I would like to know if anyone has had any of the following problems
relating to Montelukast medication.  I was prescribed 5mg daily by my GP,
sometime last year.  5mg is the child dose, I am 49 years old but my GP
thougth it best to try me on the low dose due to my having unexpected side
effects with other prescription drugs that I have had.

DAY ONE - no problem
DAY TWO -no problem
DAY THREE - peak fpw rate started going up
DAY FOUR - peak flow rate as good as with inhaled steroids. But unable to
have erection.
DAY FOR, FIVE AND SIX - head feels fuzy, mild flu like sypmtoms, anxiety and
short burst of very dark morbid depression.
DAY SEVEN - problems persist but now have heartburn as well.  Also, Wake up
every morning exactly at 7am and immediately roll out of bed as if I have
only just laid down (I mean all my muscles and joints have the flexiblity
and strengh that I would have if I were half way though jogging around the
park).  Also feel that something really wrong is happening but can't work
out what it is.
DAY  EIGHT - stopped medication and went back to steroids.  Montelukast side
effccts gone within 36 hours.

After two weeks I tried again.

DAY ON - no problem.
DAY TWO - feel like previous problems are coming back.
DAY THREE     "                     "                        "
DAY FOUR - feel weird, when out on street are avoiding people and keeping to
the shadows. If sometone appears on the pavement in front of me I sometimes
deliberately walk in front of them to have a collision.   My head feels like
its trapped in a horrid black maze.  Anxiety, depression and paranoia.
DAY FIVE- my girlfriend appears after a two week holiday.  She thinks I seem
odd.  She says I am taller that I was when she lst saw me, I look at myself
in the mirror and eventually realise that  she is right. Appears that my
posture has changed, I ma standing exceedingly straight and my shuolders are
pushed back, I look like I have been working out in a job for several
months.
DAY SIX - very bad flu like feeling, nasal cavities feel  swollen, head
feels like its about to explode.  All the other described  sypmtoms are
presnt and worse.   If I eat  fish or bacon or any other strong smelling
meat then after an hour or two I am so convinced that  some body is cooking
these same foods  (due to my being able to smell them) that I go down to the
kitchen and then the garden to look into next doors kitchen, shortly after
the imagined smell I vomit everything out.    Moderate headache that does
not respond to paracetamol.   Short unpleasant periods of crushing sensation
on chest and not being able to breath. AND my neck, shoulders and elbows
feel like there is sand inside the joints - I can almost hear the grating
sound as I move!.
DAY SEVEN - stopped Montelukast and all symptoms go within 36 hours.

However, I have a pain in my left elbow that startde on day 5 and has not
gone.  Two months later the pain is still there and my GP says I have tennis
elbow.  Now its  almost 8 months later and the elbow still hurts.

Sorry its such a long posting.  But its a serious matter as I have damage to
my elbo which I think is linked to this medication.  Secondly, many of these
side effects are not officially  acknowledged which seems very bad indeed.
Thirdly, 5mg Montelukast is regularly given to kids where all the side
effcts that I describe  can be put down to growing pains.

I would like that anyone who has shared this experience  come out and put it
in writting for other people to see it, it may be that its an issue  that is
yet to be  fully appreciated.  Finally, can anyone suggest what I can do to
fix my elbow?!    I am going aboraod  in a cuople of days so won't be able
to respond to any replies until the end of the month.

Cheers

Michael k