On Fri, 1 Apr 2005 23:58:02 -0500, "Ed Huntress"
wrote:

"Gunner" wrote in message
.. .
On Fri, 1 Apr 2005 20:10:50 -0500, "Ed Huntress"
wrote:

"jim rozen" wrote in message
...
In article , Gunner says...

Buy a PDA (Physians Desk Referance) and make friends with the owners
of the local feed and grain store.

Or, buy a PDR even if you *don't* plan on shopping there.
The book is chock-full of information about the drugs
that doctors and pharmaceutical companies push. Interesting
reading, that.

Jim

Man, some of them are really ugly, too. Today, I was editing prescribing
information for clozapine, which can drop your white-cell count and kill
you. Be glad you're not schizophrenic.

When you get into the "last ditch" drugs for horrendous conditions, you
get
a whole new perspective on "side effects" and risks. Like, some of them
are
death. So you're playing a game of statistics and hoping you roll sevens.

My wife has to take Amiodarone for her V-tach.

The Devils Drug.

Ouch. I didn't check the references for frequencies on the side effects, but
the Medline listing makes them sound like walking a tightrope.

How's she doing on it?

Walking a tightrope with punji stakes on one side and the bowels of
hell on the other.

Its affected her liver functions, her kidneys, given her sleep apnea
(has to sleep with a pressure ventilator (CPAP) mask and it and the
other meds (9 at the moment) have caused her to start gaining weight
to some extent. She bruises like you wouldnt believe, has to be
careful not to cut herself. And of course the ventricular tachycardia.

Other than that, she is doing well enough. Ive gained a bit of
respect. She keeps a positive attitude most of the time, even though
she is home alone 4-5 nights a week. This week, she will be home alone
10 straight days. Well..the dogs are there.

They finally diagnosed her as having Factor 5/Leiden
http://www.fvleiden.org/

It appears she inheirited one bad gene. Her father had a massive MI
and died at the age of 45. Both her brothers (whom she resembles) had
MIs at 45, and she had hers at 45. Double bypasses all of them. Her
surviving brother has had arterial clogging problems until recently,
when she told him to have his doctor to check him for Factor 5.
Bingo.

That blood line has an expiration date. Mean time before failure.

The other sisters resemble her mom..no cardiac issues at all, so the
gene was passed down with something in DNA along with the genes that t
causes the victims all to have similar coloration, facial features
etc.

She was extremely fit, Jazzersize dancer, etc. Then got nailed by
genetics. Now she is disabled to fair degree. Shrug.

I expect to get a phone call someday while Im on the road, telling me
she was found dead. Knock on wood. Repeatedly and hard.

Course..she could outlive me. I have a higher stress level taking care
of her and everyone and everything else. Shrug

Gunner

Rule #35
"That which does not kill you,
has made a huge tactical error"