Radiology Forums

logan11 · Joined: 15 Jan 2007 Posts: 1

Iis it to make you feel better? "symptom relief"? to make abstract numbers on a clinical test look closer to a "normal" heart? Protection against something?

I know...I suppose the answer is "it varies by individual".

I ask because my doc seems to be after me to up my medication, when I have no particular complaints at the moment irt my heart condition itself; my complaints, if any, relate more to the side effects of the damn drugs. I feel better, generally, without them. I've been on atenolol for several years now, but only 50mg/day. when I first started that, I felt like a lump. couldn't get out of my own way. doc said to take half a pill...that improved things some. I still felt sleepy and generally unmotivated most of the time...but for the most part, tolerable. last year, Doc convinced me to take half a pill, twice a day. said it would make me feel less fatigued if I could up the dose. I keep trying to tell him, "more pill=MORE fatigue". he says "no". its my heart that is causing the fatigue. I'm not buying it.

kevin11 · Joined: 15 Jan 2007 Posts: 1

While you may not 'feel' the medication is helping, it is. Most of us are on some sort of medication. Unfortunately, not much research & development done by pharmaceutical companies for product development though we pay a huge amout towards this. The fact is rightly pointed out in a book “With a license to kill” by John Josefson ( presently available at http://www.lulu.com/content/587718 ).
Hope this helps a bit, I am sure someone with more knowledge on this will pop in and help you out.

Take care,

hjhogle · Moderator Joined: 23 May 2006 Posts: 608 Location: CT

Actually, you're not likely to get informed information in this forum. You've posted in a forum designed for Nuclear Medicine technologists/issues.

You'd be better off seeking a second opinion with a phsycian on your particular case, or trying a forum dedicated to pharmacological issues or one for cardiac patients. None of us are here because we're familiar with medications - try us if you want info about imaging issues.

hjh