RE: Use of Vioxx after GBS (long)

[Guest guest]

>> I do take Vioxx, although I try to take as sparingly as possible because

I am terrified what effect it might have on my insides, but it makes my

joints feel SOOOO much better.

I took Vioxx pre-op. When I went in for my initial consultation with my RNY

surgeon, I asked if it was ok to keep taking it, and at the time (this was

November of 99) he said yes. Then one evening before my surgery, he called

me at home, and told me to stop taking Vioxx, permanently. He got a bulletin

from the manufacturer, warning surgeons and other doctors to stop giving

Vioxx to any patients who had ANY kind of stomach surgery (not just gastric

bypasses). He had called the manufacturer for more details, and he was

convinced that he would never give Vioxx or Celebrex to any of his patients

again, whether their issue was stomach related or not (he does other

surgeries besides RNY's). Apparently they can cause spontaneous, severe

bleeding even in people who have never had stomach problems, but they are

incredibly dangerous to those of us who have had our stomachs operated on,

as they can deteriorate the lining of the stomach right at the staple line

or stoma even more quickly than they would on normal people.

I still have arthritis -- years of abusing my knees at over 300 pounds did

damage that is not curable. But I take Tylenol and live with the pain. I

also take Glucosamine and Chondroitin, and that is helping a great deal (it

has to build up in the joints over time, but after a month I am noticing a

good deal of relief). All in all, I would rather have a bum knee than be

dead from bleeding to death internally. The woman who had all those

complications is lucky to be alive. I'm not willing to take that kind of

chance any more. She's offering some good advice -- get something else, for

your own health and well-being.

~~ Lyn G