Rifinah and sleeping

[Shaneela54]

My son has been taking the Rifinah 300/150 mg for a week ... he has 2 months to graduate and cannot concentrate on his studies ... feels very dizzy and sleeps for almost 18 hours ... very worried for him... don’t know what to do as the doc has told him to take the med for 3 months... he is in Uk away from home also

[Soul01]

Shameela, is he being treated for latent Tb or active Tb? If it is latent, could the doctors let him start the medication when he has finished his exams?

[Shaneela54 in reply to Soul01]

He is being treated for latent tb and he has started his medicine since a week .. he is also stressed as he has to give his final assessment before graduation plus his exams.. will it get better in a few days because for now he feels tired and sleepy cos of the medication

[Soul01]

He should ask the TB nurse or doctor if he can wait until after the exams.

[Shaneela54 in reply to Soul01]

But the doc said to him that if he will stop the medicine it can have some reactions..like the chance is 25 percent now for tb to get active but if he stops it can be doubled ... 50 percent

[Soul01]

He could check if a week would make a difference. I have stopped and started several times and the doctors don’t seem worried. He needs to contact them, explain the problem and see what they advise him to do.

[Shaneela54 in reply to Soul01]

Ok I will ask him to seek advice from his doc again... thank you for yr support

[Deniseelk]

I wonder what time of day he is taking his medication? I took Rifinah for 3 months also for latent TB but took mine just as going off to sleep so I didn’t notice / slept through any headaches, etc. Also, do consider this may not be related to Rifinah at all. He could be very stressed from his exams and dealing with this diagnosis at the same time. Does he have good support from a counsellor at college / university to discuss as soon as possible or a tutor for his subject or even head of year. My daughter had other medical issues whilst taking her exams and she was supported through with quiet, separate room for her exams ( so arrived / left separately), could stop for breaks , etc. It is worth him letting them know what situation he is going through.

[Dana02]

Hello Shaneela. So sorry to hear about This. It must be a 'normal' reaction to the strong medicine that makes the liver work extra and get tired hence he is feeling so tired. I used to take a nap every afternoon and that helped. He could asks his doctor if he could take some extra vitamins and perhaps some liver 'helper', but otherwise he should eat a lot of vegetables and fruits and try to nap inbetween the studying. I know the intensive studying is tiring by itself, but in combination with this strong treatment it must be absolutely exhausting. I hope he manages to find a solution to this, but please tell him not to interrupt the treatment without his doctor's consent. All the best wishes to you and him!

D

[HelenC Partner TB Alert]

Hi Shaneela54,

It looks like you have been given some good advice here already. Definitely talk to the doctor and see if the treatment can be amended in some way or supported with additional medications to mitigate these side effects. Also, good nutrition and scheduled nap times are very sensible.

Failing that, is it possible to delay his exams until after his treatment?

Best wishes,

Helen

[Shaneela54]

Thank you everyone for yr care and concerns

[SadieR]

shaneela54 I would say if he's latent then delay treatment until a better time for him, there's no urgency. I took Rifanah for Latent TB & the Isoniazid made me feel very unbalanced physically & emotionally it was horrible. I was taken off it but had to take rifampicin only for six months but suited me much better.

Hope he manages to speak to his Dr or nurse & good luck with his studies x