Warfarin and cold/cough medications

[Fearnie]

I have been diagnosed with PAF and take Bisoprolol, Dronedarone, Aspirin and Warfarin. What medications can I safely take for a cough and a cold?

[Hidden]

Hi Fearnie, I see this is your first post, so welcome to the forum. It's not easy to say what you can take, but a bit easier to suggest what you shouldn't. Intruth, it is important to ask your pharmacist or GP, as they have a better understanding of how different drugs interact. Aspirin is a not recommended by NICE as far as AF is concerned, but it does have a role in dealing with some other heart conditions, so I think you should check that out as it can aggravate the stomach and cause internal bleeding. Similarly, NSAID's, such as Ibruprofen etc. are to be avoided as they can also cause internal bleeding which is not a good idea for folks who take anticoagulants. I'm not medically trained and will not suggest or recommend medications because there so many that interact and everybody is different, with different conditions, so please go talk to your pharmacist or GP.

Hope this helps, John

[Fearnie in reply to Hidden]

Thanks for the reply. I take aspirin because of stents in my heart, so I also take Lansoprazole, and others (14 a day!). I have been taking paracetamol but I have this thickly cough which drives me mad. I'll go to the pharmacy tomorrow. Cheers.

[BobD Volunteer in reply to Fearnie]

Fearnie do speak to the pharmacist and be very careful as many cold remedies contain things which aggravate AF. Carvona cough medicine is particularly bad and must be avoided. ANY NSAID such as ibroprofen is to be avoided as they have been linked to causing AF as well as interfering with INR. Basically lots of fluids, paracetamol, hot lemon and honey etc all the old fashioned Grandma remedies. A steam bowl and towel can help free things off. Mentally go back to 1950 in other words.

[seasider18 in reply to BobD]

I had a GP who had not heard of Friars Balsam. I told her to ask her Granny about it.

Cold remedies are to be avoided as most put up your BP. Even before I had hypertension I could feel my BP going up after taking it.

[Bagrat]

Blackcurrant jam. With Manuka honey add water and boil up till syrupy. Manuka honey is anti bacterial but any honey will soothe. Steam inhalations, in fact all the things that Bob said. I also put a couple of drops of Teatree oil in the inhalation as anti viral and smells nice.

[seasider18 in reply to Bagrat]

If I have a bad cough in the night after a cold I mix up some brown sugar with butter and eat it.

[Bagrat in reply to seasider18]

Ooh I nearly mentioned that. My Mum ( I'm 72) used to mix a bit of butter and sugar and leave by my bed for a cough. Trouble was ( and still is) I ate it all before going to sleep

[seasider18 in reply to Bagrat]

I had another way that worked!! I got up and smoked a cigarette and honest.. it worked for me.

[seasider18 in reply to Bagrat]

My wife has just got through a bottle of cough linctus in the past two weeks. There was part of a bottle in a cupboard that she would not take as it was two years out of date. The replacement bottle said not to use after a month of opening. Nothing lasts nowadays.

[Jaycloell in reply to seasider18]

My dad used to give me this when I had a cough .

[seasider18 in reply to Jaycloell]

So long as he did not give you Cabman's Linctus evidently used by Victorian horse cab drivers. That Is really vile I used to buy it in Scotland in the 1950's

[di-london]

My dad gets bad coughs and he has been with AF for almost 30 years. He takes similar meds to you including dronedarone and warfarin. We make him bay leaves tea and he manages to get rid of that terrible cough which makes his chest feel like it's ripping apart! Also vicks rubber between your shoulders and chest it helps to relief pain. Get well soon

[Polski]

Try a gram of Vitamin C at least three times a day (for up to two days it can be every two hours - or when you remember it). Reduce to am and pm once you are improving. We use much more when we are unwell, so it is difficult to take too much, but if you get diarrhea decrease the amount! We can't make it, or store it, unlike most animals, and it only stays in the body about 6 hours. One tablet is the equivalent of 6 or more oranges, so this will give you much more than just eating fruit. Best bought from a health food shop - you don't need the expensive 'fizzy' ones etc.

If you take plenty of it at the first sign of a cold, the cold may disappear overnight!

[seasider18 in reply to Polski]

Watch out for the salt in the fizzy ones.

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[Fearnie]

Thanks to everyone for their comments x

[ILowe]

Watch out for anything containing ephidrine or pseudoephidrine and similar. These are decongestants, and are available without prescription, and included in many mixture medicines so you have to be extremely fussy and check every detail, and NEVER take the reassurances of anyone, even if they are a health professional. For those without heart trouble, they can work very well, especially in the sinuses. But they can trigger AF or make it worse. In my reading though, a mucolytic is safe. So too are antihistamines.

The other problem with steam inhalers is the rebound effect. Try them for three days only, then stop. Make sure the vapour is not too hot.

I found my Vitamin D levels were low. Correcting this made a huge difference, it really did. But, on medical advice I did not take the high doses some people advise. bartsendocrinology.co.uk/re...

No easy solutions I am afraid.

[LindaDaisy]

Honey mixed with butter was an Anglo Saxon remedy which I find soothes the throat better than honey and lemon. Green Bottle Ginger and Lemon grass made with very hot water is good. I avoid cold medication.