Imuran side effects

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upsetmom

upsetmom

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My 15 year old daughter started taking imuran a few days ago. She started to get fatigue and nausea since taking the first tablet...today she has started vomiting..she can't even keep water down...I took her to the GP and he gave her some nausea tablets.

How long do side effects last ?
 
What dose is she taking and when is she taking the tablets?

Did she have a TPMT test done prior to starting?

Dusty. xxx
 
Okay...

My two did not suffer with side effects but I have read of many in the past that find the side effects last about 2-3 weeks. I know nausea is a common and most found that switching the dose to bedtime overcame most of that but I see you are already doing that.
What I am not sure about though is if actual vomiting was an issue. Hopefully someone with greater experience will be along soon to help out.

I am surprised they did not do a TPMT test. :(

Dusty. xxx
 
Imuran can irritate the stomach and nausea and vomiting is not an uncommon side effect. Literature seems to be conflicting as to when it should be administered in relation to food.
Some sites state an hour before or three hours after eating however we have never been told this and looking at Matt's Imuran box it has a sticker on it that clearly states it is to be taken with food or very soon after.

I wonder if it will make a difference if she eats something when taking the tablet?

Dusty. xxx
 
Good luck!

I hope it settles down for her, poor love...:hug: If the vomiting aspect of things continues I would ring the GI.

Dusty. :heart:
 
Her doctor should have done bloodwork to make sure she can handle the Imuran. It's protocol. He can't just prescribe her Imuran without taking bloodwork before and after and very regularly. Keep an eye on her and if it gets worse go to the ER or back to the doctor but is be weary of any doctor that prescribes immunosuppressants without doing bloodwork. It is dangerous!
 
I never experienced nausea with Imuran; however, I always took the medicine with food. Perhaps it would help if she ate something while taking the medicine.
 
Thanks....
I never knew that a blood test was suppose to get done before starting imuran....till someone mentioned it here otherwise i would have asked.

Shes due to have regular blood test starting this week....Her GP said if she was still vomiting this morning he wanted them done sooner.

I tried giving the tablet straight after food last night to see if it makes a difference...shes still asleep so i don't know if it worked.
 
Hello
I was on Aza for 3 weeks but had to stop due to side effects and it was starting to affect my liver.
Some tips:-
- Definitely take it with food, preferably after her evening meal
- If your daughter feels nauseous try some ginger biscuits or tea
- She needs to have blood tests every week for at least the first month
- If she is still vomiting tomorrow then you should speak to her consultant as pancreatitis can be a side effect of this drug
Take care and I hope your daughter's side effects settle down soon and she starts to feel better :hug:
 
upsetmom said:
Thanks....
I never knew that a blood test was suppose to get done before starting imuran....till someone mentioned it here otherwise i would have asked.

Shes due to have regular blood test starting this week....Her GP said if she was still vomiting this morning he wanted them done sooner.

I tried giving the tablet straight after food last night to see if it makes a difference...shes still asleep so i don't know if it worked.
Click to expand...

I'd seriously consider switching doctors if he didn't do bloodwork before. I'm not a 100% sure, but 99% sure that was irresponsible. Look up threads about Imuran/6mp. Here is a cut and paste from another thread. This is from package insert on medication. There are rules and guidelines that must be followed.

If you are taking/prescribed 6-MP you must have blood work done on a regular basis (could be once/week, once/month or every few months) to make sure that you are not experiencing serious side effects. Talk to your doctor about how often and why you need to have blood work done.
 
Unfortunately those are some of the side-effects in some patients taking Imuran. Sometimes splitting the dose in half and taking it twice a day helps or changing to 6MP may help as well. Fatigue is also a common side effect that sometimes leads patients to stop the drug.
 
Also make sure you have melanoma cancer screening once a year for life as Imuran and 6mp increase a patients risk for melanoma. My primary care doctor told me this and has had two young patients diagnosed with melanoma who are on these drugs. A small side note I'm sure your doctor mentioned to you in passing. My specialists all minimized this information. Awesome!!!!
 
JohnnyO said:
I'd seriously consider switching doctors if he didn't do bloodwork before.
Click to expand...

This is a bit hard to do at the moment as she's not 16 yet....we had trouble getting a GI ..the childrens hospital was the only place that would accept her.

I tried to ring the nurse this morning but she was not working today so i'll have to wait till tomorrow.

Taking the imuran with food didn't seem to help...she woke up and was ready to be sick so she took her nausea tablets.
 
Are the anti-nausea tablets stopping her from vomiting or is she still being sick? If she has been vomiting for over 24 hours now I would go to the ER as I do not think that is right.

I hope that you get access to some medical advice or help soon.

Take care:)
 
The nausea tablets are working good. Hopefully i get to talk to the nurse today..
Last night i gave her the imuran earlier with her dinner to see if that makes a difference.

Shes due to have a blood test on Thursday.
 
That's sounding better. I am glad that the nausea tablets are working and also that the blood test is this week.
Let's hope that you get to speak to the nurse today. If she is not there, it may be worth asking if you can speak to someone else.
Good luck & let us know how things are going. :kiss:
 
Imuran has never given me any stomach problems. I take mine with breakfast along with several supplements. One of the supplements is Ginger and that may be why it does not bother me.

Dan
 
CeeCeeGo said:
Let's hope that you get to speak to the nurse today. If she is not there, it may be worth asking if you can speak to someone else.
Click to expand...

There is no one else....when i ring it goes straight to her answering machine and then i hope for the best . Sometimes it takes her a few days to get back to me.:(
 
I spoke to the nurse and she said these side effects are common.
Blood test will be done tomorrow and they are also checking for pancreatitis.
 
upsetmom said:
I spoke to the nurse and she said these side effects are common.
Blood test will be done tomorrow and they are also checking for pancreatitis.
Click to expand...

Whilst these are common, I still think you have to balance the side effects against what benefit the meds are giving to your daughters condition.

I'm glad that her bloods are being checked tomorrow - but even if they are fine, please ask that they are checked weekly for the next few weeks as it was only on my third set of results that my liver function tests started to go haywire and that is why I had to stop taking Aza.

My best wishes for the tests and let us know the results. 😎
 
I take Aza 100mg but I keep getting fatigue,lethargic and a bad headache.My question is does anyone get that awful pain on the eyebrow bone,cos thats where my headache affects me,have not took it this morning,but am going to start taking it in the evening and see if it makes any difference,to be honest I feel a different person this morning not taking it,so I am sure it's the Aza.i suppose I will have to stop taking it soon as I am booked in to have my fourth bowel surgery Haaaaaaaaaaa,getting a bit worried now,have to have scar tissue removed from Terminal Ileium,as its almost closed up.
 
Just an update.

Bloods were done yesterday and there were a few things wrong but nothing to worry about. These problems were there before starting the imuran.

She is still waking up with nausea and taking her anti nausea tablet.
Now my plan is to wait till the weekend and not give her the nausea tablet to see how she goes...we can't do that now because she has to go to school.

Thanks for all the replies.:)
 
Sounds like a plan and great that the bloods aren't showing any effects from the Aza. When are the bloods being done again?
I seem to remember that I felt nauseous first thing but that eating something took most of it away - strange.
Hugs 😎
 
This morning she woke up with nausea but after she ate it went away.
No nausea tablets today....So far so good.
 
The last week things have been good....but today she started 125mg and the nausea started a few hours later....she keeps asking why she has to take these tablets if they're making her sick..:(
 
I would ask whether can do a slower taper up to 125mg. Are you cutting tablets or do have both 50 and 25.
 
We have both 50mg and 25mg.

I'll ask on Monday if we can increase her dose slower.

Woke up feeling very sick....so back to the nausea tablets.
 
Hi upsetmom, thought I'd chime in, I recently went up to 100mg and got the nausea side effect aswell, I get it in the morning when I wake up, usually goes away after eating, it's not fun, my doc recommended splitting doses, (50 in afternoon) 50 after dinner, I can't say that it's helped much but iv only been doing that for 2 days, today was the 8th day of nausea, I feel ok now after breakfast but it's not fun, I sympathize for your daughter, definitely ask if you can do a slower taper up until her body gets used to it, I'm going to ask my GI but I don't see him until another 2 weeks so hopefully I'm all settled by then, may I ask what nausea tablets you guys are using? I was given Maxalon and stemize but none of them have seemed to help, seems my body just doesn't want anymore drugs. Anyway hope it settles soon for her. At least it's knocking the crohn's on it's ass!
 
Hi Joshuaaa

Shes taking Prochlorperazine 5mg they work within 15 mins for her.

I hope your nausea goes away soon.
 
A few days ago my daughter started getting "blisters" on her hands with no fluid in them. Her fingers are all peeling but the thumb and middle finger are the worst. We trimmed the skin back but a lot more started forming within a few hours.
Does anyone know if this could be related to the imuran. Shes never had any problems like this before.
 

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