Ticagrelor and other meds side effects

[Skelligman]

Hi folks. I’m a 65 year old male - had a stent in my circumflex artery in 2017 which worked well and I had no cardio problems subsequently. I’ve been on 80mg atorvastatin, 75mg aspirin and 5mg ramipril since then with no issues. After a bout of Covid in early 2022 I started to get spells of abdominal pain which sometimes radiated to the chest. Diagnosis is acid reflux so I’ve been on a PPI long term (initially lanzoprazole more recently esomeprazole).

in October this year I started to get angina pain again - initially after an echocardiogram I was sent home with 5mg amlodipine prescribed, but the following day chest pain was worse. I was admitted via A&E and had an angiogram on 24th October which showed a blockage in my LAD which needed stenting. I have mild disease in the LMS and RCA but no sign of flow limitations. Previous stent holding up ok with no sign of restenosis. I had a nasty haematoma in my forearm where the catheter went in which caused it to swell up like a balloon but all healed up now. I’m still on my previous 3 meds above but now with the amlodipine and twice daily 90mg Ticagrelor as the dual antiplatelet treatment for 12 months.

My recovery this time has been a lot slower, albeit that I’m now 7 years older. I’ve had some lengthy bouts of stomach pain again - gastrosopy revealed some gastritis and mild duodenal ulceration but that seems to have been mitigated by doubling my esomeprazole to twice daily 20mg. However I’m generally struggling to build up my walking - I’m getting short of breath, sometimes at rest, and feeling tightness underneath and around the ribcage. On occasion I’m also having some chest pain which feels a bit like angina albeit quite dull - as a result I’ve been prescribed twice daily 350mg ranolozine but it’s too early to say if this is helping. I’m still waiting for cardiac rehab sessions.

I’ve come across quite a few postings which suggest that ticagrelor can cause shortness of breath so I’ve discussed that with my GP who is considering switching me to clopidogrel (which I took after my first stent in 2017 with no problems) but taking cardiology advice first. Another option would be prasugrel. I was wondering if anyone else had the same symptoms when taking ticagrelor and if a change of antiplatelet had helped.

sorry for a long winded post!

[Heartbroke]

I was on Ticagrelor I suffer with asthma and it made me have a cough and wheezy and was changed to clopidogrel with no side affects on that.

[Whiteghost]

2020 had a HA. In my discharge goodie bag was Ticagrelor 90mg which I took for 2years followed by 60mg for a further 2years. I've now finished the course. I can now do things without feeling breathlessness. If I had been offered an alternative med from my GP I would of given it a try. Remember you don't have to take any medication that's Making you feel miserable. Because of other health issues my GP thought it wiser to stay on Ticagrelor. There's plenty of others out there. Take care🤗

[Peileen]

Hello Skelligman

It was probably the Atorvastatin that directed me to your post. I don’t take any of the other meds you mention. However, I was offered Rosuvastatin 5mg instead of the 20mg Atorvastatin because I felt it was causing heaviness in my legs esp on uphill streets, I have to say there was improvement and I wished I had mentioned this to GO sooner. However you seem fine as regards legs. I never had the breathlessness. Best wishes.

[TudorQueen]

Hi Skelligman. Sorry you are having problems. I changed from Ramipiril to Clopidogrel 2 years ago as I have COPD and Cough. Ramipirill made cough worse..Cardiology recommended Clopidogrel and Irbersartan and removed Atorvastatin which had lung and mobility side effects which with Rheumatoid, COPD and Heart Failure I did not need. All seems OK although I am now diagnosed with CKD Stage 3b kidney problems..putting it down to 2 x Osteoporosis injection!! Please avoid Omeprazol, Lansoprazol. PPIs as they can have had effects on stomach and kidneys. For my Hiatus Hernia I take Gaviscon double Action. Pregnant Wo m an can have it and I beleve kids too, so safer.

I wish you all the very best best for Christmas and Healthier New Year for all x

[Deejim]

Hi, I have been taking Ramipril for many years success fully. I had a problem at the beginning as I kept falling, but as soon as my dose was reduced I had no further problem.😀

[Skelligman]

Thanks everyone for taking the trouble to reply. I think it’s most likely to be the ticagrelor causing the shortness of breath. I’ve been taking atorvastatin and ramipril for years without problems. It seems to be relatively common to be switched to clopidogrel so I think that’s what is most likely to happen. If that doesn’t work the next candidate for investigation will be the amlodipine.

I do have polycystic kidneys albeit small cysts but I get blood tests regularly to make sure meds are not causing kidney issues. So far so good.