test results

[gardeneyes]

Well, the test results from the visual accuity and EMG were both normal, according to the neurologist. He had planned to do a spinal tap after the last 2 tests but as of today decided it wouldn't show anything. His opinion is that all the problems my husband are having are mental. So, he is referring him to a mental health professional. When I asked him about muscle injury due to statin use he said he has never seen it and the statistics are just 1% of those who have muscle damage! I know that isn't right according to everything I have read. At the very least it is 4-5%. He mentioned that the CPK test was normal and I asked if it was true that some people have damage without elevated CPK scores. He didn't agree at all. My mistake was not bringing copies of the articles I have read from Mayo Clinic and major Physical Therapy websites as well as other sites. He also insisted that the muscle pain and weakeness would have ended as soon as the medication was stopped. He didn't want to discuss any more about the statin connection and kept bringing it back to a mental problem. When I asked how a mental problem could cause so many problems, he just said "you'd be amazed what the brain can do". I was very unhappy with his responses, as you can imagine. My dh has been seeing a naturopath who has helped with the digestive problems and a few symptoms but the nerve pain is still there as well as the weakness. Now we will have to start over with someone new, I guess.
Marilea

[tex62]

It sounds like it is time to find a new doctor, but it might not be easy to find someone who isn’t sold on the information the drug companies “sell” them through their literature and drug reps.

Like your husband, my husband was very active before the statin side effects started. There was an article in the American Journal of Medicine, May 2006 that reported that side effects are higher in people who exercise (3 – 10 percent) and that muscle pain and damage are low in those who don’t exercise. It also indicates that damage is higher in those with high triglycerides, which my husband had. See the full article at
ww.ezinearticles.com/?Exercise,-Cholesterol-and-Statin-Drugs&id=238899

My husband continued to get worse for several months after stopping Zocor and Tricor. The muscle pain improved first, and a couple of months later what appeared to be nerve damage started to improve. He had to give up ALL exercise for several months, but after about four months he was able to exercise and felt well again. Some people seem to recover sooner, others take more time, and some never seem to recover completely. Large doses of Q-10 seemed to help my husband and later through this site we learned about L-Carnitine which brought about final recovery.

[JL]

Short term memory loss is a common side effect of Lipitor and any statin drug for that matter. I know that my own mom who is on Lipitor acquired her short term memory loss after taking the Lipitor for several months. Any doctor who denies this symptom is probably the one who needs to see the shrink.
Cholesterol is very essential to our survival and our cells cannot live without it. When statins prevent cholesterol formation, it means that cells will be starved of cholesertol and begin to die. This is probably the reason for the intense pain that many have experienced. I just spoke to someone who was on 10 mgs of lipitor short-term and immediately suffered muscle pain in her legs. Altho she stopped the lipitor, she still continues to suffer from the leg pain. I don't think she is taking any supplements to help her unfortunately.

[gardeneyes]

How can you tell when it is ok to start exercising again. My dh wants to begin doing some exercise but is afraid he might injure himself if his muscles are compromised. He is feeling a little stronger most days but I know some have mentioned exercise intolerance. Is there a way to tell if it is ok to begin?

Text62, thank you for your information. It sounds like your husband's experience was very similar to my husbands. He is still having problems with his nerves but things are showing some signs of improvement. He can feel his ankles for the first time in months. There are still areas of numbness and the general tingling sensation. But, it isn't as bad as before. He is also beginning to "feel" his muscles again. It is a strange thing to not be able to feel parts of your body. Has your husband experienced that also? I had heard about the exercise connection and my husband did exercise regularly but I had not heard about the trygliceride connection and his were very high (499).

Thanks for your input,
Marilea

[tex62]

Marilea,

I don't know the answer for when to add exercise back to ones routine. It was trial and error for my husband. First he added short walks and increased the length of walks when it didn't produce any muscle pain. The muscles in his legs recovered first, but it took a couple of months longer until his hands, arms, and shoulders got better. He limited upper body exercise until he was able to sleep without taking something for pain. Then he added very light weights for his upper body, and worked up to more weights and reps until he was back to his pre-statin self. We feel very fortunate that he seems to be fully recovered. It might take some time for your husband to get there, but it sounds like he is in the recovery mode. Best wishes in his recovery.

[tex62]

Marilea,

I failed to add in my previous note... No, my husband never had the sensation of not being able to feel his ankles. Many times, he woke up during the night with his arms and hands so numb and tingling that he had to get up and take something for pain.

[Dee]

Marilea,

I have come to two conclussions about doctors such as you took your husband to.

1. They are lying.

2. Their head is buried so far up their butt, they shouldn't be practicing medicine.

[Darrell]

Marilea, three pieces of advice:
1. Get a new doctor. You'd be amazed how much damage your current doctor's brain can do.
2. Stop exercise as soon as the muscles start to ache, if not sooner. The ache means they're not keeping up with clearing wastes out of the cells. The wastes can damage other molecules within the cells, including DNA and such. Think of the ache as early onset of muscle cell poisoning.
3. Regular exercise is important. Just do shorter sessions and more of them.

[gardeneyes]

I mentioned that the doctor thought my husband's problems were probably in his mind and has referred him to a phyciatrist. On top of that he gave him a prescription for a drug called [b]gabapentin[/b]. We filled the prescription but when the pharmacist gave us the paper on the medication, it stated it was for seizures. We asked for more information about the drug and she stated "didn't your doctor explain it to you?" When we said no, she replied that she was disappointed he didn't explain it better. Anyway, she did say it was used also for nerve pain to for neuropathy. Since my husband has been having problems with many of the medications, I didn't want him to start taking something else right now. When I came home, I did some more research on the internet and found that not only was this new medication another strong medication that could cause problems with withdrawal (including seizures), it has a lawsuit against it because it hasn't been tested for anything except seizures. The lawsuit said some of the side effects include "suicide". Needeless to say, this medication is going in the box with all the other useless medications they are giving us. They continue to amaze me with their pushing more medications. But, after reading many of your posts, I shouldn't be surprised.
Marilea

[bunnylady]

Garden Eyes- there are only two doctors I would go to - the ones doing the trial studies in San Diego and the other who is a friend of "Doc" that is in Houston- the rest are all jerks when it comes to statins
what state do you live in?

[tex62]

Bunnylady,

What is the doctors name in Houston? It took nearly 10 months to fully recover, but we no longer have to deal with the side effects of statins. We live in Houston and would like to go to a doctor who thinks for himself/herself and doesn't rely on drug companies for direction in treating their patients.

[gardeneyes]

We live in Washington but I am considering going to Dr. Phillips in San Diego. We have family and friends there we can see and hopefully get some definite answers to what is happening so we can at least have answers.

Marilea

[JL]

Polypharmacy is the practice of prescribing a drug to take care of the side effects of the other drug that is causing the real problem. This causes the patient to suffer more from the side effects of a multitude of drugs than the real health problem. Most doctors have a bad habit of practicing polypharmacy and a real bad habit of only treating the symptoms. Too bad we can't do without them. JL

[harley2ride]

[quote="gardeneyes"]We live in Washington but I am considering going to Dr. Phillips in San Diego. We have family and friends there we can see and hopefully get some definite answers to what is happening so we can at least have answers.

Marilea[/quote]

I saw Dr. Phillips a few years ago. I really liked him. He still responds to my emails, and sends me updates on his studies. Not many doctors do that.