Gini,
My husband, Ken who has had PD for almost 18 years also suffers from Shy-
Drager syndrome which is a form of Parkinsonism that causes his Blood pressure
to vary from extremely high to almost unmeasurably low. Of course, the
Parkinson's medications he must take tend to make this condition worse. It
sounds as if your father is taking Florinef to raise his Blood pressure. But,
has anyone explained that to work, florinef must be used with lots (More than
he can get in food alone) and lots of fluids Has anyone suggested Tet hose
during the day? Also, when Ken lies down either to take a nap or to sleep,
his blood pressure goes up fast and all the fluids he's been retaining flow
out and we have to start over. So, we don't let him lie down all the way
during the day, and we keep his head raised during the night. If your father
moves his arms and legs around a lot before standing to raise his BP, that
will help, and he must never stand up too quickly nor must he stand still for
any length of time because that will cause his BP to plummet and he may fall.
Ken also takes a drug called pro-amatine or Midodrine along with the florinef
to keep his BP up during the day. This is a short acting drug that works
differently from Florinef and is often used along with the florinef.
Midodrine should never be taken less than four hours before lying down. You
might ask your doctor if this would be appropriate for your father. Many
doctors are unaware of it since it was developed as an orphan drug just for
this problem.
I hope this information has been somewhat helpful to you. Do not hesitate to
contact me if you need to discuss this further.
Barbara Smith,cg/Ken/70/17
