Chapter 171 - Another Trial
She had been complaining of increased tingling & burning in her fingertips. She came across a reference that Vitamin B6 in daily doses greater than 30mg was detrimental to health. I can't remember the effect. Is this the vitamin that caused the death of Antarctic explorers after eating the liver of dogs? I can't remember. Anyway, since she has been taking 100mg each day, whereas the recommended daily dose was a maximum of 30mg, she decided to stop some weeks ago, but I don't think there was any reduction in finger tip tingling.
At the beginning of this month I saw a reference in the CARE group (Care Givers Are Really Essential, a PD group) about the relationship between statins (read Lipitor) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and neural degeneration. See http://alsbytes.com/?p=185 . One of the comments that caused her to immediately stop taking 20mg of Lipitor (her GP had originally prescribed 40mg but she decided off her own bat to halve the dose) was as follows
"A Danish study reports that some people who took statin drugs to lower cholesterol developed a type of nerve damage called polyneuropathy. Polyneuropathy is characterized by tingling, numbness and burning pain "
Now those words "tingling, numbness and burning pain" are exactly how she described the sensations in her finger tips, long before I saw that reference. We had never heard of ALS. We have not told the GP about this experiment to not take Lipitor. After reading the article she realised that the sensations in her finger tips was greater after exercise, such as the Wii Fit routines, especially the stepping exercise that she performs for about 20 minutes each evening. I just checked with her that last night tingling began in her fingertips as she concluded the stepping although now, this morning, there is none at all. I asked "A week ago was the tingling there all day?" She simply replied "Yes".
I just checked back to see whether I had written about about her fingertips in an earlier post because I could not remember. Holy Excrement! Have a look at the last par for my June 21st '09 entry. And honestly, I have not edited that entry!! There is some worth after all in maintaining a diary of events and symptoms. The effects of the statin "poisoning"(my word), if that is what this problem of hers is, is aggravated by exercise.
As mentioned previously, we have been concerned with a blackish stain under one side of the nail of the toe adjacent to the big toe on her right foot. The GP inspected it. he said his "Mole Mate" skin cancer detector was ineffective checking beneath finger & toe nails, so referred her to the surgeon who took off the melanoma on her left leg. So on Friday last we saw the surgeon. He was impressed with the macro close-up photos I had taken each month since May and asked to keep them in her file. After a rather cursory inspection of the object causing concern he said he wanted her at the hospital where he would remove the nail under general anaesthetic for biopsy. He remembered her PD symptoms from last time, and her right leg produces much more uncontrollable tremors than the left. After I said that general anaesthetic knocks the stuffing out of her, her conceded he will attempt to do the job under a local "out the back" (referring to the day surgery rooms) on the proviso that if her leg became uncontrollable then he would have her taken up to the hospital to do the job under a general. He then scheduled the job for 12:30 tomorrow, Monday. I am unsure whether he thinks the matter is urgent or just that he can fit it into his schedule. Just in case she ends up at the hospital, apart from a light breakfast, she is to fast, although take her meds at the usual times. She has decided to take her noon meds at 11:30 so that kick-in occurs prior to the job starting. I fear there is little hope of that happening because the tension and stress will amplify her PD symptoms.
At lunch time today she will listen to her MP3 player (once used to help her sleep, no longer needed for that) to see whether calming music aids in minimising her leg tremors. I really hope the surgeon, who really enjoys his job, can be extra quick tomorrow. After she asked him what will be done if the biopsy indicates melanoma he just said "I will amputate the toe."
At the beginning of this month I saw a reference in the CARE group (Care Givers Are Really Essential, a PD group) about the relationship between statins (read Lipitor) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and neural degeneration. See http://alsbytes.com/?p=185 . One of the comments that caused her to immediately stop taking 20mg of Lipitor (her GP had originally prescribed 40mg but she decided off her own bat to halve the dose) was as follows
"A Danish study reports that some people who took statin drugs to lower cholesterol developed a type of nerve damage called polyneuropathy. Polyneuropathy is characterized by tingling, numbness and burning pain "
Now those words "tingling, numbness and burning pain" are exactly how she described the sensations in her finger tips, long before I saw that reference. We had never heard of ALS. We have not told the GP about this experiment to not take Lipitor. After reading the article she realised that the sensations in her finger tips was greater after exercise, such as the Wii Fit routines, especially the stepping exercise that she performs for about 20 minutes each evening. I just checked with her that last night tingling began in her fingertips as she concluded the stepping although now, this morning, there is none at all. I asked "A week ago was the tingling there all day?" She simply replied "Yes".
I just checked back to see whether I had written about about her fingertips in an earlier post because I could not remember. Holy Excrement! Have a look at the last par for my June 21st '09 entry. And honestly, I have not edited that entry!! There is some worth after all in maintaining a diary of events and symptoms. The effects of the statin "poisoning"(my word), if that is what this problem of hers is, is aggravated by exercise.
As mentioned previously, we have been concerned with a blackish stain under one side of the nail of the toe adjacent to the big toe on her right foot. The GP inspected it. he said his "Mole Mate" skin cancer detector was ineffective checking beneath finger & toe nails, so referred her to the surgeon who took off the melanoma on her left leg. So on Friday last we saw the surgeon. He was impressed with the macro close-up photos I had taken each month since May and asked to keep them in her file. After a rather cursory inspection of the object causing concern he said he wanted her at the hospital where he would remove the nail under general anaesthetic for biopsy. He remembered her PD symptoms from last time, and her right leg produces much more uncontrollable tremors than the left. After I said that general anaesthetic knocks the stuffing out of her, her conceded he will attempt to do the job under a local "out the back" (referring to the day surgery rooms) on the proviso that if her leg became uncontrollable then he would have her taken up to the hospital to do the job under a general. He then scheduled the job for 12:30 tomorrow, Monday. I am unsure whether he thinks the matter is urgent or just that he can fit it into his schedule. Just in case she ends up at the hospital, apart from a light breakfast, she is to fast, although take her meds at the usual times. She has decided to take her noon meds at 11:30 so that kick-in occurs prior to the job starting. I fear there is little hope of that happening because the tension and stress will amplify her PD symptoms.
At lunch time today she will listen to her MP3 player (once used to help her sleep, no longer needed for that) to see whether calming music aids in minimising her leg tremors. I really hope the surgeon, who really enjoys his job, can be extra quick tomorrow. After she asked him what will be done if the biopsy indicates melanoma he just said "I will amputate the toe."
posted by Kilpike | 7:31 am
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