Aspirin Desensitization

[Guest guest]

,

Everyone is different, depending on your reaction anywhere from 5-10 days.

It always starts on a Friday. My treatment lasted Friday-Wednesday and my

reaction was what Dr. son said " classic "

Dawn

[Guest guest]

Please do not use tissues.

The dust from these will makes your nose worse.

Always use a hankerchief.

.R. England

[Guest guest]

I just came back from Scripps last week. Very controlled very safe

very friendly environment.

My asthma is under control w/singulair and advair but the polyps were

out of control. The aspirin desense has - so far at least - had a

positive effect on sneezing/mucus production.

I'm still a little congested and don't yet have a sense of smell but

I certainly don't go through tissues like I used to and I am much

less nasally. Overall I feel great but it's too soon to tell if this

is the long-term solution. I hope it is though ...

My expectation is that I will have fewer infections, the polyps will

disappear and I will no longer have to take systemic steroids to

control their growth.

If you're allergic to aspirin and have recurring polyps the data do

show evidence that aspirin desensitization followed by aspirin

therapy helps alleviate the recurring polyps. I do not hesitate to

recommend the program.

/Avi

> If someone has been desensitized at Scripps or elsewhere, can you

> tell me (1)if your asthma was under control before you started the

> challenge and (2) did it have any effect on sneezing and mucus

> production?

> Thanks

> alseiden

[Guest guest]

There is so much info and wisdom in the accumulated postings of this group.

You should look through them for as much information as you will need.

Doing a search on " desensitization " is a good way to start. You will have

a lot to read.

THEN, if you still have specific questions, you should ask them.

regards,

Ken West

> From: " tuharts2001 " <tuharts@...>

> Reply-samters

> Date: Sat, 29 Mar 2003 01:53:57 -0000

> samters

> Subject: Aspirin Desensitization

>

> Has anyone been desensitized to aspirin as a treatment for the

> samters? My husband is looking into this treatment at U of M in

> April. Sure would appreciate some info. Susie

[Guest guest]

Thanks for the advise Ken. I found something in the archives that was very interesting. People were saying that tylenol sensitivity is not connected to Samters. I disagree. After I became allergic to aspirin I took 2 ex strngth tylenol and had one of my worst anaphalactic reactions ever. I ended up in emergency twice that day. I had never been allergic to tylenol before. I take nothing over the counter for pain. My doctor gives me a prescription for demerol to help with pain management. Luckily I only need it when I get bad sinus infections and the wonderful headaches that go with it. I'm a little worried I may be developing an allergic reaction to that too because I'm starting to get a rash when I take it. I hate to think of when I get older and am allergic to everything in the world.

Tami

Aspirin Desensitization> > Has anyone been desensitized to aspirin as a treatment for the> samters? My husband is looking into this treatment at U of M in> April. Sure would appreciate some info. Susie

[Guest guest]

Dear Tami,

I have an idea about the reactions to tylenol. Which tylenot are you

taking? There are caplets which have a coating and red writing on the

side. You may be reacting to this. I only take the tylenol that are round

and flat and are like the traditional aspirin pills. I take these without

a problem but I wouldn't dare take the ones with red writing. Do you

remember which ones you took?

Re: Aspirin Desensitization

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[Guest guest]

Hi

I took the plain white ones. I had my reaction in 1987. I don't think they had all the different types out yet at that time. I haven't noticed having any reaction to any dyes yet.

Tami

RE: Aspirin Desensitization

Dear Tami,I have an idea about the reactions to tylenol. Which tylenot are you taking? There are caplets which have a coating and red writing on the side. You may be reacting to this. I only take the tylenol that are round and flat and are like the traditional aspirin pills. I take these without a problem but I wouldn't dare take the ones with red writing. Do you remember which ones you took?-----Original Message-----From: Tami Klumpyan [sMTP:tami@...]Sent: Saturday, March 29, 2003 4:58 AM samters Subject: Re: Aspirin Desensitization<< File: ATT00008.txt; charset = iso-8859-1 >> << File: ATT00009.htm; charset = ISO-8859-1 >>

[Guest guest]

Dear Tami,

Well, that blows my theory up! Oh, well. I take tylenol all the time, I

hope I don't get allergic to it. I guess I'll try to only take it when I

have to have it!

Re: Aspirin Desensitization

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[Guest guest]

I read somewhere that it usually only causes an anaphalactic reaction when taken in high doses. I know I'm not taking any chances.

Tami

RE: Aspirin Desensitization

Dear Tami,Well, that blows my theory up! Oh, well. I take tylenol all the time, I hope I don't get allergic to it. I guess I'll try to only take it when I have to have it!-----Original Message-----From: Tami Klumpyan [sMTP:tami@...]Sent: Saturday, March 29, 2003 11:21 AM samters Subject: Re: Aspirin Desensitization<< File: ATT00013.txt; charset = iso-8859-1 >> << File: ATT00014.htm; charset = ISO-8859-1 >>

[Guest guest]

Go to the FILES section of this group in ,

and check out the Desensitization Primer.

(Hint -- there won't be a reaction " every time " .)

regards,

Ken West

> From: " kms821s2003 " <kms821s@...>

> Reply-samters

> Date: Wed, 22 Oct 2003 01:47:44 -0000

> samters

> Subject: aspirin desensitization

>

> Why would someone want to do this it they will have a reaction every

> time they take it?

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi all,

Speaking of aspirin desensitization, I just got back from Scripps! I'm now

taking 4 Maalox-coated Ascriptin (1300mg) a day. The whole experience at

Scripps was really interesting. I feel privileged to have gone there. I

checked in on Sunday night (Oct.5th) and began taking " green capsules "

(either a placebo or small amounts of aspirin) on Monday morning. I had

been on two months of Prednisone, so I was as cleared-up as possible when I

started. There was a lady from near Sacramento that checked in when I did.

She had just had her third sinus surgery a few weeks before. I had decided

to not have another surgery before going to Scripps.

Dr. son thought that I was a very good candidate for aspirin desens.

since I told him that 6 years of allergy shots + Zyrtec had cured my hay

fever by probably 90-95%. He said that many of those that were not helped

by desens. were those that still had other allergies that continued to

irritate their sinuses. He also asked me to be his 173rd test patient for

Celebrex. He is building experimental data to convince the FDA to take

their " aspirin sensitive " warning off Celebrex and similar drugs. He said

that of the prior 172 ASA sensitive patients who were tested, none had

reacted to Celebrex!

On Monday I had no reactions to the pills. On Tuesday morning, Judy, the

other patient, said she started wheezing. All of a sudden I felt I had to

sneeze. This progressed quickly to an all-out allergy attack (sneezing,

itchy throat and ears, runny nose, itchy eyes), but no wheezing. I felt

like I was in a pile of ragweed! After being checked by Dr. son, I

was put back on Zyrtec. I had stopped taking Zyrtec 2 days before going to

Scripps. They asked me to do that so that they could see me react to the

smallest aspirin dose possible. Judy reacted to 45mg. I reacted to 60mg. I

didn't wheeze, but my lung function went down 12%. I think Advair had

really cured my mild wheezing. Scripps is VERY careful about giving you

aspirin. The nurse told me that some patients reacted severely to only 10mg

of aspirin.

On Wednesday they continued to give me the pills, but I had no more

reactions. I was released at 11:30 Thurs. morning. Judy was released at

1:30pm. I will continue to fill out a daily diary of my symptoms for at

least two months, and will periodically talk to the nurses over the phone

so they can track my symptoms. After a month, I can reduce my aspirin to 2

(650mg) a day. Dr. son said their recent studies have shown that most

patients can get by on only 2 a day. In his last study, 87% of the ASA

patents had improved symptoms and could reduce their steroids, etc. I am

hoping that I can keep my sense of smell/taste - having enjoyed it for the

last couple of months (Prednisone). I also hope that I will not have 4-6

sinus infections a year like I have had for several years.

I have a copy of Dr. son's last study which was published earlier

this year. I haven't located a digital version on the web yet, so as soon

as I can scan it I'll try to put it on the egroup website for everyone to

read.

I'm hopeful that this treatment will work for me. Time will tell. Dr.

son was very positive. So far, I have no adverse symptoms, but then

I've only been off Pred. for a couple of weeks. It still amazes me how you

can be " allergic " to aspirin one day, then not the next. By the way, when I

asked Dr. son if it (aspirin) was truly an allergic reaction, he said

it was a " pseudo-allergic " reaction. He also said that all his patients

could go at least 48 hours without aspirin and not have to be

re-desensitized. After 48 hours, I should not take aspirin again and would

have to go through the process again. Since I didn't have a severe

reaction, he said that I could have my local allergist do it next time.

Jim

> [Original Message]

> From: kms821s2003 <kms821s@...>

> <samters >

> Date: 10/21/2003 8:50:06 PM

> Subject: aspirin desensitization

>

> Why would someone want to do this it they will have a reaction every

> time they take it?

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

> From: " Jim Brown " <jim747@...>

> Reply-samters

> Date: Tue, 21 Oct 2003 21:55:04 -0500

> samters

> Subject: RE: aspirin desensitization

.. . . snip . . .

> I will continue to fill out a daily diary of my symptoms for at

> least two months, and will periodically talk to the nurses over the phone

> so they can track my symptoms. After a month, I can reduce my aspirin to 2

> (650mg) a day.

Jim, this was a great post -- thank you.

Whe you sayy " reduce to 650mg a day " , from what dose will you be reducing?

1300 mg/day? I didn't see anywhere how large your dose is for the first

month.

I've read other stuff that suggests staying on 1300mg/day indefinitely; so

I think this is an important question.

regards,

Ken West

[Guest guest]

I was so glad to hear about Scripps trying Celebrex. I've been on it for 3 1/2 years now and my polyps are very tiny and non existant in areas. Although I still have problems with my sinuses the headaches and nausea due to blocked sinuses has been greatly reduced. Plus surgery is not in my near future. Normally my polyps would be quite large after only 3 months. I will be contacting my doctor today. He will be thrilled that someone is finally catching on to using Celebrex. Thank you Jim for sharing this information. Good luck with your desensitization. I hope it helps you.

Tami

aspirin desensitization>> Why would someone want to do this it they will have a reaction every > time they take it?>>>>

[Guest guest]

Ken,

Thanks. Yes, I started out on 1300mg a day. They had me up to that level

before I left Scripps. I stay on that level (1300) for a month, then reduce

to 650mg. Dr. son said that his recent studies have shown that 650mg

is effective for most people. If I feel that my symptoms are returning, I

could go back to the higher dose, but he didn't think I would need to. I

realize this is a smaller dose than previous studies, but apparently Scripps

has been experimenting on smaller doses since some people have had stomach

or bleeding problems with the higher dosages.

Jim

RE: aspirin desensitization

> . . . snip . . .

>

> > I will continue to fill out a daily diary of my symptoms for at

> > least two months, and will periodically talk to the nurses over the

phone

> > so they can track my symptoms. After a month, I can reduce my aspirin to

2

> > (650mg) a day.

>

> Jim, this was a great post -- thank you.

> Whe you sayy " reduce to 650mg a day " , from what dose will you be

reducing?

> 1300 mg/day? I didn't see anywhere how large your dose is for the first

> month.

>

> I've read other stuff that suggests staying on 1300mg/day indefinitely;

so

> I think this is an important question.

>

> regards,

> Ken West

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Thank you, but I guess that I am comparing all of this to me

specifically instead of in general. Everytime I take it the same

thing happens. I would rather live with the polyps and stay sick

with the same cold and sinus infection all the time like I have for

the last 5 years rather that experiance this aspirin reaction over

and over. Before I knew it was the aspirin I took it everyday for

weeks for headaches and it happeded every time!

> Go to the FILES section of this group in ,

> and check out the Desensitization Primer.

>

> (Hint -- there won't be a reaction " every time " .)

>

> regards,

> Ken West

>

> > From: " kms821s2003 " <kms821s@s...>

> > Reply-samters

> > Date: Wed, 22 Oct 2003 01:47:44 -0000

> > samters

> > Subject: aspirin desensitization

> >

> > Why would someone want to do this it they will have a reaction

every

> > time they take it?

> >

> >

[Guest guest]

Well I would say, FWIW, that if you do the desensitization in one of the 4

ways that are described in the primer,

and you stay on a maintenance dose,

and then you STILL have a reaction,

then I think you do not have Samters.

I have heard of people who have done the desensitization and not had the

benefits of sense of smell, reduced polyps, reduced congestion,

but I have not heard of anyone here who has done desensitization,

and stays on a maintenance dose,

and who still has *the* reaction to aspirin.

Rob, eg., recently posted his experience with desensitization --

no sense of smell, but at least he could take aspirin.

If there's anyone here who has an experience to the contrary?

regards,

Ken West

> From: " kms821s2003 " <kms821s@...>

> Reply-samters

> Date: Wed, 22 Oct 2003 16:57:48 -0000

> samters

> Subject: Re: aspirin desensitization

>

> Thank you, but I guess that I am comparing all of this to me

> specifically instead of in general. Everytime I take it the same

> thing happens. I would rather live with the polyps and stay sick

> with the same cold and sinus infection all the time like I have for

> the last 5 years rather that experiance this aspirin reaction over

> and over. Before I knew it was the aspirin I took it everyday for

> weeks for headaches and it happeded every time!

>

>

>

>> Go to the FILES section of this group in ,

>> and check out the Desensitization Primer.

>>

>> (Hint -- there won't be a reaction " every time " .)

>>

>> regards,

>> Ken West

>>

>>> From: " kms821s2003 " <kms821s@s...> Reply-samters Date:

>>> Wed, 22 Oct 2003 01:47:44 -0000 samters Subject:

>>> aspirin desensitization

>>>

>>> Why would someone want to do this it they will have a reaction every time

>>> they take it?

>>>

[Guest guest]

Have you been desensitized to aspirin? If you haven't you should Never take aspirin. If you are reacting to it, you may have an allergic reaction one time that can kill you. I don't mean to be so blunt but my reactions became more critical each time I took it.

Tami

aspirin desensitization> > > > Why would someone want to do this it they will have a reaction every> > time they take it?> > > >

[Guest guest]

Ok. That makes Sense! I have never gone through the " Process " . I

do not think that I will ever want to do the deseneitization.

> > Go to the FILES section of this group in ,

> > and check out the Desensitization Primer.

> >

> > (Hint -- there won't be a reaction " every time " .)

> >

> > regards,

> > Ken West

> >

> > > From: " kms821s2003 " <kms821s@s...>

> > > Reply-samters

> > > Date: Wed, 22 Oct 2003 01:47:44 -0000

> > > samters

> > > Subject: aspirin desensitization

> > >

> > > Why would someone want to do this it they will have a

reaction

> every

> > > time they take it?

> > >

> > >

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Jim

Do you know if there is an article on what they are doing at Scripps with Celebrex? I'm trying to find more info on it and am having a hard time.

Thanks, Tami

aspirin desensitization>> Why would someone want to do this it they will have a reaction every > time they take it?>>>>

[Guest guest]

Tami,

Here is one article I found. I'm sure there must be others. Dr. son told me that he is virtually 100% sure that the ingredients in Celebrex and Vioxx do not cause sensitivity reactions with Aspirin Sensitive patients. He thinks that he will soon convince the FDA and drug company lawyers that it is safe. Right now there are a lot of people with arthitis and asthma that can't take aspirin and are also told they can't take Celebrex. I'm sure there must be other articles by him, but I haven't found them yet.

- NSAID -

3/14/02 re: Cross-reacting NSAID in urticaria

I am presently consulting upon a 47-year-old man who has had three successive reactions to analgesics. He has no history of asthma or chronic sinusitis or overt allergic rhinitis but lists hayfever as a past illness. In January, after eating in a Chinese restaurant, he noted a mild headache and before boarding a plane bought an OTC analgesic. Thirty minutes later he related some cough, facial edema and wheezing. He took some Benadryl but amazingly made the trip without incident. On February 3 he had another headache and took Motrin and again 30 minutes post had the same symptoms along with some edema of his foreskin. Two weeks later his right knee was swollen and tender for 24 hours but this seems to be a red herring. He is on active duty with the Army and does a lot of running. He had not ingested any medication. Then in early February for another headache again took Motrin and had similar symptoms. He has also had some hives during the reactions. On this occasion he went to the emergency room for the first time. He had taken Benadryl and was stable upon arrival but was treated with prednisone, and given an IV and a Rx for epinephrine. I saw him a week later. Vs and exam not remarkable. He cannot recall if the first medication he took was a NSAID or ASA. There is no way to procure it. He has taken Tylenol since with out any symptoms. He seems to fit the classification of Don son for urticaria/angioedema or anaphylaxis caused by a specific analgesic. BUT the big question is, was the first analgesic Motrin or ASA? I would bet Motrin or Advil. In one of his papers he recommends a challenge with 3 mgm. of ASA or another NSAID for such cases. I am tempted to challenge with ASA in the ICU with an IV in place. I would be interested in your approach. I still cannot find any new COX inhibitor that is recommended to use in patients with ASA or NSAID reactions. One statement says some are generally safe! This I would not bet upon.

Although I have my own thoughts about approaching the clinical problem you described, I wanted to be sure that I would be quoting the most recent recommendations of Dr. son and colleagues. Therefore, I forwarded your message to Don son, who kindly responded very promptly. His response is enclosed below. I should also mention FYI that the report of son et al describing the tolerance of a challenge with COX-2 inhibitor in aspirin-intolerant asthmatics, to which Don referred, was published in the JACI in 2001 (see abstract enclosed below)

Dr. son's comments:

For the most part you are correct and in our experience we have not seen urticaria/ angioedema reactions to either Vioxx or Celebrex with first dose exposure to these selective COX-2 inhibitors. After first dose exposure, specific immune sensitization can occur and reports of any type of immune reactions are available during Phase 3 trials and in case reports since drug release in 1999. There is one report by an excellent scientist in Central America, Sanches-Borges, of first dose reactions of urticaria and angioedema to both Celecoxib and Vioxx (ls Allergy, Sept issue, 2001). All the reports from the European literature have never seen a first dose reaction to Celebrex and Vioxx, which is also our experience. When you think about it logically, how can the selective COX-2 inhibitors (with their sulfonyl side chains) actually fit into the smaller COX-1 channel? The answer is they cannot. Therefore, in the cases presented by Sanches-Borges, what was the mechanism of the urticarial reaction? I cannot believe they were COX-1 inhibition.

With respect to the case report you sent me - what should be done. One simply does not know whether or not the first reaction was to ASA or ibuprofen, which of course is the critical piece of information. The fact that the patient can take Tylenol is not helpful, since doses of 1000 mg or more of acetaminophen can cross-react with the older NSAIDs about a third of the time in Samter's triad (aspirin-intolerant asthma) but in chronic urticaria, acetaminophen rarely cross-reacts, even at these higher doses. What to do in this case? It depends on what they want to accomplish. If they need a drug for arthritis pain, I would bring the patient into my office and give the first dose of Vioxx or Celebrex in my office. No reaction would occur and the patient would be given a prescription for the selective COX-2 inhibitor. For headaches use Tylenol.

For platelet inhibition, particularly with coronary stinting, ASA is required. I would still bring patient into my outpatient office, start an IV and have Benadryl and ranitadine (50 mg of each available and ready for IV infusion). I would start with ASA 40.5 mg (1/2 of a baby ASA) and if no reaction in one hour I would give the other 1/2 tablet. That is all you need for platelet inhibition and they can then purchase a big bottle of St. ph's 81 mg for adults. Take one each day. Problem solved."

J Allergy Clin Immunol 2001 Jul;108(1):47-51Lack of cross-reactivity between rofecoxib and aspirin in aspirin-sensitive patients with asthma.son DD, Simon RA.Division of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, Department of Medicine, Scripps Clinic and The Scripps Research Institute. La Jolla, CA 92037, USA.

Background: Patients with aspirin-sensitive respiratory disease experience cross-reactions to all nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which inhibit cyclooxygenase enzymes. With the introduction of antiarthritis drugs, which selectively inhibit cyclooxygenase-2, questions are raised as to whether cross-reactivity occurs between aspirin and these new cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors.

Objective: The goal of this study was to determine whether rofecoxib cross-reacts in aspirin-sensitive patients with asthma.

Methods: Sixty patients with asthma underwent doubleblinded, placebo-controlled oral challenges with rofecoxib (12.5 mg, 25 mg, and 2 placebos) over 48 hours in our General Clinical Research Center. The next day, aspirin sensitivity was proven in each of the 60 patients through use of single-blinded oral aspirin challenges.

Results: None of the 60 patients experienced any symptoms, changes in nasal examination findings, or declines in FEV(1) values during their challenges with rofecoxib. All 60 patients experienced typical naso-ocular and asthmatic reactions to aspirin with a mean provoking dose of 61 mg. The exact 1-sided CI for the probability of rofecoxib inducing crossreactions in aspirin-sensitive patients with asthma is calculated to be between 0% and 0.05%.

Conclusion: Given that none of the 60 patients reacted to rofecoxib and given the statistical power of this large sample size, we conclude that cross-reactivity between aspirin and rofecoxib does not occur in patients with aspirin-sensitive respiratory disease. This does not exclude rofecoxib from participating in other types of reactions, including immune recognition after prior treatment with the drug. From the standpoint of the mechanisms involved in aspirin-induced respiratory reactions, this study strongly supports inhibition of cyclooxygenase-1 as the essential initiator of these types of reactions.

5/23/97 re: aspirin allergy (urticaria) & wheezing

Are there any safe NSAIDs for this patient who also has arthritis?

All NSAIDs can potentially induce wheezing in a patient with aspirin (ASA)-induced wheezing, though the incidence of such reactions to NSAID is not 100%. It has been reported that sodium salicylate, choline salicylate and the recently released imidazole salicylate compounds are generally tolerated by ASA-reactive patients although these agents may have less anti-inflammatory effects. The group at the Scripps Clinic in La Jolla has reported successful cautious aspirin "desensitization" of some "triad asthma" patients ( J Allergy Clin Immunol 98:751-8, 1996).

© Copyright 1997-2003 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and ImmunologyAll rights reserved

aspirin desensitization>> Why would someone want to do this it they will have a reaction every > time they take it?>>>>

[Guest guest]

UPENN is in the process of getting one started......

ASPIRIN DESENSITIZATION

> I live in the new york city area. Is there any ASPIRIN

> DESENSITIZATION clinics in the area? Cali is a little far for me.

>

> Lou

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks Joanie, if anyone has any more info on this I would love to

hear from you!

> UPENN is in the process of getting one started......

> ASPIRIN DESENSITIZATION

>

>

> > I live in the new york city area. Is there any ASPIRIN

> > DESENSITIZATION clinics in the area? Cali is a little far for me.

> >

> > Lou

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

[Guest guest]

I did desens on my own in Feb of 2005 and didn't have much trouble. My reaction to aspirin is like really bad hay-fever. Itchy eyes, runny nose, some wheezing and a little numbness in the lips. I would say this is a fairly mild reaction compared to most.

If you experience a more severe reaction than this I would recommend doing it through a doctor or hospital. Some people have very bad reactions but if done correctly I believe they are almost all controllable in a hospital environment. Scripps is probably the best place to go.

Read the desens section of the library and think long and hard about your individual reaction to ASA before trying this on your own.

That being said desens has helped me tremendously and I would recommend it wholeheartedly to all.

Marcus

[Guest guest]

I was really amazed at you trying the de-sens. on your own. How serious of aspirin allergy did you have? I am really scared to try any method of aspirin desens. because my reaction was swelling and difficulty in breathing. Any info. will be appreciated. Ruannotherbeach <Bret.@...> wrote: After studying the Ken West-Created library on aspirin desensitization, I decided to try it myself following one of the "historic" 2002 member dosage experiences. The warnings posted also made me think twice about doing this myself and not under a physician's care, but the benefits seem to be worth the risk. The reason I am posting is that I am on my third week and up to four baby aspirin day (about 350 mg). The worse day was day four at about one baby aspirin.

In particular it bothered my stomach and I just felt plain sick and thought of giving up. However I felt so good waking up on Day 5, that I continued, though this time with "coated" heart patient aspirin instead of baby aspirin and this helped. So if you are discouraged early in the process, please try and continue.

Messenger with Voice. PC-to-Phone calls for ridiculously low rates.

[Guest guest]

I took an ordinary, "adult" aspirin about two months ago. My neck turned red, my face was flushed, and I had a moderate level of difficulty breathing, although it was never serious enough to see a doctor that one day. Just plenty of Abuterol. So the answer is probably an "average" level of allergy. You might be better off under a physician's care in your case or if you are brave, trying it at very low dosage to start. I was scared too until I went to the Lilac Festival and couldn't enjoy it like I used to - that was the last straw, not smelling the lilacs.

From: samters [mailto:samters ] On Behalf Of Ruth NyceSent: Thursday, May 18, 2006 5:30 PMsamters Subject: Re: Aspirin Desensitization

I was really amazed at you trying the de-sens. on your own. How serious of aspirin allergy did you have? I am really scared to try any method of aspirin desens. because my reaction was swelling and difficulty in breathing. Any info. will be appreciated. Ruannotherbeach <Bret.@...> wrote: After studying the Ken West-Created library on aspirin desensitization, I decided to try it myself following one of the "historic" 2002 member dosage experiences. The warnings posted also made me think twice about doing this myself and not under a physician's care, but the benefits seem to be worth the risk. The reason I am posting is that I am on my third week and up to four baby aspirin day (about 350 mg). The worse day was day four at about one baby aspirin. In particular it bothered my stomach and I just felt plain sick and thought of giving up. However I felt so good waking up on Day 5, that I continued, though this time with "coated" heart patient aspirin instead of baby aspirin and this helped. So if you are discouraged early in the process, please try and continue.

Messenger with Voice. PC-to-Phone calls for ridiculously low rates.