How long to stay on Tykosin

My 85yr old father has been on Tykosin for 6 years now. He had one isolated event of A-fib for which he was hospitalized to correct the situation, and put on coumadin and Tykosin. He has never had any other symptoms of A-fib, has never been diagnosed with any other indicators of heart disease, and his BP is well controlled with drugs. Unfortunately, he has virtually no strength in his legs, constant leg-hip-back pain, urinary and bowel incontinence, and very limited energy. Due to his age and these many symptoms than reduce his comfort (and quality of life, QoL) I would like to see him avoid any prescription drugs that are not absolutely necessary in order to reduce the number of uncomfortable symptoms he has to deal with. In fact, I suspect that some of his symptoms would improve or go away if he didn't have to take drugs that are known to cause them - like Tykosin. I heard Tykosin is usually only effective for 2 years. Dad's doctor has never done anything to test whether he should still take it; his response is always "Well, no signs of A-fib so let's leave you on it." That doesn't seem like a very thoughtful approach. Can you give me some direction? Should Dad stop taking it to see what happens? Should we make a case to stop it with the doctor? I'm at a loss for what to do, but there must be something because Dad's QoL continues to decline every day. Thank you so much.

[Michael J. McWilliams, M.D.]

If he had a single episodes of atrial fibrillation and has not had it since, if it were my patient I would stop the tikosyn.  the worse case scenario is a recurrence of atrial fibrillation.

I agree there comes a point when the QOL is so low that it is not worth taking medications like that.  It is a very personal decision.  I would encourage you to discuss your concerns with your doctor before stopping any medications.

I hope this helps.

[CC1991]

Thank you for taking the time to consider my question and provide a perspective! I'm going to make my case to and for my Dad.

[hgsod]

A related discussion, Treatment of Atrial Fib was started.