Starting allopurinol
Doc wants me to take 100mg for a month and then check uric acid andkidney function levels. He is concerned because I have had elevatedcreatinine readings in the past. I am 34, 6′6″ and 280 and liftweights regularly. How many got gout as a result of startingallopurinol? How soon should I expect? Will take colchicine asprophalaxis….does this work? How long will the attack last? I knoweveryone is different just a quick synopsis please. Feeling anxiousand need reassurance….after ingesting first pill I will probablyhave an anxiety attack looking for rashes and any other horriblethings that could go wrong
Terrance Molock on September 23rd, 2007
You’re making the right decision bro!..Don’t even hesitiate topost..or contact me via email if there is ANYTHING! at all I can helpyou out with..I WILL!..
COMMON! are those that after years of gout sufferring..sometimesSADLY after permanent,irrepairable damage..end up on allopurinol ONLYto REGRET!! TERRIBLLY!!..(and understanadablly so)..what on earthwere they thinking??? WHY??? had they not gone on allopurionlearlier..
EXTREMELY rare!!! are those that regret..or have problems onallopurinol..and YES you are indeed talking to someone who was almostfinished off by allopurinol..and ALSO sufferred yet ANOTHERdebilitating attack(4 months) AFTER being on allopurinol for 1 1/2years.
The initial dosage seems to be a MINOR disagreement.Really ALLthat matters is that the doseage is adjusted/uric acid levelsmonitorred.
Some like a large intial doseage..to really “get down onit”..indeed a large initial doseage..that does NOT provoke an attackis a GOOD THING!..this proves that the storehouse of uric aciddeposits are PROBABLLY not all that great.HOWEVER! A too largeinitial dose can and often does provoke attacks..because it uspetsthe uric acid deposits that are there.
Then again a too small initial dose may not lower the uric acidlevel enough.
The consensus seems to be..hit the uric acid level with enoughallopurinol to bring the level into the low average range..AND keepit there..AS WELL as a drop of 20 to 30 %..
When I have queired experts/read/researched on allopurinol causingattacks..I often come up with this answer..”allopurinol causingattacks ONLY tells us that that individual has gout to the extentthat an attack is imminent..so what difference does it make whetherthe allopurinol actually triggered the attack OR that something elsedid ALONG with the allopurinol”One thing that is agreed upon is thatIF the allopurinol caused the attack..one WAS coming anyway..AND theattack is much less on allopurinol than NOT on allopurinol.
Colchicine is actually making a comeback in medical circles.NOT!!so much for treating gout per se..BUT for using it ALONG withallopurinol in the beginning.The harmfull effect of colchicine isMUCH less when taken with allopurinol..and lots of water as the bodyis constantlly getting flushed out per se.
Colchicine is FAR,far more effective at PREVENTING goutattacks/dealing with them for those ON allopurinol..than it is forthose that take it during attack time.Large doses of colchicine(common) during an attack are really unneccessary..and moredangerous..AND yes!! colchicine for some reason begins to lose it’seffectivness when used over and over by those NOT onallopurinol.Ideally you take a little colchicine IF YOU NEED IT!!every day and gradually leave it alone FOR GOOD!!!
I spent about 1 1/2 years on colchicine AND allopurinol.Graduallytaperring off to zero..been a few years since I’ve taken ANYTHINGother that BEER and OH YEAH.. STEAK!..
WATER,WATER,WATER…drink your MINIMUM requirement.Juice,milk,SOMEpop,sports drinks,high water content fruits,veggies,counts to someextent.Alcohol,caffeine..1 serving of either..you need to drink 1glass of water to maintain your level.
I am 6′ 210 fit I drink 1/2L milk,1/2L oj,2 fruits,2 veggies.3 Lwater..every day.This is the MINIMUM for me
Ya..been there..NERVOUS over taking it/starting it..I was MUCHMORE concerned over starting it because I was crippled..(AND would ithhelp me)I had screwed around for SO LONG!!!! refusing to takeit/admit that it was the ONLY way home..that WHEN I did start it..Ihad allowed the gout to advance SO FAR that the Dr’s..offerred me NOHOPE..NO PROMISES..ONLY!!..that this was NOW the ONLY hope/chance Ihad left.So I took it..AND rose out of bed..AND..4 months later italmost killed me..and I had to quit it for a bit..THEN I had todecide whether to take it again..some choice.Staring down thegunbarrel of being crippled..when I was..ONLY to end up staring downthe gunbarrel of WORSE?? by that which was my ONLY chance..and thenhaving to make that decision.I ski hard/I ski fast.
I have just clocked a VERY IMPRESSIVE!(applause please..HEHEHAHA)60 day ski season..at a pretty high level!
I guess allopurinol was the right choice.
Jonas Laramore on September 24th, 2007
I’m sure Walter and Arnold will fill you in on all the medical jargonyou need to know but since I’m similar age(32), height(6′3″), and atthe time weight(290, now 240) I thought I’d share my experience withyou.
Like many, I started allopurinol in the midst of an attack. There wereno adverse reactions when I did so. My attack didn’t get worse or lastlonger than any attacks prior, actually seemed shorter. I onlytook/take colchicine when I was having an attack or felt one coming on. I started with 100mg of the allo., but due to some of myreading/research, a year and a half later I asked my doc to bump it to300mg daily which he did gladly.
I haven’t had an attack since the beginning of my increased uptake ofallopurinol late last year, however don’t read into this as I’m sayingthat 100mg wont work. I didn’t take my 100mg on a daily consistantbasis, or for that matter, months at a time in the summer.
Still got quite a lot of fat to lose before I attempt to start packinon the muscle mass again.
Terrance Molock on September 25th, 2007
Joe..thanks! for your reply..you know I hear and read this moreand MORE..that people start start allopurinol..before,during anattack..whenever..and that is pretty much the end of Mr Gout..I amNOW begininning to think that that warnings about allopurinol aremore a disclaimer than anything else..especially the ones aboutdeath/serious problems..hey I’ve been there..SURE there is achance..of course!..I’ld bet my life that there is a FAR,FAR greaterchance of getting hurt/killed in a car accident ON THE WAY to getthe allopurinol..than ANY harm that can come from the allopurinol. Reminds me of a survey of how DANGEROUS skiing was.
Ended up being RIDICULOUSLLY! more dangerous statistic wise..to BEON THE ROAD..IN A CAR..THAN!! to be actually skiing.
Then they figgered that pretty much EVERYONE that skis gets thereby car..SOoo somehow they’d have to take that element of exposureinto account..hence..if ya wanna risk it skiing..FIRST ya gotta riskit on the roads..
UNFORTUNATELY..allopurinol gets lumped into the same categoryas “it MAY cause problems”..the next thing we know is people THEN getfaced with the risks of no allopurinol vs. allopurinol….pretty soonit gets twisted around and “read” that ALLOPURINOL is the “real”risk..NOT the harmless gout..then here we go..people taking sides.
I appreciate(No I don’t like it) the hostility that comes towardsme for being pro-allopurinol.it THEN becomes a “shoot the messenger”thing.
I have asked COUNTLESS times..for ANYONE to show me what elsethere is?Show me something/anything..uric acid levels.
I have also said on NUMEROUS occassions..I do NOT think thatallopurinol is “the” answer.
I know for now..40 years it has worked.
There are new drugs on the horizon..being tested..some info. is onthe FDA site..
I think my favourite “cure” is that metal coin that is sold thatyou carry in your pocket..you can buy it out here on the net.Even theowner says he doesn’t know how/why it works..just that it DOES!
Think I’ll quit my allopurinol and try that for a while.andelevatedknowanxiousprobably
Lurlene Rauh on September 26th, 2007
Thanks for responses. I have always felt that some of my highcreatinine readings were a combo of muscle mass continually beingbroken down and the uric acid causing havoc with my kidney function.As for water i drink 4.5 liters daily. Last attack was 2 months agoand since then have been using ibuprofen aroung 1000mg daily. Docsays been taking too long and this alone could cause kidney trouble,this is why he prefers colchicine as prophalaxis. After gout attackI did not drink alcohol for a month but have since resumed myweekend drinking pattern with no attacks…knock on wood. I foundthat cherry juice and grey goose vodka works for me, as well asstaying well hydrated. The thing about diet and gout is no matterhow much you abstain from purines and liquor the most you can loweryour uric acid by is 1 point. Just not worth it! Doc feels since weare treating so early that a much lower dose may do the trick. Let’shope so. After one month will let you know the readings. Gettingready to pop the pill so to speak. Where will I notice this rash ifI am unlucky enough to have? My readings for uric acid have beenbetween 7.7 and 9.3 and for creatinine between 1.3 and 1.8……..acidliftIhorrible
Terrance Molock on September 27th, 2007
I can shed a tiny bit of light on the uric acid level due tomuscle breakdown..I THOUGHT this was my problem too..I skiedHARD..and I mean NO KIDDING!..type of quad workout..with theattendant SOARING well into anerobic territory pulse rate..mycreativity(creatinine) was .83..it didn’t really change much frombefore I had a gout attack..with uric acid levels around 4..andduring numerous,numerous tests when I was literally in bed 20 hrs aday..for 3 months following a sudden end to the ski season(goutattack)..I gotta tell ya..after a few months of that I was a brokenman..anyway..I started the mighty allopurinol..and the ONLY thingthat changed was my u/a level..down to about 3..on 300mg..where itstill is..where I still am(300mg) after 3 years..ALL the DR’s ANDwhat I read thought my exercise u/a level and MY theory wasbogus..incidentally buddy..I did read where an athetle put in sometremendous performance..and during routine drug testing..they foundsomething..further testing/questions..GOUT DRUG..hey wait aminute..this guy don’t got no gout..allopurinol..there are sometests/research out here on the net where they did comparisoms ofatheltes on steroids to allopurinol..allopurinol gave the steroids apretty good whippin’!..I do not know if/how popular allopurinol isamong atheltes.IT DID deal with the musclebreakdown/regeneration/growth factor(steroids).. Uric acid(load) doesn’t really cause havoc with kidneyfunction..that is of course providing that it is somewhat in thenormal range. Right now there is NO test for gout..other than the crystals inthe joint fluid.NOT ONE SINGLE factor has ever been identified todate!Right now the ONLY test is the crystals in the jointfluid…from this ALL they can tell is that the uric acid SOMEHOWmade it’s way from the blood to the joint area/fluid
yep..early treatment..BEFORE you have the GREAT deposits..
I can’t remember where my death rash started.I think it went fromback,shoulders,butt,tops of legs,arms,hands..first was the itch ofall itches..then of course I had to snake oil it up with all kinds ofsnake oils..(hey I used to LOVE! My snake oils)the snake oil ofcourse ONLY made money for it’s sellers.Then came redness..thenlumps..BUMPS..EVERYWHERE!I could hardly move from the swelling.Thistook about 10 days. Then came the hospital. HEHEHAHA..the Dr’s thought the snake oils PROBABLLY made it worse.
All hail snake oil(s)
Jonas Laramore on September 27th, 2007
Well I’ll be…a coin that cures illnesses. The advances of modernmedicine never cease to amaze me! The effects of a whole pocket fullof coins may be astronomical!