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Medical Forum / Diseases and Disorders / Alzheimer's / May 2005Hello - My first post
I have been reading all your posts for the past days and have learnt a lot. Thanks. I came here because my 87 yr old mother had an inguinal hernia operation and afterwards kept saying she was so confused. She had a terrible nightmare where she lost her babies and she was looking under beds and around the house for them. She then realized her babies were grown ups now and did not live in her house anymore.I read here that anesthesia can affect minds that are already weak. She is now back to normal. Not confused anymore, but forgetful, she's used to that. My mother has not been evaluated but previous to the operation her medical doctor had given her Exelon tablets for a one month duration. She has Tropical Sprue, an assimilation condition, she does not assimilate/digest many foods and medicines and she is very afraid and careful of what she puts in her mouth. Tomorrow is her first appointment with surgeon after the operation and maybe she will have to continue taking the antibiotic so i have to take it easy since she is ok now. When she was confused i alerted my siblings and i was terribly sad and crying. Thank God it went away. Now i am so happy. My question is why did the doctor chose Exelon and not Aricept. Do you know if there is a difference between these two? I have not have time to go any further with internet research since i have been so busy. Thank you. I already know some of you by your posts: Evelyn, Ronnie, Julian, Gwen, Florence, Mary Gordon, and some others and have utmost admiration for you all. >I have been reading all your posts for the past days and have learnt a > lot. Thanks. [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > Florence, Mary Gordon, and some others and have utmost admiration for > you all. Hi Nati, I am so glad you figured out how to post here! Welcome. I don't know why your doctor gave your mom Excelon instead of Aricept, but I am sure he has a reason. You might ask next time you see him. Have you noticed any improvement since she is taking it?  SignatureBest Regards, Evelyn http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?index (to reply to me personally, remove 'sox') She has not began taking Exelon yet. She is waiting to see the surgeon tomorrow and maybe he will ask her to take antibiotics. She is very afraid of those. I think she will start Exelon when she is not taking any other strong medicine. She is very afraid of upset stomach and AD medicines tend to do just that. How bad is the upset stomach scare? She has not began taking Exelon yet. She is waiting to see the surgeon tomorrow and maybe he will ask her to take antibiotics. She is very afraid of those. I think she will start Exelon when she is not taking any other strong medicine. She is very afraid of upset stomach and AD medicines tend to do just that. How bad is the upset stomach scare? > She has not began taking Exelon yet. She is waiting to see the surgeon > tomorrow and maybe he will ask her to take antibiotics. She is very > afraid of those. I think she will start Exelon when she is not taking > any other strong medicine. She is very afraid of upset stomach and AD > medicines tend to do just that. How bad is the upset stomach scare? With Aricept, a significant *minority* seem to have a nausea problem with it, from what I have read here. I have a friend whose mother has Az, she threw up when she went straight onto 10mg (long story), but has now accommodated fine by going to 5mg/day for a week (no nausea) and then 10mg. For this person, it also seem to work best (no nausea) if taken with food, I cant recall (thats ironic :-) if my father took it with food or not. SignatureTumbleweed email replies not necessary but to contact use; tumbleweednews at hotmail dot com Thanks Tumbleweed. I should not worry too much then. At any rate if she feels nausea maybe we could ask the doctor if she can break the pill in two, something like that and take it with food. Thanks. > Thanks Tumbleweed. I should not worry too much then. At any rate if she > feels nausea maybe we could ask the doctor if she can break the pill in > two, something like that and take it with food. Thanks. SignatureDear Nati, When my mother in law first started Aricept, she was getting digestive symptoms, nausea and such. They started her first on 5 mg then increased it to 10. We figured out that some of the problems she was having was due to her not being able to remember if or how many pills she had taken, and also not eating any food. She was doubling up on pills or forgetting them altogether, not eating at all, or giving all her food to the dog. Once she came to live with us and started having regular meals, we gave her the medication at a certain time every day, and always after a meal. She had no problems after that. Best Regards, Evelyn http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?index (to reply to me personally, remove 'sox') Nati <cbet17@hotmail.com> is alleged to have said: > She has not began taking Exelon yet. She is waiting to see the surgeon > tomorrow and maybe he will ask her to take antibiotics. She is very > afraid of those. I think she will start Exelon when she is not taking > any other strong medicine. She is very afraid of upset stomach and AD > medicines tend to do just that. How bad is the upset stomach scare? Exelon didn't do much for my mother. That's what her doctor at the time started her on. We switched to Aricept and then added Namenda. The combination seems to have helped her pull herself together a bit, remember things a little longer and focus better. At least I think so, though it's just my impression. They had better be helping, they are almost $300 a month! My mother takes her dose of Aricept in the evening after dinner. She has not reported any stomach problems. Taking it with food should help prevent them. It's good to wait, I think. I wouldn't put the double stress of oral antibiotics and starting one of these AD drugs at the same time on her. SignatureJo Ann Malina, make spamthis best to find my address As one gets older, one discovers everything is going to be exactly the same with different hats on. -- Noel Coward Has the Dr continued with the Excelon since the surgery? or only given it one month prior? Seems that might be a new twist for it's use if given prior and for a limited time.. Why the Dr. chose Exelon instead of Aricept would be a question I'd put to him. My husband was on Aricept then Excelon. The change of drugs did not do what I expected---though the change may have been inperceptabe. So Don went back on Aricept with the addition of Namenda.. The change back, I requested from the Dr. I am happy for you your Mother returned to "her" normal.. These drugs are not cures, helpful? yes-- I'd be interested to know if Dr. continues alz meds. Florence Florence, my mother has never taken Exelon nor any other AD med yet. It was i think just coincidence that her doctor offered/gave her for free a one month supply of Exelon just prior to the operation. We saw the surgeon yesterday and he did not continue her on antibiotics or any other med. I have to think whether i want to take her to be evaluated or let her start Exelon or ask the doc why Exelon. Decisions decisions. Up to now she is just normally forgetful but otherwise ok. So i still have time. And i have to give her time to start taking other drugs since she is sick and tired of pills and of feeling weak after the operation. I'll share her progress. Thanks. Happy Mother's Day! My guess would be---and its only a guess is the Dr will say nothing to you unless you ask questions. Perhaps He is trying out a theory, and be on to something.. Give Aricept or Excelon before surgery to anyone who has not been on the drug before & complains of forgetfullness. Was this hernia surgery an absolute necessity? My husband went into hosp for colonoscopy .blood pressure dropped, procedure stopped, he regained some memory,but not all he had prior. This is one rotten disease. Many Dr's are in the dark , learning from t patients & their caretakers. > It > was i think just coincidence that her doctor offered/gave her for free > a one month supply of Exelon just prior to the operation. that's because it's a manufacturer's sample. they give them to doctors so that patients can try them. the salesman had probably called on the doctor's office recently. if it had been another manufacturer it would have been a different, perhaps competing, drug. many folks here say that the combination of aricept and namenda seems to help. Hi Nati. :-) Sorry I can't help you on your questions;but it was good to hear your Mom only had temporary confusion and soon got over that! :-) Florence, we thought about operating the hernia or not but she told us of strong pain in the intestines so we went along with the operation. Dennis, I do have more confidence with Aricept and Namenda too. My uncle told me last night that she did start taking the Exelon two days ago. I didnt know, i thought she had not started. She said last night she did not feel any stomach upset. But she says she is tired and has no appetite. We hope to monitor those closely. It could be side effects but also post operation effects. Ronnie, you cant imagine how happy i was when she changed to a not confused mode. It's like my life took a different track. I hope your mom is doing well too. Thank you all! Nati <cbet17@hotmail.com> is alleged to have said: > Dennis, I do have more confidence with Aricept and Namenda too. My > uncle told me last night that she did start taking the Exelon two days > ago. I didnt know, i thought she had not started. She said last night > she did not feel any stomach upset. But she says she is tired and has > no appetite. We hope to monitor those closely. It could be side effects > but also post operation effects. Yes, one of the known side effects of the anti-Alzheimer's drugs is loss of appetite. Exelon, Aricept and Namenda should all be started at a lower dose and worked up to the full dose. Taking any of them for a month and then stopping is pointless. The doctor's samplers are often packaged with variable doses. I think Nameda came with one 5mg pill a day for a week, then 5mg twice a day for another week, then 10 and 5mg/day for another and finally up to 10mg twice a day, the recommended dose. SignatureJo Ann Malina, make spamthis best to find my address I dread no more the first white in my hair/Or even age itself, the easy shoe The cane, the wrinkled hands, the special chair; Time, doing this to me, may alter too/My sorrow, into something I can bear. -- Edna St. Vincent Millay, "Sonnet" Gosh Jo Ann thanks for telling me there may be some different milligrams among those pills. I dont live with mom but i for sure will check tomorrow, Mother's Day. Happy Mother's day!!! |
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