On Fri 27 Mar, Gregory E. Leeman wrote:
> Bobby,
>
> You are right. I should be more careful. I think with another day of
> Tasmar, I definitely am going to try either the 25/100s or maybe even the
> 10/100s. If they are too week and I find I have to take the meds too
> frequently I can always switch back. I have been having muscle cramping
> with the Mirapex so I am trying to wean off that. I am back to 1 MG (3)x
> daily.
>
>
>
> >Greg how did you get such a big dosage of Mirapex 150mg ? I only take 1mg
> >x4 per day and I thought that was a lot. But otherwise you sound so much
> >like me . I take 50/200 CR 3-4
> >per day but Im like you in kinesia dept as it always comes on about 2nd
> >dose of the day.
> >Again like you I feel like I should go back to Non CR Sinemet . What are
> >your thoughts
> > Bobby
> >
The exchange summarised above worries me for 2 reasons:
1/ Greg writes about trying 25/100s (of Sinemet I assume) "or maybe even
the 10/100s". There appears to be a belief that the 25/100 tablet is
more powerful than the 10/100/. This is not so: Both tablets contain
exactly the same amount (100mg) of levadopa which is the active
ingredient. The 10 and 25 numbers relate to the no. of milligrams of
carbidopa in each tablet. Carbidopa's job is to protect the levodopa
from attack during its journey through the bloodstream. It cannot
cross the blood/brain barrier into the brain. The only significant
figure that you need to remember is that you need a minimum of 75 mg
of Carbidopa per day, and a maximum of about 300mg/day of Carbidopa.
(this limit is not critical, but it is important to stay above the
75 mg/day level. If you want to experiment with your intake of
levadopa ( And I am all in favour of doing this) please keep the
following points on mind when you are doing it.
2/ trying to achieve an optimum dosage level of levodopa by varying the
NUMBER of tablets you take is like trying to cruise in a car at (say)
40mph with a throttle which has only two positions, Idle and Max:
You are going to get wild swings either side of your intended value. There is no reason why you must use such coarse variables: Try
breaking the Sinemet in half and adding it to your basic dose. Better
yet, try and get some Sinemet LS as they are called in the UK. Each
tablet contains 12.5/50 mg of Carbidopa/Levadopa (Half that of a
regular Sinemet. If you break that in half you will be getting a bit
more precision into the exercise, and may find it possible to stop
the tremor without provoking dyskinesias.
There is a lot more to finding your optimum dosage. I am convinced that
most PWPs suffer un-necessarily because their GP or Neurologist cannot
see round the mental block that seems to limit them to an " If one
tablet is not enough, try two" approach.
Some time ago, I wrote a booklet titled 'Living with Levadopa' for the
members of my local branch of the PDS, giving tips on how to get the best
out of levadopa (and avoid the worst of it). Maybe I should try something
along those lines for this list?
Regards,
--
Brian Collins <[log in to unmask]>
