Theophylline symptoms and conditions

I am 34 years old. I am a pharmacy tech. I have asthma and allergies. I have taken singulair pretty much every day since it came out on the market. I've had asthma since i was about 10 years old. I took theophylline as a kid. Steriods on and off especially during times when my allergies are bad. I still use Advair during the fall and spring. Every drug has a side effect. However breathing is pretty good damn thing. Do I have days when I feel low? Yeah. Do I sometimes have nightmares? Yup. Are "natural" products the answer. Not always. The fish oil that some of the posters are touting can also cause GI problems. Some of the natural products contain herbs and other plant derivatives that can be harmful for a child that suffers from allergies. Not proactively treating asthma can be deadly. Some of the parents are suggesting steriods as the answer - those can cause weight gain, growth suppression and can lead to a worsening of asthma.

Singulair has never made me feel like I've wanted to kill myself. I was more depressed and angry as kid when my asthma did not allow me to partipate in normal childhood things. I was sad and hated life when I couldn't keep up with friends at recces because I was having trouble breathing. You have to outweigh the costs with the benefits. I am more irritable when I have asthma flareup then I am on a normal day. For me, I choose to breathe. And singulair has been helping me for almost a decade.

I'm not saying the medication isn't causing these symptoms but maybe there is an underlying cause to your child's depression.

Any drug has a side effect. But without medical research and the medications that come with them - people would still be dying of simple diseases and we wouldn't have vaccinations. As a society, as a whole, we are a culture that looks to someone else to fix things and then blames the people who try to fix it. We need to stop being the "hot McDonald's coffee'" society.

I was on singulair for years for asthma. At first it seemed like a big help and I didn't put two and two together for a long time that it was causing problems. hair loss, weight gain, racing heart, rising blood pressure, dreams, irritability, memory loss, leg and muscle pain, and much more.
I have gone back to using theodur (theophylline) it has worked for 50 years for me and many others without the side effects of singulair.

Back in the 90's when the drug companies first started promoting all these new asthma drugs, especially the puffer$$, they got together and got the fda to take off the combo medicines that contain theophylline off the market, saying they 'didn't work'. So they removed marx, quadrinal, tedral, quibron and a host of others from the market...to clear the path to market their new designer asthma medicines. They almost got rid of theophylline too, but the pulmonologists put up a fight as it is one of their important meds. Theophylline is a terrific bronchial dialator. They also removed theophylline from primatene, an old standby over the counter medicine for asthmatics.

The reason they want rid of the theo and related drugs is because the patents have run out and they can't make any $money$ off them.

So welcome to the nightmare of singulair and others. Hope this little history helps.

Ive only been on Advair for almost a month. I couldn't believe how quickly my asthma disappeared. I was using my inhaler daily and tried other things but nothing helped. I went to a pulmonary specialist and prescribed Advair for a month. I'm so glad i have to go back and see him this Saturday b/c I want to tell him I will no longer take this. I'm 26 years old and had developed asthma when I was 7 years old. It went away when I was 14 and just came back full force 3 years ago. I would have tried anything to be able to breathe normally again.
I've had the hoarseness in my voice and a bad cough where I'm spitting up mucus everyday since I've been on Advair. I figured if this was what I had to live with to have the chance to live a normal life asthma free that id take it, it wasn't so bad. But this past week I've had blinding headaches non-stop. Ive been nauseous, sweating, coughing, I've been sore like I just finished a long workout, chest pains, tightness in my chest and my legs have felt so weak. This morning I woke up with the worst cold too; which I know Advair weakens your immune system but this is crazy. I stopped taking Advair this morning & I'm going to tell my doctor I need to try something else.

I started taking Symbicort 4 weeks ago. I'm an active person, eat well and I'm in good shape. I caught a cold a week after taking symibort. It seems that as my cold got better, I didn't feel like I could breathe any easier. Since I starte taking it, I've been real fatigued. I wake up very tired and I'm sleepy all day. I stopped taking it yesterday. I fell better today. I went back on Advair until I can see the Doctor to try another medicane.

Potassium

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Pronunciations









albuterol

aldosterone

angiotensin

dialysis

digoxin

electrolytes

Fanconi's syndrome

hyperkalemia

hypokalemia

polyp

spironolactone

terbutaline

theophylline

Most of the body's potassium is located inside the cells. Potassium is necessary for the normal functioning of cells, nerves, and muscles.

The level of potassium in the blood must be maintained within a narrow range. A potassium level that is too high or too low can have serious consequences, such as an abnormal heart rhythm or even cardiac arrest. The potassium stored within the cells can be used by the body to help maintain a constant level of potassium in the blood.

Potassium balance is achieved by matching the amount of potassium taken in with the amount lost. Potassium is taken in through food and electrolyte-containing drinks and lost primarily in urine, although some potassium is also lost through the digestive tract and in sweat. Healthy kidneys are able to adjust the excretion of potassium to match changes in dietary intake. Some drugs and certain conditions affect the movement of potassium into and out of cells, which greatly influences the potassium level in the blood.

Hypokalemia
In hypokalemia, the level of potassium in the blood is too low. Excessive potassium loss usually results from vomiting, diarrhea, chronic laxative use, or colon polyps. Very occasionally, excessive loss results from excessive sweating in conditions of extreme heat and humidity. Many foods contain potassium, so hypokalemia is rarely caused by too little intake in people who eat a balanced diet.

There are several reasons why potassium may be lost in the urine. By far the most common is the use of diuretics that cause the kidneys to excrete excess sodium, water, and potassium. In Cushing's syndrome, the adrenal glands produce excess amounts of aldosterone, a hormone that causes the kidneys to excrete large amounts of potassium (see Adrenal Gland Disorders: Cushing's Syndrome). Excessive potassium is also excreted by people who eat large amounts of licorice or chew certain types of tobacco. People with Liddle's syndrome (see Tubular and Cystic Kidney Disorders: Liddle's Syndrome), Bartter's syndrome (see Tubular and Cystic Kidney Disorders: Bartter's Syndrome), and Fanconi's syndrome (see Tubular and Cystic Kidney Disorders: Fanconi's Syndrome) have rare defects that interfere with the kidneys' ability to conserve potassium.

Certain drugs (such as insulin

and the antiasthmatic drugs albuterol

, terbutaline

, and theophylline

) increase the movement of potassium into the cells and can result in hypokalemia. However, use of these drugs is rarely the sole cause of hypokalemia.

A mild decrease in the potassium level in the blood usually causes no symptoms. A more severe decrease can cause muscle weakness, twitches, and even paralysis. Abnormal heart rhythms may develop, especially in people with heart disease. Even mild hypokalemia is dangerous in people taking the heart drug digoxin

. The diagnosis is made by determining that the potassium level in the blood is low.

Potassium usually can be replaced by eating potassium-rich foods or by taking potassium supplements by mouth. Because potassium can irritate the digestive tract, supplements should be taken in small doses with food several times a day rather than in a single large dose. Special types of potassium supplements, such as wax-impregnated or microencapsulated potassium chloride, are much less likely to irritate the digestive tract.

Most people who take diuretics do not need to take potassium supplements. Nevertheless, doctors periodically check the potassium level in the blood so that the drug regimen can be altered if necessary. Alternatively, potassium-conserving diuretics (such as triamterene

, amiloride

, or spironolactone

) can be added to the diuretic therapy, but only in people whose kidneys are functioning normally.

Hyperkalemia
In hyperkalemia, the level of potassium in the blood is too high. Hyperkalemia usually results when the kidneys do not excrete enough potassium. Probably the most common cause of mild hyperkalemia is the use of drugs that decrease blood flow to the kidneys or prevent the kidneys from excreting normal amounts of potassium. Such drugs include triamterene

, spironolactone

, and angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors. Hyperkalemia can also be caused by Addison's disease, in which the adrenal glands do not produce sufficient amounts of the hormone aldosterone, which stimulates the kidneys to excrete potassium (see Adrenal Gland Disorders: Addison's Disease). Kidney failure can result in severe hyperkalemia.

Hyperkalemia can also result when a large amount of potassium is suddenly released from the cells. A sudden release of potassium from the cells can result from crush injuries (involving the destruction of large amounts of muscle tissue), severe burns, or overdoses of crack cocaine. The rapid movement of potassium from the cells into the bloodstream can overwhelm the kidneys and result in life-threatening hyperkalemia.

Mild hyperkalemia causes few, if any, symptoms. Usually, hyperkalemia is first detected when routine blood tests are performed or when a doctor notices changes on an electrocardiogram. A high level of potassium in the blood is dangerous. It can cause the heart rhythm to become abnormal. If the level is very high, the heart can stop beating.

For mild hyperkalemia, reducing the potassium intake or discontinuing drugs that prevent the kidneys from excreting potassium may be the only treatment that is needed. If the kidneys are functioning, a diuretic may be given to increase potassium excretion.

For severe hyperkalemia, immediate treatment is essential. A resin that absorbs potassium from the digestive tract and passes out of the body in the stool can be given by mouth or enema. When this treatment is given, doctors also induce diarrhea so that the resin, with potassium absorbed into it, is quickly expelled.

When more rapid treatment is needed, the person may be given an intravenous solution containing calcium, glucose, or insulin

. Calcium helps protect the heart from the effects of a high potassium level but does not actually affect the potassium level. This protective effect lasts only a few minutes. Glucose and insulin

drive potassium from the blood into the cells, thus lowering the potassium level in the blood. If these measures do not work or if a person has kidney failure, dialysis may be necessary to remove the excess potassium.

Like most of you who have posted here, I too saw remarkable & remarkably quick improvement in my asthma (& even some allergy) symptoms. However, I'm also discovering that it is not worth the side effects!!! I would rather have the sneezing & wheezing than what I've been dealing with the last week or so!

And just to help put it in "context": I'm 31 years old & have had asthma & allergies since the age of 4. When I was younger it was really bad, I was often in the emergcency room 2 or 3 times a week, was prone to bronchitis & sinus infections, etc. When I was a teenager, I mostly outgrew it (though I've always had a rescue inhaler & some type of allergy medication, I just didn't have the severity/intensity of symptoms/attacks I did as a kid), but in my late 20's noticed that some of the symptoms seemed to be coming back, not too seriously, just "uncomfortably". I was using the Albuterol as my rescue inhaler with the Flovent inhaler & Allegra & was having good results, with minimal to no side effects, but when Claritin went over the counter, most insurance companies stopped covering the Allegra. I went in to my doctor's office almost 2 weeks ago to see about getting my treatment options updated... what I had in mind was perhaps getting upgraded to the higher dose of the Flovent inhaler & having the doctor right a letter so the insurance company would cover my Allegra, and was put on Flonase & Advair instead. Over the years I've taken Theophylline, Albuterol, Proventil (inhalers), Flovent, occassional rounds of Prednisone, allergy shots, Allegra, nebulizer treatments.. you name it.... and I can honestly say that as awful as some of that stuff made me feel (particularly the Prednisone & Theophylline), I can't EVER remember there being a time when I'd rather have the bad asthma, than the icky side effect!! This stuff is awful!!!!! I'd stopped taking the Flonase, but then realized 2 things: 1). it's the exact same ingrediant as the Flovent, which I'd had no problems with & 2). I was still taking the Advair & feeling crappier & crappier. It's the most god-awful stuff I think I've ever taken!

I've only been taking it since the evening of March 31st (it's now midday on April 12th) & here is the list of side-effects I've noticed, and that seem to be getting worse instead of better:

nausea (pretty bad too, have had days where all I can eat is saltines & gingerale!)
dizziness (have actually fallen twice! This from someone who dances, rides horses, does yoga, etc!);
ringing in my ears (LOUD)
earaches & itchy ears
headaches
joint/muscle stiffness, swelling & tenderness (feels like I've got arthritis or something & my back & neck muscles just ache all the time!)
sinus pressure/tenderness & blood when I blow my nose (just short of full-on nosebleeds)
depression/lethargy/extreme fatigue (again, I'm someone who usually enjoys things like walks, puttering around the house & garden, riding horses, doing yoga, going dancing... & all I've wanted to do is either sleep or lay around... yesterday folding a load of laundry made me soooo tired I wanted to cry!)
emotional changes (irritability, weepiness, etc.)
sleep disturbances/insomnia (not getting restful sleep, feeling to wound up to sleep, nightmares like I haven't had since I was a kid, etc.)
vision changes (blurry, those weird silvery traces/flashes somebody else here mentioned)
itchy skin -- ALL OVER!!
dry skin
1st diahhrea, now constipation
frequent urination
weight gain -- which is strange considering I'm too nauseaus to eat anything most days
strange & constant taste in my mouth (very "chemically" & slightly metallic) -- nothing tastes right
heartburn/indigestion (which I've never had!!)
heart palpitations/tremors/restlessness/nervousness
inability to concentrate
memory problems/"fogginess"
scratchy/mild sore throat
tender roof of mouth (eating toast is difficult)

The list goes on & on.... and, I am really good about taking it exactly as prescribed (had even cut back & that's not helping) & being sure to rinse my mouth out with water (& gargle!) & so on.... what I find most strange is that many of the symptoms would seem as though they couldn't possibly coexist... that they would cancel each other out (e.g. having insomnia & sleep disturbances at the same time as extreme fatigue & constantly wanting to nap; intense hunger pangs & weight gain when I'm too nauseaus to even want to think about food, etc.)... but there they all are!!

What scares me is that aside from having allergies & asthma, I've always been a very active & healthy person.... and in the last week I've gone from feeling like a young healthy person with some uncomfortable asthma/allergy symptoms to feeling like a sick, decrepit, feeble & exhausted old person.... my 89 year old grandpa has fewer physical complaints & is in better shape at the moment!!!

If it wasn't for this website, who knows how long I've had let myself think it was due to something other than this god-awful medication... thanks!! I've taken my last dose of Advair!! I'm just going to have to explore some other options to treat my symptoms (I hadn't thought I was actually "bad" enough to need something like Advair in the 1st place), or get the insurance company to cover my Allegra!

I've had asthma virtually all of my life. I'm 34 yrs. old now. I've had allergy shots (they did nothing). I used to take Theo-Dur (Theophylline). I've tried Serervent (didn't work). But Advair has really improved my asthma symptoms. Before Advair I was using Albuterol 10x per day. I'd wake up during the night and take a shot of Albuterol. It was not a good situation.

I've been on Advair for about 3 years now. I was prescribed the 250 dosage, but I take it only once a day in the morning. The asthma is the best it's ever been.

I've noticed a lot of the side effects that many of you have. Some of the stuff is easy enough to live with. I can deal with the occasional soar on my tongue / throat. I can tolerate a scratchy voice every now and then. But there are other issues that I now attribute to Advair that I can't continue to live with.

My back ache is awful. I cannot get comfortable at all. It even hurts when I'm laying in bed trying to fall asleep. I've gained weight too -- about 40 lbs. I'm 6'1" and 215 lbs. I was 180 in my beer drinking days. I'm not all that active, and maybe metabolism does slow with age ... but I'm not eating any more than before starting Advair. If it was just the weight, I'd blame myself and work out more.

The most significant change I've noticed was swelling of the lower legs. My shins would feel like they were full of fluid and they were tender to the touch. The medical term in Edema, and I saw a doctor about the Edema because it can be a sign of heart problems, etc. All tests came back as normal.

Now -- with the back pain and the edema and the weight gain -- all the doctors said the same thing. "Lose some weight". It makes sense, right? Less weight = less stress on your back & less stress on your legs. But I am thinking that the Advair is responsible. What can I do?

I'm not medical scholar, but I am pretty observant. I've experience the ballooning effects of Prednisone as a kid. I've see Jerry Lewis recently on TV all puffed up from the steroids he's taking. I've seen athletes transform themelves from lanky and athletic to puffy and muscleboud -- as a result of steroid use. And while it's a different type of steroid -- how much of the "bulking up" can be attributed to the medication?

Another symptom I have is slow recovery from workouts. When I lift weight (for toning - not for bulk), it takes me 3-4 days for my muscles to recovery. It used to take only 1 day.

I don't know what to do. I feel like I need the Advair to breathe properly, but it's making me very uncomfortable in so many other areas. I'd love to stop taking it and see if the side effects go away, but quiting a steroidal medication like Advair isn't supposed to be done "cold turkey".

Suggestions?

Side effect of Levaquin - numbness in the back of my brain, loss of balance, mental acuity is terribly effected, loss of appetite, need more sleep, personality changes, numbness of fingers and hands, speech affected, vision affected - I think that I was lucky to be taking benedryl during the time, but was also taking theophylline and aspirin - doctor should never have given me this drug. I should never have swallowed it in the first place. Was 500mg for only 3 days but was enough to make me crazy and I stopped it. Doctor has yet to respond to my complaints and his nurse only offered me another drug - which I refused. I feel like I am living in another time and space - not a normal space. I am keeping the fluids going to try to flush it out of my system. What a raging nightmare this is. I will email anyone who emails me at ******about this drug.

hello
i am 37 and have had severe chronic asthma all my life. as a child,teen, and young adult i was in the emrgency room at least twice a year for cold related asthma problems. i started taking theophylline at the age of 16, used over the counter inhalers til my mid-twenties when was given albuterol, and have gone on prednisone treatments numerous times. about 2 years ago my condition started deterioating, none of my previous medications were working well. by this time last year i was so bad that i went through an albuterol inhaler every two weeks, and i was constantly sick with lung infections. thats when my pulmonary dr (same one for almost 20 yrs) put me on advair and singulair. i noticed a MAJOR, near miraculous change for the positive almost right away, i could breathe again! i haven't been this clear for years. a few months after i started treatment i gained 10 lbs in less than a month. i thought it was because i changed birth control pills but changing back didn;t seem to help. i have started having attacks of diarrhea at least once a week, gas, bloating, swelling (of feet, hands, middle). lately i've been feeling nauseous, my lifleong insomnia has gotten MUCH worse, i've had blurry vision and the feeling like my head is going to explode. not to mention dizzines, lightheadedness, pressure in my head, dry mouth, hoarseness, back & feet pain, severe anxiety, tremors, rapid heartbeat- what seem to be all the classic symptoms! i had no idea it was the medication. i was so ill the other day i almost had my boyfriend take me to the emrgency room. i had been hearing on the news about serevent being unsafe so i started looking up the side effects and realized that's what it was (i now also see singulair can have similar effects) i stopped taking the advair for 2 days but my severe asthma started returning almost imeediately so i had to use it this morning- and i feel like CRAP right now. i know i need to see my dr ASAP but i am worried about controlling my asthma- i can't deal with these side effects but i also can't return to the state i was in last year- i could NOT BREATHE and was using my albuterol so much it was causing it's own problems (jittery, rapid heartbeat). PLEASE email me (******)if anyone has had any luck with alternatives! (does flovent cause the same long term problems?)

I have tried Singulair twice - each time going back to taking Theophylline.
I will not try Singulair again. Both times having started it I noticed
fluid retention, weight gain, and a feeling of heaviness in my chest.
I'll stick with Theophylline from now on.