Wrin, can i have some advice please?

bluebanana · 12-19-2003, 06:34 PM

Hi
I'm a bit confused. I have just had bloods taken and they are checking my IGE levels... what does IGE stand for? I know it's a measure of how bad the allergic reaction is. If it comes back high, then i guess it means that I will be suitable for the more allergy based therapies, however, what happens if it comes back low? I have attacks for no apparent reason, could this be because I'm very allergic or cos i have weird lungs? (by attack, I mean a PF of 90 when it should be 500) Do you know what other treatments are available , my consultant has me on prednisilone, theophyllin, seretide, flixotide and singulair as well as cetrizine. I'm on the maximum dose for all of them except the pred.

And... I'm getting a pulse of 140+ at night, I know that it's a side effect of the meds, but how high should it go before i worry. I'm constantly tired, I get dizzy spells and pains in the left side of my chest, not crippling pains just the odd sharp stabbing twinge! All of these have other possible causes, like I'm not getting enough sleep and have achy sore lungs anyway! I saw two Doctors today and 1 was worried cos i was very tachycardic and the other took my pulse and blood pressure and they were reasonably normal (pulse 92) and told me not to worry. Easy for him to say!!!

Any help will be gratefully recieved!!!!
Thanks
x x x

jerrie97 · 12-20-2003, 02:58 PM

IgE = Immune globulin E

bluebanana · 12-20-2003, 06:08 PM

Thanks!
happy christmas

wrin · 12-21-2003, 04:29 PM

IgE is the immunoglobulin that is most related to allergic reactions and that kind of thing. There are other kinds of immunoglobulins, like IgA and IgM, which are the two other big ones, that are more related to infections than is IgE.

If it comes back low, it means the reactions you are having are not IgE mediated -- they could easily be histamine mediated. Sounds like a waffly technicality, I know, but it's the difference between things like 'anaphylactic' and 'anaphylactoid' reactions. (Even though they sound like the exact same thing. Sigh!)

If it comes back low (which really means normal, since 0 is normal) it just means you would probably not benefit from IgE-blocking therapy like Xolair.

I'm having the darnedest time decoding the british naming scheme, but I know flixotide = flovent, theophyllin = theophylline, seretide = advair, singulair = singulair, and cetirizine = Reactine (in Canada) or Zyrtec in the USA.

I've heard of people becoming tolerant to allergy meds -- have you considered switching from Reactine to something different?
Does the Singulair particularly help you? Have you considered switching to something like Accolate? I know of people who've felt like crap on Singulair but felt like a million bucks when they were on Accolate.
Are you making sure to have your Theophylline levels monitored regularly -- because that could be a reason for your heart rate being so high.
In Europe, have they approved symbicort yet? It's like Advair or seretide except instead of flovent and serevent it's Pulmicort and formoterol. I tried Flovent and found it didn't do jack diddly squat for me -- but the Symbicort's been like manna from heaven.

These are all just alternate suggestions because if any of these drugs are genuinely helping you, why change?

You might want to ask about maybe going to a combivent rescue inhaler from a straight-ventolin one, as some people find it works better than the straight-ventolin without making their heart race as much. (Not everyone, though!)

If you start feeling palpitations or dizzy or the chest pains (!!!) you should be worried, especially at a heart rate of 140. There's a big difference between 140/min with no dizziness and no nervousness and 140/min with palpitations and dizziness.

Your pulse should match your heart rate -- I am assuming you're talking about pulse oximetry, where it was 92% oxygen?

If your heart starts beating super-fast, your blood pressure could drop a bit. If it's stable, that's a good sign, but I'm still a little freaked about the dizziness.

It's also worth it to mention that with the more bronchodilators you're taking and the faster your heart rate is, it has the potential to disrupt your electrolyte balance -- mostly giving you a high potassium (which can have effects on your heart.)

bluebanana · 12-22-2003, 10:49 AM

Hi
I'm on 375mg of theophyllin 2x a day. When i asked about checking my levels they didn't seem bothered and said it wasn't worth it!
What I'm taking at the moment is working, but I'm still really unstable and can have bad attacks really quickly. I'd love to get off the pred!
What is accolate?
I don't know if the singulair works or not, I've only been taking it since I was put on a maintenance dose of pred, which makes me feel great.
x x x