Hello all..........first time poster🙂

[Steve4666]

Would appreciate some advice please. I have severe emphysema and have been in hospital several times over the last few months with the dreaded chest infections. The hospital consultant has put me on theophylline tablets (200mg), but I’m finding I’m even more breathless with taking these. I’m also on amoxicillin and predsolone at the same time. Has anyone had the same problem with theophylline, or could it be the ‘cocktail ‘ of meds causing the problem? I’ve spoke to my Dr and he said theophylline can’t cause this side affect, and to carry on with them. I don’t feel there helping at all though. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks.

[jimmyg23]

I have been on theophylline for over 8years and consultant told me it was best and I believe him because I have never had any problems with it and could not be without it maybe just give it more time and might be other medications

[Spacecat1 in reply to jimmyg23]

Got my gp to take me of amoxicillin I found it did nothing for me. Never clear the infection maybe its reacting with the the other medication. Once they took me off them onto another tablet I had such a change for the better

[HungryHufflepuff]

Hello and welcome. I don’t know theophylline (sorry!) but I do think there can be a “cocktail effect” even if doctors don’t think so. They point to the side effects of each individual medication but no one seems to take into account the interaction between the different ones. And some medications just don’t work for some people even though they work wonders for others. I don’t know how long you’ve been taking these medications but maybe give them a chance to work and if things don’t improve hopefully you can get your doctor to see it’s not helping you and maybe they can try something else or a different combination of things. Wishing you all the best.

[Caspiana]

Hello Steve4666 .

I'm sorry I don't know anything about Theophylline so I can't comment specifically, but I was once put on Gabapentin that made me so dizzy and sleepy I couldn't move. The doctor told me to keep taking it but I decided it wasn't for me. It could have been the combination of medication I was on I think. Anyway, I hope there is some resolution for you very soon.

Best wishes,

Cas xx 🙋🐕

[offalot]

Hi,

The theophylline you are on, is that Uniphyllyn Continuus 200mg? That is the regular treatment for COPD, helps to keep the tubes open and eases breathing. I've been in it for xx years, seems like forever.

My GP from a while ago always said everyone is different, there is no guarantee that every med will have the same effect on everyone. But suck it and see. He also said, as he knew I didn't like drugs, that in my position he'd try the thing he was suggesting - but that it was my body, and entirely my decision what I put into it. You can't fail to respect that. He's still at the surgery, but so popular it's almost impossible to see him, so I switched to another.

Over time, I have found that some meds suddenly give me problems. I take a handful in morning and most are twice daily, so much the same at night, 12 hours apart. But I take less than I used to, having weeded out those that rebelled.

Fairly recently I've felt that a half hour after taking my meds I feel a bit down, my enthusiasm has gone, rampant lethargy has set in, and I can't think. Warning signs that things are not quite right. It can be that digestion is using all my energy, an infection starting, a bit of food poisoning - or that a med side effect is kicking in for some reason. If this persists and nothing else resolves it, I start a process of elimination to find which, if any, of my meds is causing problems. I'll delay taking all meds for a couple of hours to see if that delays the onset of feeling not right. If it does, then next morning I delay one med, and so on until I find the culprit. Then I repeat the delay on that med for a few days to check it's consistently having same effect, and then I contact my GP, who very often says to give it a rest for a couple of weeks then go back on it, see what happens. Very often that sorts it out, but if not it's a matter of weighing up the benefit of the drug against the nuisance of the side effect.

You are on Prednisolone - what dosage? I assume this will be to treat an infection, not as a regular daily dose, as was once done until thinking changed. No doubt they will have told you that it should be taken early morning, as it can affect sleep so the longer before bedtime the better. And to take it with or after food, both for better absorption into bloodstream and to avoid or reduce nausea. Prednisolone is an anti-inflammatory. Your body produces prednisolone but when you have a chest infection you need a boost so you get that artificially, by tablets or injection.

As your body produces prednisolone itself, care needs to be taken to preserve that, not to upset the body's natural process, so after a high dose, the dosage will be reduced gradually over several days to wean you off, rather than just stopping suddenly.

And yes, some drugs will interact with others, and when you throw a living, breathing human being into the equation, a person identical to all others but simultaneously totally unique, it's not possible to predict how a drug will perform or behave, whether it will help or whether side effects will interfere. These days drugs companies tend to list every single side effect ever reported to them, without much info on the likelihood. They are just covering themselves against possible litigation!

Everything I've said is just my opinion, and my methods, I'm not suggesting you or anyone should follow what I do.