was a small red steroid tablet which she immediately spat out thankfully 😀

 It also makes me wonder when I go to the pharmacy the massive paper bags of medication that people are collecting. Prescriptions are free in Scotland, but makes me wonder 🤨

 

[Haliotis]

At one point, a few years ago, the doctor changed my Tamsulosin prescription to “Fasterides” - think that is the correct name!   But when I read of possible side effects -which included weeping of the nipples - I went straight back and said I would stay on Tamsulosin.

[dannyboy413]

8 hours ago, Haliotis said:

which included weeping of the nipples -

Reminds me of that phrase about not crying over spilt milk for some reason .......

[Nick72]

8 hours ago, Haliotis said:

At one point, a few years ago, the doctor changed my Tamsulosin prescription to “Fasterides” - think that is the correct name!   But when I read of possible side effects -which included weeping of the nipples - I went straight back and said I would stay on Tamsulosin.

Speaking of which I was once on high dose omerprazole for GERD for a long time. Both my nipples got hard lumps behind them. Not a good look in a gym vest. It was a W T F moment. Nothing sinister. It was hormonal from the drugs after they lanced both for biopsy. Switched tablets at that point to ranitidine which worked like a treat until they were banned because they did a good job of covering up certain other illnesses which I've forgot.

[wivenhoe]

I have been a part of a trial for a twice yearly injection to reduce cholesterol. The trial has been so successful the NHS has approved its use, at the moment only for patients who have had a heart attack or stroke. They are continuing the trial to see if it is even more successful in reducing the levels that it is financially viable to use it generally. I don’t know if I am on the product or placebo - they don’t tell me the results of the blood tests. 
If you have had a heart attack or stroke it may be worth asking your gp if you can get the injection - https://www.orion4trial.org/homepage-uk and https://www.heartuk.org.uk/news/latest/post/163-nhs-approves-ground-breaking-cholesterol-lowering-medicine

[Roy124]

My wife is on Avorstatin sic? which is apparently an old formulation but unlike newer ones does not have any side effects for her.

At each review she has to insist on this one but it is always a special order.