Guest guest Posted February 3, 2006 Report Share Posted February 3, 2006 Will he agree to have you hospitalized to start it, if you insist, maybe with the backup of family members? Is he open to discussing this with you/communicating/answering your questions and concerns patiently? Sotalol Okay, I'm getting really frustrated now. I went to see a new EP doctor that is replacing my previous one at the University of Colorado in Denver, and he decided against putting me on the Tykosin. Instead he wants me take Sotalol. He said it has considerably less side affects than the Norpace I was on. He said that usually I would be hopitalized and monitored for 2 days just like with the Tykosin, but since I have my own AICD, he didn't feel it was necessary. " If need be, you will get a shock from your AICD " . Well that makes me nervous! Then, when I went to pick up my prescription, the pharmacist questioned why I wasn't being hospitalized and also said there was a contraindication with my Verapamil. That was it, I refused to start the Sotolol that night. When I called the doctor the next day, the nurse checked with the doctor and he said I would be fine and to go ahead and start the med. The nurse expressed the doctors displeasure over the pharmasist questioning his treatment. I've called to talk to my doctor in Florida (DR. Sheppard in St. sburg), who I totally trust and respect, to see what he thinks. Hopefully I will hear back from him on Monday. So what's the deal? Why do doctors vs pharmasists and doctors vs other doctors, contradict each other so much? How do you handle this? I thouroughly research any medical condition I have and my medications, and sometimes information I research contradicts what doctors have told me! Help! I get nervous any way when I start a new med and this just adds to the anxiety! Can anybody tell me anything about Sotalol and is there anyone out there that knows of a good EP in or near Denver, Colorado that they could recomend? Web Page - http://www.afibsupport.com List owner: AFIBsupport-owner For help on how to use the group, including how to drive it via email, send a blank email to AFIBsupport-help Nothing in this message should be considered as medical advice, or should be acted upon without consultation with one's physician. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 3, 2006 Report Share Posted February 3, 2006 skchesmore80 wrote: > He said > that usually I would be hopitalized and monitored for 2 days just > like with the Tykosin, but since I have my own AICD, he didn't feel > it was necessary. " If need be, you will get a shock from your AICD " . > Well that makes me nervous! Then, when I went to pick up my > prescription, the pharmacist questioned why I wasn't being > hospitalized Hi, I have seen three different cardiologists about my afib. One said he was " old fashioned " and would put me in the hospital for three days if I went on any antiarrhythmic. The other two disagreed about the necessity of hospitalization. Ultimately one of my three docs (the EP) started me on flecainide outside the hospital and I had no side effects whatsoever and have done fine ever since. And when he wrote the Rx, I WAS in the hospital, where I had just self-converted from afib to NSR. He sent me home with the Rx to fill and start taking. I have no structural heart disease, which seems to be one of the criteria for not needing a hospital stay. (Tykosin, however, seems always to require hospitalization to get it started, as well as to change doses, no matter what.) I have witnessed web casts of doctors discussing the use of Sotalol and they all concluded that hospitalization to start it was unnecessary in most cases. The idea that one does not necessarily need to be hospitalized to start Sotalol seems like the majority opinion among the doctors, but by no means the unanimous opinion. But they all agree every case is different, and some do require admission. - OU alum in MI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 3, 2006 Report Share Posted February 3, 2006 I was hospitalized to start Tikosyn, but not to change doses, which I did twice. I was also hospitalized to start Rhythmol, which I've never heard anyone else had to do. It might have had something to do with starting the rhythmol at the same time of stopping the Tikosyn. Re: Sotalol skchesmore80 wrote: > He said > that usually I would be hopitalized and monitored for 2 days just > like with the Tykosin, but since I have my own AICD, he didn't feel > it was necessary. " If need be, you will get a shock from your AICD " . > Well that makes me nervous! Then, when I went to pick up my > prescription, the pharmacist questioned why I wasn't being > hospitalized Hi, I have seen three different cardiologists about my afib. One said he was " old fashioned " and would put me in the hospital for three days if I went on any antiarrhythmic. The other two disagreed about the necessity of hospitalization. Ultimately one of my three docs (the EP) started me on flecainide outside the hospital and I had no side effects whatsoever and have done fine ever since. And when he wrote the Rx, I WAS in the hospital, where I had just self-converted from afib to NSR. He sent me home with the Rx to fill and start taking. I have no structural heart disease, which seems to be one of the criteria for not needing a hospital stay. (Tykosin, however, seems always to require hospitalization to get it started, as well as to change doses, no matter what.) I have witnessed web casts of doctors discussing the use of Sotalol and they all concluded that hospitalization to start it was unnecessary in most cases. The idea that one does not necessarily need to be hospitalized to start Sotalol seems like the majority opinion among the doctors, but by no means the unanimous opinion. But they all agree every case is different, and some do require admission. - OU alum in MI Web Page - http://www.afibsupport.com List owner: AFIBsupport-owner For help on how to use the group, including how to drive it via email, send a blank email to AFIBsupport-help Nothing in this message should be considered as medical advice, or should be acted upon without consultation with one's physician. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 4, 2006 Report Share Posted February 4, 2006 From: " skchesmore80 " >> Can anybody tell me anything about Sotalol ----- I've been on it since last April I take 120 2X daily. I had to go in the hospital too but it was my understanding that it was because I am a woman and that's considered a risk factor. It works so-so for me. I still have episodes of phibbin' but their not as long as they were and the episodes are farther apart. I was having them nearly everyday for hours, now I have it once or twice a week and only for a short while. According to the docs this is considered 'controlled'. (alrighty then! :-P) The episodes of really fast hard beats are gone, thank heavens for that because they were wicked. Not sure if that was v-tach, SVT or what, but it sure was awful. I have some side effects like being REALLY exhausted and kind of stupid (LOL) I still have that occasionally! At least it is tolerable now. Personally I felt a lot better when I knew what was wrong (afib) more than being on any drug. :-) Best wishes to all, Lorrie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.