Had a heart attack in September and am taking bisoprolol, ramipril, eplerenone and brilique. Had a check up with my GP during the week and showed her my legs and arms as they are covered in deep purple bruises and she said I will now bleed for England. I obviously realise this is a minor problem in the grand scheme of things but I am now dreading the Spring and Summer months. Already thinking of giving all of my summer tops and dresses away to charity and will have to buy long sleeve blouses and wear trousers all through the hot weather. Also I have two lively grandchildren and have started to keep them at arms length in case they accidentally scratch me. Yes, I am lucky to be alive and for some odd reason I seem to be anxious about every little thing. I have had colitis for 8 years but in all that time have never felt like this. Any advice would be welcome, thank you.
Bruises: Had a heart attack in... - British Heart Fou...
Bruises
I think you will get better at not causing bruises; I have. Apart from noticing how often I walked into furniture, doorways etc I also found that I pushed doors closed rather than using handles and didn't take care when gardening. These were the easier issues to solve. Leaning on fences to look at views when out walking, leaning my arm on the edge of my desk when using my pc, leaning the edge of my kindle on my leg when curled on the settee all left amazing black lines on my body. I now avoid these and other. I wouldn't worry too much about scratches, a bit of pressure and a sticking plaster sorted my scrapes. I did go back to the gym recently and now know which machines I can't use due to causing pressure bruises! Don't give your clothes away....by summer I bet you have it under control.
Many thanks for your reply. I am careful not to bump into things but I even get bruises when in bed, The other morning I woke up with an enormous bruise on my hand.
Sleeping with your head on your hand or similar maybe......it's the pressure bruises I found the most difficult to identify the reasons for. I laughed when I eventually realised that the parallel lines on my thighs were caused by my Kindle....it now rests on a cushion!
I’m an active type of person and I spent twelve months covered in bruises. Lots of heavy duty gardening doesn’t help. The appearance didn’t bother me but then I’m an old man. I believe there are loads of make up products out there to cover bruises.
it will reduce but partly because you will learn to manage your movements. Pressure bruises are very annoying because you are unaware of doing them and they can be big. Some swear by Arnica to help bring them out. I urge you not to discard your summer clothes!
The bruising is caused by the Brilique (Ticagrelor) which is normally prescribed with aspirin for 12 to 18 months after a stent. It's a prophylactic intended to prevent clots forming. The bruising will stop when you stop taking the drug.
Aside from bruising you may experience nosebleeds, if you do, then discuss with your GP the dose of Ticagrelor which may be reduced . You may also have issues with dentistry. If you need an operation for anything, it may have to be deferred until the course of treatment is complete.
Avoid rubbing your eyes when you wake up in the morning, I frequently find that I two black eyes as I've rubbed them before. Also avoid cutting yourself or biting you lip. Your lips may swell quite alarmingly if they become bruised!
I've got three tablets left until the end of my Ticagrelor prescription and I am looking forward to not having these issues any more. You'll get through it!
The anxiety is quite natural and will ease with time.
Unfortunately neither 111 or 999 recognised my symptoms as a heart attack and I was in category 3 where the ambulance was concerned and took 5 hours to reach me. The paramedics even treated me for a trap nerve and filled me up with painkillers without knowing what was wrong. As a consequence our nearby hospital which specialises in stents would not accept me as it was too late for stents. They have said I will be on Ticagrelor for life.
So sorry to hear that BSA20. It sounds like you have had quite an ordeal. If you are to be on this treatment for life, I can only suggest that it is more important that you discuss the side effects with your cardiologist. I was switched from Ticagrelor to Prasugrel to help with my shortness of breath, and subsequently my GP was able to reduce the dosage to minimize the nose bleeds.
Low dose aspirin is often prescribed for life for those who are considered to have high heart related risk although other anticoagulant or anti platelets may be dropped some time after a heart related event. So like many hearties I take a 'for life' daily low dose aspirin but no other anticoagulant or anti-platelet, but have to report that I bruise far easier than I did before it was prescribed post HA. I am looking at two large bruises on my hands as I write. And looking at comments on here from time to time I am not alone with bruising caused by aspirin alone , although of course the degree of bruising may vary from individual to individual.
I wonder if its better to accept some bruising (while using some of the great ideas above, on how to reduce them), than stop hugging your grandkids?
It is astonishing how easily someone with this condition can bruise at first. Just brushing past a worktop or knocking a hand against a door handle brought out big bruises. I have found after 6 months that it is very much better partly through being more cautious but also i think our bodies adjust. Don't get rid of those clothes yet!
The trouble is I have been on colitis meds for 8 years which have already thinned my skin and now bleed very easily and have packs of silicone plasters in every room, in the car and in my bag.
Hi. After my hearty attack i was prescribed brilique for 1 year. The bruises were dreadful,even if i scratched an itch! I was very self conscious about them in the summer but found the best way to look at it is,the tablets are doing their job and helping blood not to clot( condidering a clot nearly killed me this is a good thing lol)Good luck. Jules x
I had similar comments on bruises,
I wouldn't worry too much about scratches, pressure and plaster work for me. The only one that was a problem was when I clonked myself heavily on the sharp corner of over head bookshelf 😓. Even that was stopped with a bandage and pressure.
I am a bit more careful cycling though to avoid falls.
I was the same when on Ticagrelor, was in Majorca last June and I looked like a battered wife. Black and blue all over but following 12mths on this drug I was no longer taking it and now I'm bruise free. Please dont get rid of your summer clothes. Take care. X
It's t he bisopralol but you will probably only have to take it for 6 months after a heart attack. I looked like I'd done 6 rounds in a boxing ring lOL or my husband was beating me. Don't worry- it's quite normal and it will stop after you finish taking them. YOu should have seen my arm after an angiogram and stents. It was BLACK from wrist to elbow. Getting anxious after a heart attack is completely normal. It's a huge blow to our confidence. It does get better but I'm 4 years on from mine now and still over react when I get a new symptom.
Which raises the interesting question as to whether it is wise to ice skate, ski or carry out similar sports where falling is quite likely.
Tip: Cut out the wrestling and Boxing!
Sympathies, BSA20! I’ve been changed from Tigacelor 90 to 60 for two years. ‘Your arteries are wide open and we want them to stay that way,’ said the cardiologist. I think I bruise less, or else I’ve just stopped caring. Lots of good advice about being careful, though it’s not easy. Also lots of good advice about not giving your summer clothes away. Good luck!
Hi, I too suffer with this bruising, it doesn't matter how careful I am I always manage to bruise myself, mainly on my arms, I've even been asked if I self harm, so ,yes I'm very conscious of my arms when out, long sleeves are fine in winter, but summer is awful, but I'm alive,& that's what matters
I’m a type 1 diabetic and since being on heart medication after a heart attack and triple bypass my insulin injection sites are covered in bruises. I change my needle after each injection. As they are on my abdomen and top of legs mostly I’m not too concerned as I no longer wear a bikini and I’ll just have to put up with the leg ones when I wear a swimsuit.
It might just settle down.
I bruised badly for the first 6 months after my HA but then after a turn in my garden I had my Bisoprolol and Ramipril halved from 2.5mg to 1.25mg tablets in each case. Not sure if it’s a coincidence but I stopped bruising and have been fine for the last 6 months. I’ve been taking 90mg tablets of Ticagrelor twice a day throughout so no change of medication there.
Hope that helps and keep those summer clothes another summer. You might still get to wear them. With or hopefully without the bruises.
Good luck. 🙂👍
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