I have been taking Lanzaprozole - 30mg - since I was diagnosed with PMR in June. Never had an issue with it and never really thought about it. However, my son has been taking it along with some strong antibiotics biotics following surgery and has suffered crippling stomach acid attacks. Got me thinking as to what I was putting into my body and what harm I could be doing to it. Researched a bit and it seems it is only meant to be short term thing.... My question is can I just stop taking it or is it a taper thing? I'll ring my GP this week, but I'm not filled with confidence that I will get a straight or informed answer.
Thank you in advance - I know one of you will know👍
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artisam
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Or take it alternate days Artisan and gradually wean off. I’ve had differing opinions, GP said can stop it pharmacy said taper - but did just stop mine.
Somethings happening but not sure what’s causing what. I thought I was having a heart attack recently- after being in A&E for 7 hours they diagnosed severe acid reflux and offered me Lansoprazole. When I said was already on it they referred me back to GP as was on maximum dose of 60mg. Changed to Esoomeprazole. (Stopped taking Omeprazole after 6 years due to bad stomach) Only lasted on it for a month then bad stomach - back on Lansoprazole. I do have a small hiatus hernia so having camera down on Wednesday to eliminate anything nasty.
I was taking Omeprazole (which I believe is a similar drug ) from diagnosis in June 20 until November 20. I decided to stop when I read that in can contribute to bone thinning. I took one every other day for a month then stopped. No problems so far but GP advises I should restart. I'm now down to 5mg Pred. So reluctant to restart.
I don't know about done well. I think I've just been very lucky so far. Taking it very slowly now. GP insists I need to protect my stomach from effects of Pred or could end up with an ulcer. I did tell her I take my Pred with yoghurt and haven't experienced any gastric problems so far but she wasn't happy!
It is important to take your Pred with food to protect the stomach though if you choose not to take a PPI. I don't use PPIs as they make my stomach bad
My GP told me the same when I first went on Pred. Six months later a rheumatologist said that is not the current thinking but carry on if the GP said so. After 18 months on it and a different Rheumatologist I asked if I should stop taking it and he asked why am I on it? I was told to stop taking it and only take a weeks worth if I need it. I never have 18 months on.
Depends on you and how long you have been on it. The problem is that you can have rebound acid production if you stop it cold turkey. The recommended approach is halving the dose first if you can over a few weeks and then tapering the frequency of use as i see you discussed with DL.
Have some gaviscon handy just in case.
I never started it! Not sure it was amongst the automatic handouts - alendronic acid was. That didn't last long either - 4 tablets! My husband gets awful gut problems with a PPI.
Do you know why you were prescribed Lanzaprozole by the GP? Was it because you are taking non coated pred and they were afraid the pred might upset your stomach?
I think so - it was the rheumatologist who prescribed them I have not seen my GP at all. At the time I was just so grateful that something was being done I would have taken anything! It's only now I'm starting to question and worry about future complications. And yes I am taking non coated pred.
Good to hear. I didn't take it this morning, but will probably do alternate days for a while. It does seem like a lot of people have stopped taking it...
artisan, I find if I take pred with a natural yougart in morning or take a benacol drink,you know the small pots,as long as you dont have any stomach problems Acid reflux or a lot of wind,I took it for2 years then wonder why so just stopped it mostly no problems .x
My husband was taking Lanzoprazole when he was first diagnosed with GCA and was also given asprin and 60mg Pred. He was keen to reduce medication as much as possible and he stopped taking the Lanzoprazole about 6 months later when he was down to about 15-20mg Pred. He started having a spoon of raw, organic cider vinegar before meals and he didn't have any stomach acid issues. He stopped Pred completely about 13 months after the original diagnoses and asprin stopped around the same time.
Are those reccommendations very recent? I would be really interested to find out more info about the Asprin issue. My husband's diagnoses was fairly recent- Dec 2018. Are there more current recomendations for GCA treatment?
Possibly - but they are quite different in places and the 2010 one is very out-of-date with regard to tocilizumab which is discussed in detail in the 2020 one.
The aspirin question is mentioned in Recommendation 10, about 2/3 of the way through the paper, towards the end of General Principles (just before the heading Applicability and Utility, there is a list of Contents at the side and you can just jump to it) and says
"Should anticoagulant or antiplatelet agents be given for GCA? (PICO 12–15)
No RCTs relating to aspirin or other anticoagulant/antiplatelet agents were found. A Cochrane review found no evidence from RCTs to determine the safety and efficacy of low-dose aspirin as an adjunctive treatment in GCA [112]. National and society guidelines for the secondary prevention of coronary and other atherosclerotic vascular diseases should be followed.
10. The routine use of antiplatelet or anticoagulant agents for GCA is not recommended. QoE: insufficient evidence. Consensus score: 9.28"
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