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By Mohamed H. Dahir, Chairman Pharmaceutical Association of Somaliland
Drug Interactions (Cont'd)
Another problem which Ms. Sahra’s doctors have not taken into account is the interaction between her diabetes medicine, Daonil, and her arthritis medicine, Indomethacin may block the elimination of Daonil, thereby pushing its antidiabetic effect too far. The result could be Hypoglycemia, an acute episode of low blood sugar. The aspirin she consumes will also contribute to this response. In fact, the aspirin she takes along with her more potent arthritis medicine is another mistake. It is quite possible that this combination has produced Ms. Sahra’s upset stomach and indigestion, which brings up another no-no.
So here we have Ms. Sahra she is really more typical than you think. There are thousands of men and women who routinely receive even more complex medications from their physicians. Ms. Sahra could have experienced thirteen unnecessary and potentially harmful drug interactions because her doctors failed to warn her that certain chemical combinations could be dangerous. Even scarier, she might not have been able to realize that many of her problems were directly related to her various drugs. Doctors are extremely reluctant to admit to themselves or their patients that symptoms or discomfort could be caused by something they prescribed. It is almost always the last possibility they consider, and then often reluctantly. What commonly happens is that the side effects encountered with one drug are treated with another. Drug Number 2 may also produce an adverse reaction. So the doctor prescribes Drug number 3, which is supposed to relieve this new condition. Drug number 3 has its own set of complications, and the process can go on and on and on. If and when your doctor becomes aware of the gravity of the situation, it may be too late to reverse or correct some of the damage.
How can we as patients protect ourselves? Well, assuming that we have made a detailed list of everything we are taking and noted any discomfort or unusual reactions, we can go to our physician and ask him to evaluate the situation. Often when confronted with a list of drugs and symptoms he will be more interested and cautious.
We can become familiar with some of the minor every-day type of interactions. It might also be a good idea if we learned which dangerous kinds of drugs may result in serious illness or death when mixed in the wrong combinations.
Other common drugs which are frequently implicated in drug interactions are aspirin and aspirin-like pain-relievers, alcohol, antacids, antibiotics (particularly Tetracycline), antihistamines, asthma medications (including aerosols and tablets), barbiturates, birth control pills, blood pressure medications blood-thinners, cold and cough preparations, hay fever medicines, sleeping pills, tranquilizers, ulcer medications, and diuretecs. It would be impossible to list all the specific interactions these frequently prescribed medications could produce. The majority of these potential drug-drug reactions won’t even be noticed. Many of them are bothersome but rarely life-threatening. Other interactions could be disastrous. Suffice it to say that if you are taking any of the above types of medicines or receive one in the future, be sure to consult your physician before you begin taking any other remedy or drug.
There are some interactions, which must be prevented at all costs, because they could create serious adverse reactions, if not death. Drug which are particularly prone to lethal combinations are Anticoagulants (blood-thinners), Antidepresants, chloramphenicl (Chloromycetin), Cortisone-type Drugs, Diabetes Medicine, Digitalis, Salicylates, and Sedatives. This is not to say that there are not many other drugs, which cannot create dangerous situations when mixed with something else. In fact, there are over sixty individual and classes of medications, which could combine to produce a life-threatening emergency.
ALLERGY
All right already, so you’ve got allergies and you’re miserable, especially when the ragweed hay fever season and all those yucky pollens hit. You have plenty of company. There are probably a lot of people with this affliction (one out of ten). Well, me too. Yeah, I’ve got hay fever, and it takes a fellow sufferer to really appreciate the problem. I often wonder how many allergy specialists (who are getting rich off our misery) know what it is really like to sniffle through August and September. They turn us into pin cushions with their weekly shots and we accept it all bravely. Well, strap on your seat belt and prepare for the heavy artillery. It is about time we rattle the cage of the allergists of this country. The bottom of their bird cage hasn’t been cleaned in quite some time.
So what is an allergy? For a field that has been around for so long (allergy shots were first initiated in 1911), it is almost unbelievable that the medical profession is still so embroiled in controversies over allergic disorders. Nevertheless, there are a few basic points of agreement. an allergy is really a catch-all phrase for a reaction of the body to substance from the external environment.
To be continued
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