Sporanox and palpitations

[Pooeysuey]

He was on them last year for the standard 4 months. He found that they made him feel so well that he spoke to the consultant about going back on them. After speaking to specialists it was decided that as long as trough aspergillis tests and lft's ok he could stay on them. He has been back on them since September and the palpitations started about a month ago. We have tested the wall in the lounge with a diy kit that confirmed aspergillis but our landlord suggests we open the windows!!!!

[Lutonian]

Pooeysuey its good that your husband had positive initial 4months on Sporanox and it made him feel much better.

Difficult to know if the palpitations etc during most recent course is directly related to it : antifungals are powerful drugs in their own right and the body is not only having to deal with the fungal infection it is also dealing with the fungal 'die off' that the sporanox has induced in doing its job plus dealing with the toxic properties of sporanox itself: a weakened immune system may struggle more .

On top of tbis challenge that your husbands body is dealing with he may also have another compounding factor if living in a mould affected environment .You mention the DIY test you carried out showing aspergillus: do you have visible mould anywhere or do you suspect high moisture levels /water leaks? How long have you lived there?

The landlord response is pretty typical ie blame the lifestyle of residents for creating high levels of moisture eg via tumble driers if not externally vented and even day to day cooking etc if poor ventilation/extraction

[GAtherton Administrator Fungal Infection Trust]

Sporanox is known to interfere with heart rhythm in some cases - this is a serious side effect that needs checking immediately if not done already.

I wrote a lot about damp homes here nacpatients.org.uk/damp_pre... Most commonly that casue of damp is indoor air humidity and the cure for that is better ventilation - so opening the windows is part of the solution, as is assessing where the humidity is coming from - so bathrooms, kitchens need ventilating in particular.

Of course excess humidity might not be the source of the damp - there might be structural problems with the building or leaks. This needs a qualified surveyor to look at it (see suggestions in the link above).

Most commonly there is a bit of both landlord and tenant causing the problems. The tenant needs to get more aware about what adequate ventilation is for their lifestyle and that home, but the landlord also needs to assess if the natural ventilation of the building is adequate for the number of people living in it - has it been modified in such a way that air circulation is poor e.g. blocked chimney, blocked vents, dividing up large rooms to form several small rooms?

It isn't good enough that tenants need to open windows if they are forced to dry clothing indoors with no tumble drier for example - and opening windows lets a lot of cold air in too! Frequently the fitting of mechanical ventilation can solve the issue and this doesn't meant a couple of exhaust fans - heat saving ventilation is now quite affordable and can be fitted to any room.

Both landlord and tenant have a duty of care in law that must be adhered to.

[Pooeysuey in reply to GAtherton]

When we had a really cold spell recently we had the heating on all day. The maximum temperature we got in the house was 8 degrees and the lowest 0. We often come back from the farm and keep more clothes on in the house than when working on the farm. We have been told by previous occupants that the water used to run down the walls!! There is no condensation on the windows but there is between the double glazing!!