Keptra and Epilim-help needed

[Guest guest]

Hi everyone

Posting about my Sister again - she is now in a wheelchair all the time, and not

doing well, in fact getting worse. She has been put on Keptra and Epilim by her

neurologist and is still getting fits which they say is due to scarring of the

brain from her three strokes.

She has read that the side effects from Keptra result in dizziness in nearly 50%

of people and unfortunately she is suffering that as well.

She is incredibly depressed and attributes this to the drugs (but I am not

surprised after the kind of ordeal she has had).

She thinks that the neurologist is just going through a list of drugs, cheapest

first, and we are trying to find out what treatment could be better.

I am going to see her next week - so if anyone has any ideas I would be so

grateful for any help as we are going to try and work out what the hell we can

do. If anyone has had a similar experience with a relative and is prepared to

post, it would really help.

I could be wrong but I told her I don't buy the story about the scarring because

there isn't any evidence of it. She is having another MRI (had it today). Other

MRI's haven't shown this up. I think this neurologist is barking up the wrong

tree because I believe she has some kind of autoimmune problem (which runs in

our family).

Also she has got a fungal infection in her toes and what the doc says is

psoriasis of the ear (nasty) - as she rarely goes anywhere now like she used to

since this set in (she is 59 but is so young for her age) I've explained to her

that she can't have easily " caught " it and I think it is yeast from low immune

system - but how the hell do you treat that when you're on a battery of meds

-she's on Valproate and epam as well.

If you know of any good consultants who really get this whole thing that you can

recommend, please post because I personally will see that she gets there. I'm

also trying (begging) her to see and try TST. She says she's too old but I

don't think that's necessarily the case either.

Thanks guys

Eileen