Zyflo and Singulair

[Guest guest]

***ZYFLO***

My response to Zyflo has been very good, less so with singulair. With

the zyflo (which is in the same class of drugs) My nose is able to

drain, though I still don't get smell back. Unfortunately, it is VERY

inconvenient to take, as a daily dose consists of 4 horse pills, taken

at 6 hour intervals. Plus you have to have your blood checked every

once in a while, because there is a slight risk of liver damage.

That said, the effect is immediate and strong. Within an hour of a

dosage (if, for some reason, I forgot the last one) the pressure of the

polyps recedes greatly and my nose clears. It stays like that for a

solid 4 hours, and then the in the last two hours, the pressure begins

to regain ground and the nose begins to feel stuffy.

If I then don't take another dosage, by around the 8 hour mark I'm a

mess. Sneezing fit, snot all over the place. Not pleasant to say the

least.

Asthma has not been a problem at all -- completely under control.

***SINGULAIR***

Singulair controls the asthma about as well as Zyflo, but doesn't have

the same immediate effects on polyps. It does mitigate them somewhat, I

suppose, but there is not the same sensation of relief, as the effect is

spread out a little more. It's twice the price, but carries no risk of

liver problems and is a single dose daily.

I'm considering asking my doctor to let me try both for a time. He says

that he has heard anecdotal evidence that they work well together, but

nothing rigorous enough to constitute a medical fact. I'd like to try

it, though.

An article on the mechanisms of antileukotriene agents can be found

here:

http://www.cma.ca/cmaj/vol-160/issue-2/0217.htm

And here:

http://www.cma.ca/cmaj/vol-160/issue-2/0209.htm

Condouris

www.amberdigital.com

973-857-7707

the good, the bad, and the ugly

I went to my doctor yesterday and he said that things looked pretty good

3 months after surgery. I'm also going to start on singulair to

see what happens. On the negative side, I'm going to lose my insurance

coverage in a month so i don't know if it's worth it to get

hooked on the singulair in the first place. Does anyone know what it

costs per month straight up with no insurance? I know that my

nasaquart aq is $80 a month. ouch! anyone for socialism? I got my

info packet from scripps and as I am currently unemployed ...

now would be the perfect time to go if they let me. My asthma was

diagnosed as a kid and hasn't acted up much since so i think they

are dubious. Also, as far as the salicylcates go, I pretty much try to

avoid anything highly " natural " and red or such. It could be a good

basic rule of thumb that any food in nature that is (fairly) brightly

colored is very " natural " and thus somewhere on the high side of the

salicyclate scale. One of the hardest things for me to avoid is tomatos

which i've seen on quite a few " high in salicyclate " lists. I don't

avoid them totally but just try not to eat the chili when possible or

pizza or whatever. But I wish there was a more comprehensive list

somewhere that talked about the root or nature of things so that one

could be more prudent. Like tea for instance, I find it hard to

believe that ALL tea is high in salicyclates because there are so many

different kinds of tea.

Here is the " high in salicyclate " food list my docter gave me and which

doesn't contain things that i've seen on other lists ??? The list

claims ... " one serving of these foods contains the equivalent of almost

2 aspirin "

Almonds, Apple, Apricot, Beer, Blackberry, Cherry, Currant, Diet Cola,

Gooseberry, Grape, Nectarine, Orange, Peach, Plum, Prune,

Raisin, Raspberry, Soda Pop, Strawberry, Cucumber, Pickle, Tomato,

Teaberry Teas, Tang, Pop Wines, Wine Vinegar, Kool-Aid

And that's it! What a bizzare list of foods. Beer is listed as high

and Wine Vinegar too, but not Wine itself. Who would have thought

the lowly Cucumber to be so high in anything? Also, there is no mention

of Coffee or Tea here other than Teaberry Teas which I don't

have a clue about.

I'm no expert on allergies or sensitivities but my thoughts on the

matter are that one could try to eat a diet super low in salicylates (?)

for let's say 8-12 weeks in order to maybe clear the body and whatnot

and then start slowly back on a less strict diet that tries to cut

out or limit most of the " high " foods. I ate a lot of potato soup and

turkey sandwiches for a while, with this in mind, and maybe it was in

my head but it seemed like after about 6 weeks my lungs and head were

noticably a little clearer. But with such a timespan it's pretty

hard to tell.