Multaq Anyone Else Take It (Page 36)
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Okay I will start off by saying this drug scares me because it has not been out for very long. I have Afrial Fib which is not behaving I can be 70 beats one min and regular and the next I will be at 190 and in atrial fib and flutter. this is my last chance at a med I have tried all the others I usually end up in the ER two or three times a week. I have had one ablation so far. If anyone else takes it please let me know what it is like. I am starting it on Tuesday.

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Multaq has settled my A fib down quite alot without any side effects that I know of in the short 3 months so far. I am a 180lb. 46 year old male with a very healthy heart and blood tests in the normal range. I think they call it Lone Atrial Fibrillation because that's the only thing wrong. Previously with the Flecainide pill in the pocket approach I went into A fib 3 times a week. Now I go into Afib once a week . My cardiologist suggested I take an extra Multaq pill when my A fib lasts longer than 5 hours. This temporarily doubles my dosage but has kept me out of the hospital for electro cardiovertion. I have had no ablation but I think I want to be put on the waiting list. This will take about a year in Canada but it is free. My Multaq prescription costs $2.50 per pill here.

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Multaq has settled my A fib down quite alot without any side effects that I know of in the short 3 months so far. I am a 18lb. 46 year old male with a very healthy heart and blood tests in the normal range. I think they call it Lone Atrial Fibrillation because that's the only thing wrong. Previously with the Flecainide pill in the pocket approach I went into A fib 3 times a week. Now I go into Afib once a week . My cardiologist suggested I take an extra Multaq pill when my A fib lasts longer than 5 hours. This temporarily doubles my dosage but has kept me out of the hospital for electro cardiovertion. I have had no ablation but I think I want to be put on the waiting list. This will take about a year in Canada but it is free. My Multaq prescription costs $2.50 per pill here.

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CJ, I'm glad you mentioned the eczema and that reducing your dosage cured it. I'm going to ask my cardiologist about the possibility. My 400 mg Multaq keeps me in NSR, but I am annoyed periodically by eczema. Thanks.

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I have been on Multaq since last November. I was very afraid to take it, and was surprised at how good it made me feel. However, I am still in A-Fib. I was getting an Exzema like rash around my neck and shoulders. It bothered me a bit. I lowered the dosage from 800 mg to 600 mg and the rash disappeared. I missed a cardioversion due to a cold and do not have another rescheduled yet. I do hope that I will pop back into rythem with the cardioversion. I drink alcohol with it. Have any of your docs mentioned alcohol to you? Anyway, I love Multaq! I have more energy but I do love to take a 20 min nap in the afternoon if I have time. How often do any of you visit your cardiologist? I don't see mine often, usually it is a physicians asst, and I am going to a very good university clinic.

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Good luck, Kathy. We are going to Cleveland Clinic in Ft. Lauderdale to talk to a doctor there about the Mini Maze procedure. If it works, my husband will be CURED of A-fib. His doctor told him he has chronic permanent A-fib, cannot have an ablation, cannot stay in NSR with cardioversion, cannot tolerate the medications.....I think he is the perfect candidate for Mini Maze, but we shall see. His appt. is for April 1.

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I want to thank you all for all of your comments on Multaq. I went on it last night and am a little scared of side effects. I have had afib for a long time, but have only had to be cardioverted 8 times in the last 12 years. I was on Rythmol for the last 2 years and had episodes every 7-8 months. Only cardioversion worked for me. I'm hoping this new Multaq will work. I had also considered an ablation but don't feel ready yet. I am 64.

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Hello 58xrunner, I really feel your pain. I'm 59 and have jogged Boston and NY marathons while in constant AF. Also 3 sprint triathlons last Summer while in AF. I recently tried Multaq but it actually made my AF worse. Amiodarone 100mg/day works best for me. Four Echocardiograms indicate a normal strong and healthy heart so my cardiologist wants me to run as fast and as long as I can even while in AF. He said that my heart is so strong that it laughs at AF. HA! Amiodarone is my miracle drug. I've been on it for 9 years with no problem. My theory is that regular strenuous exercise lowers the destructive and toxic aspects of amiodarone. I'm now in training for Boston 2011 (I'll be 60). Good luck with the Multaq. I hope that it works well for you. Good health and fitness to you! Try to think positive and never give up! Lon

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I am on multag and in AF but spin 6 days a week, pending another oblation.

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I'll be starting my Multaq tonight. I went from an avid runner/biker/etc. to someone who can't jog for minute. I have exercise induced Atrial Flutter. I feel HORRIBLE even walking up stairs. (Ran a 10K last year in 8:20's.) I'm hoping, hoping, hoping to get back to exercising. Any one out there feel good exercising while on Multaq?

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SWOLLEN UP, NOT SLOWED UP,
ALTHOUGH THEY MAY BE THAT TOO, THOSE ANKLES...

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The results from seeing the doc yesterday are that I am off Multaq, at
least for the time being. So I won't be
contributing here, and I wish those who have been having issues the very best, you and your husband in particular, Roberta.

In my case, there was a defib box
changeout done in early December and for several reasons I was pretty sedentary. One night, my
ankles suddenly slowed up, the following day I was put on a strong diuretic, have since lost 15 pounds, am feeling much much better--read normal--with far less atrial issues, sleep problems gone.

Ankle swelling may come from a variety of sources, and it could come from all of them at once. One of them is evidence of heart failure, a term that requires careful
definition, sounds more alarming than it is except in advanced cases. Another is just simple age.
A third, and one to watch out for
lest it be confused with heart failure is the vulnerability of any limb from which veins have been harvested for a bypass to occasional swelling. I had a quint
bypass in 1994, when I was 54, because the docs thought that I could take it, so they went whole hog.

What has this got to do with Multaq? All of this causes synergistic cross currents, and especially for those of you with Multaq fatigue problems: if you have
swelling, and this can accumulate
gradually, using a diuretic to return
to normal also may reduce the instances of irregular heart beat.

If you are lucky, then, as it seems I
have been, you may not even need
Multaq.

Good luck to all. Mortality is the damnedest thing, aint it.

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My husband's doctor did not seem at all surprised that he was feeling terrible on Multaq. He took him off it and took him off all of his heart meds and told him to take a week to get them out of his system and then wear a monitor to see if his heart was better or worse without the meds. My husband is back in A-fib anyway, after 2 CV and the doctor said the meds are not helping, so why feel terrible AND have no results. Back to the drawing board.

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I'm 74 and have been on Multaq 400mg X2 for six months. I stay in normal sinus rhythm almost all the time. I do not feel fatigued or foggy. I also take a Digoxin 0.125 and two Metoprolol tartrate 50mg. My only side effect is occasional eczema patches. I'm very pleased with Multaq and it's easy on my liver.

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To those who will be seeing their docs. soon, please let us know what they had to say! Also, maybe when someone posts a brief background (other meds, age, duration, etc.) would help us understand and better relate to wha't being said.

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Medications affect everyone differently. Not everyone is going to have the same side effects. There is some talk of genetic testing in the future that will help determine what med and dose for each patient based on their DNA. I Have the started having the same brain fogg you are talking about, I feel like I start to say something and then I can't finish or make sense of what I was saying.

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My husband has been on it for 3 weeks, Dave, and I guess he was on it for about a week when the tired thing started to happen. The third week has been pretty dramatic in he need to sleep. I think if it is going to produce these side effects, it will probably manifest pretty quickly, but that is just my experience with it. And Cindyn, I would have to agree that the brain fog is a big part of what he is experiencing, too. I'm relieved to hear that you are starting to feel better after two weeks off it. I'm sure not everyone will experience these side effects, but for those who do, it's pretty miserable.

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Well I have been on multaq for almost 3 months, I have had one oblation and am scheduled for another, I do not have the over tired issue, I have a problem gettting good long solid sleep, some minor rashes on arms. hopefully I do not get your symtoms. On a 400 mg dose 2X daily. still in afib.

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Wow, for awhile there I thought I was the only one with problems with this med. I searched all over the internet and couldn't find any first hand info about some of these side effects. One thing I forgot to mention is along with the severe fatigue, I had terrible brain fog. Just couldn't think straight at all. I couldn't remember people's names or I would start to say something and would just get confused. I cut the dose back to 1 a day and that didn't really help much. Now that I'm off of it, I can think clearly again. I do have to say though, my heart was great while on Multaq. My pulse was a little too slow in my opinion but it was beating great just about the whole time. My afib isn't bad enough though to want to be a walking zombie all the time. Good luck to you all. I'm sorry to the ones of you having problems but I do feel a little better that I wasn't the only one.

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Hi - - I've posted here before but I noted another Dave so I'll change my handle to Dave from Denver. I am beffudled and, frankly, worried by those that report feeling tired from Multaq. I've been on it for almost six weeks and feel great. No lack of energy. should I be worried? Does it take time for the tiredness to set in? Thanks.

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I was trying to find out if anyone else had the same symptoms as I, severe fatigue to the point that I can hardly stand up at times and walk to the mailbox and back. I used to be very active also, getting very depressed about this and now having more chest palpitations than when I was on the flecanide.

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