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David R. You might try giving your mom VITAMIN "E" for leg cramping as it's proven itself time and time again with PWPs and others suffering from leg cramps (myself included). I've had PD for 25 years and initially had terrible leg, foot and toed cramping whenever I sat down or laid down. It was sheer HELL until my dermatologist (of all things!) suggested I try vitamin E, beginning with taking 400 ICUs (this measure is the usual way vitamin E is dispensed and stands for "International units") 3 to 4 times a day. YOUSA! ALL the cramping disappeared! Eventually I settled on taking 800 ICUs twice daily and 400 ICUs before going to bed at night. The only time since I began adding vitamin E to my regimen that I suffered a painful reminder that it was still possible to get those darn cramps was when I had to go off the vitamin E for three weeks at my doctor's advise, as I was having major surgery and vitamin E tends to down blood coagulation (so it's never advised to be taking aspirin, or heparin <sp?> simultaneously. Also, calcium is a fine reliever of leg/foot/toe cramping, tho not in my experience, quite as good as vitamin E, tho it'll work well enough when I'm in a bind. Barb Mallut [log in to unmask] -----Original Message----- From: David Rehm <[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]> Date: Sunday, July 02, 2000 10:42 AM Subject: Severe Leg Cramps >We finally had our first appointment with Dr. Rao - movement disorder >specialist - in New Orleans last Thursday. After talking with us and >examining her, he has made an initial assesment that she has Lewy Body >Disease. He immediately told us to stop taking Permax and Celebrex and >he has increased her dosage of Sinemet from 2 CR 25/100 to 4 CR 25/100, >leaving it up to my dad and I to find a correct dosage and timing >schedule. > >Within 24 hours after ceasing her Permax, all of her signs of dementia >and delusions have disappeared. No more anxiety. No more hitting. No >more delusions. It is as though a miracle has occured in that respect. > >We are, though, experiencing problems with severe muscle cramps in her >leg as she enters her off period. We are now giving her one Sinemet CR >35/200 every 6 hours. This is a 100% increased dosage per 24 hour >period. > >Our previous medication timing was: >9 am - one Sinemet CR 25/100 >3 pm - .075 mg Permax >9 pm - one Sinemet CR 25/100 >3 am - .075 mg Perman > >Our new medication timing is: >11:30 am - one Sinemet CR 25/100 >5:30 pm - one Sinemet CR 25/100 >11:30 pm - one Sinemet CR 25/100 >5:30 am - one Sinemet CR 25/100 > >She enters an "off" period approximately 1/2 hour prior to her next >Sinemet. By the time we give her the next dose of Sinemet, her muscle >spams in her legs are so severe that the effect of the newly taken >Sinemet does not "kick in" till approx 2 hours after taking it. > >These spams are - to my dad and I - very severe. Very tight muscles >that jump her leg all over the place. She gets in so much pain she crys >and hurts so bad. At least we are off of the Permax, in which case she >would be hitting out worse than ever. > >We are trying to resolve this by cutting one CR 25/100 in half and >giving it to her like this every 2 hours - but so far, this doesnt seem >to be working either. Dr. Rao said we could have gone with 3 Sinemets >in a 24 hour first, but her "off" time starts so soon that going this >route would be just as bad. > >Does anyone have any recommendations? At this very moment she is crying >out for relief from the pain. We have given her Tylenol PM, and 2mg >Valium to help her, but when she gets in these states, even they do not >work. > >PLEASE recommend what we should do as soon as possible. I do not know >what we can do to help her and it hurts us to be so unable to assist her >in her time of pain. > >David >[log in to unmask]