hepatitus cs c relation with plateletts

[cece7658]

i'm a 50 year old woman.  i have had hep c for 30

hepatitus c fir 30

+years no real noticable symtoms until 1 1/2 years ago ,no health insurance. have seen many drs on the medicade end of the sclae.  i feel i need to be able to ask the right questions because otherwise they will just let me go by the way side (a.k.a. die}  my plaleletts are about 70 my bad cholesteral is 38.  no one i talk to seems to give me ideas of what i can do for myself.  i currently take 80mg to 160mg of lasix.110mg of aldactone and 1 oz lastulose daily, along with a slew of vitamins, including  and minerals, magnesium, folic acid, acai, black cohosh, b12, calciaum, and a regular senior multi-vitamin.  my lack of energy is astounding, given my previous active life style.  i spent 20% of last year in the hospital.  would really like to extend mylife.  any sugestions?

[cece7658]

thanks for that info on the black cohosh.  i was taking it to deal with what i considered the last of menapause.  bad mood, lack of energy.  i have told each dr i have seen that i take it twice daily and got no reaction except the usual arched eyebrow to another herbal nut.  which i am not. i am however a big fan of living, and am willing to try alternate ways of dealing with hep c.  I HAVE IT, IT DOESN'T HAVE ME.  thanks again for taking the time to answer.  gratefully cece

[cece7658]

thanks for the info.  got a new blood count today. 54.  what worries me the most is that in july a slipped in to a coma, and i mean slipped, no warning no unusual symptoms . the reason given was very high levels of ammonia?  being the person i am and always weathering the storm, i kinda alone on this one.  drs seem to be speaking a language a never learned.  so your help is appreciated and feels like a warm breeze.  thanks again cece.

[Sir_Osis]

Greetings Cece,


Mike has given you some great advice!  I wanted to add something important that caught my eye:  TO the point, BLACK COHOSH CAN CAUSE LIVER DAMAGE/FAILURE.  I would do a bit of googling... THe head hepatology transplant Doc here at the U-of-U med center had a patient that went into fulminant failure as a result of taking it.  I would research it before taking on e more pill...

J

[mikesimon]

If I understand you right you have hepatitis c.
I assume you know that hep c can damage the liver.
When the liver becomes damaged to the extent that there is cirrhosis (scarring) the blood flow through the liver is impeded and the spleen can become enlarged and trap and sequester platelets. Advanced liver disease can also result in bone marrow suppression so that platelet production is reduced. The result of cirrhosis is often a low platelet count. Platelets are a significant factor in clotting so anyone with a low platelet count should be more careful not to get injured and lose blood. Although a platelet count of 70,000 is low I don't believe that it is so low that it presents a real danger in regard to bleeding. I might want to get a test for prothrombin time so that you and your doctor will have some idea of your clotting time.
Assuming that you do have hep c then one option is treatment with peg-interferon and ribavirin. Depending on your genotype treatment can be of a 1 year duration and the odds are not great for the most common genotype which is type 1. Genotype 2 and 3 generally treat for 6 months and have a "cure" rate of somewhere between 70 and 85%. Genotype 1 has a "cure" rate of approximately 50%.
There are new drugs which may be available relatively soon - say within 1 or 2 years - and there are ongoing trials which may be an alternative if you have a trial near to you which is accepting participants. Some people without advanced liver disease chose to wait until the new drugs become available before they treat. Depending on the condition of your liver waiting may be a reasonable option for you. The new drugs significantly increase effectiveness and may also reduce treatment duration. I am thinking of Telaprevir
Basically eradicating the virus is the only way to stop the progression of the disease and alleviate some of the resulting symptoms. You can find a lot of information about hepatitis c at MedHelp Hepatitis C Community which is located at;

http://www.medhelp.org/forums/show/75

Good luck,
Mike