3 Things To Know Before You Take Any Medicine

It has become very common to take "pills" also known as  drugs or medicine. They could have been prescribed by your doctor or you could have got it from your friendly neighborhood pharmacy store, but the question is, do you know what you are taking and whether it suits you.

Before we say the the 3 things which you should know, let us narrate a story.

A 57 year old lady, who was very active in social circle and lead a balanced life developed palpitations. Two or three episodes of palpitation were diagnosed as Supra Ventricular Tachycardia by a Cardiologist. She was asked to take Diltiazem 90 mg SR tablet. The timing of all this coincided with a marriage in the family. This lady who used to live with more than 5 members at home was now staying alone at home. During the same period she started developing giddiness, anxiety, vertigo and other associated symptoms. The general conclusion was it must be "Empty Nest Syndrome". Progressively her symptoms deteriorated. She became overtly anxious and dependent. A neurologist consultation was followed with MRI. The MRI came as normal and she was supplemented with brain tonics.  The placebo effect of the drugs made her feel better but only temporarily. Her vertigo would not subside and she was afraid of traveling. She was hating herself for the loss of independence. She was also sick and tired of explaining her complaints.
At this juncture we happened to observe her. We also took time to decipher her problems. Confounding family history, possibility of chronic fatigue syndrome, BPPV  made it difficult to help her. When we took a step back and looked at it, we realized it coincided with introduction of tablet Diltiazem. We reduced her dosage to 1/4th of what she was taking and lo behold! her symptoms reduced. She slowly started feeling better. The BPPV exercises also helped. 5-7% of patients who take Diltiazem develop neurological and psychological symptoms. Her Cardiologist initially refused to believe that her symptoms were due to Diltiazem, but now that she is totally off Diltiazem, her giddiness has completely vanished and her anxiety is also no longer there. It is a different matter that she has been advised to take Aspirin 75 mg for which she has developed gastritis! The Cardiologist wants her to continue Aspirin.

Now coming back to what 3 things you should know before you take medicines?

1. Know about your allergy:  Do you have any allergy towards medicines?  If so, state it to your doctor. Allergies can develop at any point of time. You might have been taking a particular medicine since childhood but you may develop the allergy when you become 45 year old. Also if you develop a rash on thigh or any body part after taking a drug, it is called as fixed drug reaction. You need to inform about it to your doctor.

2. Know about side effects: Ask your doctor about common as well as rare side effects of the medicine you are going to take. This is especially true for chronic medications. Your doctor may know the common side effects but would be unaware about rare ones.


3. Know about how long you are supposed to take your medicine: Many people continue to take drugs beyond the prescribed duration or stop taking because they feel better. Both harm you. Few medicines cannot be stopped abruptly. They need to be reduced gradually.

Know your medicines and take them wisely.

Wishing you health always.

Is The Medication You Are Taking For Knee Pain Safe?

Invariably people suffer from knee pain. The reasons for knee pain can be various, but most often people are prescribed pain relievers. Most pain relievers belong to the class of drugs called Non-Steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs (NSAID). Few do take only paracetamol which is not an NSAID.

                                                Image Courtesy: Flickr -James Buck


Recently we had a second opinion consultation for high blood pressure (BP). She is a 55 year old lady who suffers from severe knee pain on account of osteoarthritis since few years. As the first Orthopedician was not able to relieve her pain, they consulted a second orthopedician, who had put her on Oxaceprol for more than a month. She was also on Piroxicam. She was having giddiness since one month. Six days earlier they had visited their general physician who prescribed her Olemasartan for her high BP. The next day her giddiness symptoms aggravated. At this point, we were consulted.

When we went through the detailed history, we diagnosed that her BP was high because of the two NSAID drugs, that is, Oxaceprol and Piroxicam, for her knee pain. This was preventing the Olemasartan to reduce her BP. We immediately asked her to stop her pain medications (NSAIDS).
She improved significantly within 24 hours. We suspected that her kidneys might have been damaged because of NSAIDS. Blood report indicated elevated creatinine and urea. Luckily, they were just above the upper limit of normal.

Why are reporting this story here?

We have come across many patients who take pain relievers for prolonged duration only to end up having more severe side effects like elevated blood pressure, kidney damage, gastric ulceration.

So if you are suffering from knee pain or if you any one known to you suffers from knee pain and is on chronic NSIADS, get them checked for side effects. People with diabetes need to be 100 times more careful when they take pain relievers.

Be informed, stay healthy!