Side effects apixaban/ or dye test gone wrong???

[Natbh1]

Does anyone else on apixiban have side effects ?? I have asthma and since taking apixiban for dvt the gp thinks the extreme burning and pain in my lungs is severe conochondritus? It does radiate all over under my ribs.. I had a ct with the dye about 4 weeks ago to rule out a pe but since then they have got worse and worse and I shake and have horrid sensations in my heart and lungs ... my humongous dvt is right at the top of my right leg (main VEIN) in groin area. SO THE doc says it would be not great to change from apixaban. My fospheric acid in blood came back extremely low aswell which is weird for apixiban I'm told.. anyone else suffer this after the dye ct ? Or on apixiban? Ecg was good? Waiting for dm results still.

[BobD Volunteer]

Sorry not heard of anything like this but why not try DVT forum.

[Natbh1 in reply to BobD]

Thanks for your reply

[Kaz747]

I have been on Apixiban twice. The first time was after a cardioversion for Atrial Flutter. I was on it for about a month and a couple of days after coming out of hospital, I was really unwell and was diagnosed with Shingles, although the sample that was taken from the handful of blistery lumps on my rash under my left breast was inconclusive.

My blood pressure was up and down and I had terrible pain in my upper back and I wasn't sure if that was related to the cardioversion or shingles (which I'm still not convinced I had). The doctor sent me for a CT scan to check for a pulmonary embolism and that was all clear.

I was sick for about a month and it wasn't until much later I wondered whether the Apixiban could have had an effect on me.

Fast forward a few months and I ended up in hospital with Atrial Flutter again and AF (first time this was diagnosed). My EP put me on Xarelto and booked me in for an ablation a few weeks later. When they went to perform the ablation, my doctor woke me from the anaesthetic saying that they had performed a TOE (transoesophageal echocardiogram) and found a blood clot in my heart so they couldn't proceed. He then placed me Apixiban again and sent me home to rest. A couple of days later I was really unwell, shivering and shaking with pains in my upper back and my blood pressure going super high then super low. My husband rang my specialist who said to come straight back to the hospital. They admitted me and we discussed whether my reaction could be to Apixaban. He then put me on Pradaxa but that wasn't any good for me so I ended up back on Xarelto.

[T-Gray in reply to Kaz747]

Wow! Are things getting any better for you? What will/did they do about the clot? How long has it been?

I've had AF and Aflutter separately once each since late 2019, cardioverted each time and on Eliquis since then. My biggest problem is affording it in the U.S.A., even with insurance, so I order it from Canada, made in India.

A friend went on it in 2018 but had to quit due to nose bleeds. He's been in permanent AF for years before that, but seems pretty healthy otherwise at 67. He had an older brother on it who died after a brain bleed when he fell in the shower.

[Kaz747 in reply to T-Gray]

I am pretty good now. I just had to wait for the clot to dissolve and a couple of months later I went in for an ablation that fixed the flutter but not the AF. I had another ablation the following year (3 years ago now) and I’ve been pretty good since then. No known AF but I get ectopics and tachycardia at times. I will be on anticoagulants for life and I have remained on a low dose of Attenolol. I also take magnesium and when I saw my EP a few weeks ago and I was having a lot of ectopics he told me to up my magnesium intake even higher which has settled things again.

I’m in Australia and I must admit I’d hate to have to deal with the US health system.

[Natbh1 in reply to Kaz747]

Oh and what exactly did they do for the clot in your heart?? Did you say just resting with blood thinners to wait for it to dissolve

[Kaz747 in reply to Natbh1]

Yes that’s right. It was a very small clot but any clot makes it too dangerous to do any procedures.

[Natbh1 in reply to Kaz747]

So ended up in hospital yesterday with suspected p.e but they didn't even do a scan though I was tachycardic and blood pressure all over the place... they told me to go home and try and hold on for Monday when the dvt specialist is calling me for review.... thats the problem in the UK... the nhs is falling apart a bit. The quality of care is much less than that of most private hospitals... but we are lucky to have the nhs it's just such a shame the last few years has ruined the quality of care. I'm hoping me and the gp change meds on Monday and that sorts it out . I have now got red rash on my body and been heating up real bad and inflamed in the head and chest aswell now. Out of intrest kaz.. did you say you have asthma and take inhalers?? As I do aswell

[Kaz747 in reply to Natbh1]

Sorry to hear you’re unwell. I’ve seen a lot of articles about the pressure your NHS is under.

No I don’t have asthma but it’s very prevalent in my family. I am highly allergic to cats though and I have an asthma-like reaction to to them. My mum developed asthma when she was older, as did my nana so I have to watch out.

[Natbh1 in reply to Kaz747]

OK thanks.. I'm allergic to cats aswell actually. Very nervous about trying to change apixiban to heparin injections, but i think that's my only alternative blood thinner ??? as I'm on inhalers and regularly end up on antibiotics. I was thinking of asking the doc to try the one one you was OK with , but don't think your aloud it with asthma meds

[Natbh1 in reply to Natbh1]

(I'm aloud it)

[Natbh1 in reply to Natbh1]

Sorry meant to say don't think I'm aloud it

[Kaz747 in reply to Natbh1]

I didn’t realise there was an interaction between anticoagulants and asthma meds. I know there are interactions with some heart drugs (beta blockers maybe). When my leg was in a cast a few years ago, before my heart problems I had to inject myself with Clexane every night for six weeks.

[T-Gray in reply to Kaz747]

Thank you. Fascinated to hear this real life info. So the Apixaban dissolved the clot, I assume. (In my short experience we call it Eliquis in the USA.)

I also take magnesium, but I've never heard a doctor here prescribe it. I currently favor Mag L-threonate, or Mag Taurate, containing between 144 to 120mg elemental Mag, but also have gotten mixed chelates of five types in one formula with 400mg. Those all require 3-4 capsules/day. Is yours from a pharmacy under your health plan, or purchased privately as I do from the likes of Amazon?

I'm a strong critic of the USA health system--even at my post-65 age, which means I get relatively inexpensive care via our national Medicare system. But I still go outside the system to purchase Eliquis/apixaban overseas.

Eliquis would cost me about $50/month through Medicare, but that's a co-pay while its actual cost to Medicare is rated as over $500/month for the first 8 months of the year, at which point I would hit "the donut hole" in Medicare drug coverage and my co-pay would at least double or triple for the rest of the calendar year.

I'm currently getting apixaban for about $40/month, total cost, overseas, all year long.

[Kaz747 in reply to T-Gray]

I was only on Abixiban for a few days after they found the clot and because O had a bad reaction it was changed to Pradaxa but I also reacted to that so was put back on Xarelto.

My doctor highly recommended magnesium. I get advice from an excellent herbalist and pharmacist who advised me the best magnesium to take. He understands both the medication and the supplements and has been a great help over the last few years.

Here we have a scheme where there is a maximum price for prescription medication which is around A$40 (US$30) and for pensioners it is only A$6. So I pay $40/month for Xarelto but other meds are less. The scheme also has a maximum cap - a safety net - once a family has spent around A$1500 on prescription medications, the price for each prescription drops to the $6 mark.

[T-Gray in reply to Kaz747]

Thanks again for those details. Of course I am what you would call a pensioner, so we can see the difference in prices. Yours as a "pre-pensioner" are lower than mine as a pensioner.

[Natbh1 in reply to Kaz747]

Oh wow , im sorry to hear that you went through all that...so do you think the apixaban was making you ill then or everything else?? I'm just waiting to find out what my dm blood test was yesterday... I take it ....if I had a bit if clot in my heart or lung ut would be high you see. Been feeling awful today and last night... personally I think I need a scan to check things but the doc won't order one unless this dm test is high.. and I'm trying to stay out of a and e as covid would finish me off atm. The dye test burned my lungs aswell so I'm reluctant to go to a and e.... wish I had the money for an mri because that should tell me if its pe or not instead.

[Thomas45]

One difficulty in discussing medication is the fact that there is no "Standard human body". Apart from the gender difference, there are billions of different bodies. Most will react to a specified drug the same way, but others won't. I reacted very badly to Xarelto / Rivaroxaban. Offered a choice of DOACs or Warfarin, I chose Warfarin. Beta blockers cause me problems including urticaria and exacerbation of asthma, so they're banned. What works for the majority doesn't work for everyone because there is no Standard body. And then there no standard diet or lifestyle.

Of course there may be someone on this discussion board who's had the same reactions as you, and I hope you find them. And there will be medical people who know greatly about DVT who probably won't read this discussion. Some ailments are not covered by HealthUnlocked, such as Foot Drop, because it has many causes, but there may be a DVT discussion board. I hope you find a solution.

[Swampygirl]

Hi Natbh1I'm sorry to hear of your health problems. It must be upsetting not having an answer. I have been taking Apixiban for around 2-3 years and from day one I have not experienced any side effects. I wish you well and hope you get a result and feel better soon. x 😀