Aa
New to forum. Face extremely swollen. Eyes, nose. Started 12th wk and cont.
Has anyone seen this side effect to tx.? My upper eyelids started swelling in July (12th week of treatment). Quickly became upper eyelids and area below the eyes. Has progressively gotten worse and eyes almost swollen shut in mornings. Toward end of day still somewhat swollen and bright red around eyes (like a racoon). Itchy and hot. Crusty dry skin below. Bridge of nose wider and nose itself swollen. Allergy testing done..no allergies. Am on Peginterferon alfa-2a and Ribavirin, USP 1000mg. Only decreased for short time in July when hemoglobin count was at 9. I am now at 24th week and this is still an issue. So hard to take along with other side effects of tx.
I am new to forum and am so glad I found you. I am new to my area and only support is husband (who has been wonderful). At 4 wks. my viral count went from 1,500,000 to 540. At 12 weeks it was 0. I am geno-type 1b. Feel so fortunate that tx seems to be working for me and this helps me to continue.
I already have severe asthma, chronic bronchitis, acne rosa, hypothyroid, anxiety and depression (post traumatic stress from horrible type deaths of immed. family members over the years), essential tremors.
I hope someone has seen this side effect before. Mayo doesn't even know. I go again 10/10. I am from MI and go to MN.
I am new to forum and am so glad I found you. I am new to my area and only support is husband (who has been wonderful). At 4 wks. my viral count went from 1,500,000 to 540. At 12 weeks it was 0. I am geno-type 1b. Feel so fortunate that tx seems to be working for me and this helps me to continue.
I already have severe asthma, chronic bronchitis, acne rosa, hypothyroid, anxiety and depression (post traumatic stress from horrible type deaths of immed. family members over the years), essential tremors.
I hope someone has seen this side effect before. Mayo doesn't even know. I go again 10/10. I am from MI and go to MN.
Oh, thank you all for such a lot of information! I will definately try some of them and go to the recommended aloe vera site. My skin from the neck up is like sand paper and because of the acne rosa, I can use few products on my face. I am so hoping the Mayo will find out why my face is swelling... I do have a thyroid issue so maybe soy is not the thing for me to try.
I leave for Mayo day after tomorrow. Will be back on Thursday.
Just a note about my nickname...although I do feel like a shadow of my former self, my lab puppy's name is Shadow. A great name for her since she shadows me everywhere I go. Me and my Shadow.
I leave for Mayo day after tomorrow. Will be back on Thursday.
Just a note about my nickname...although I do feel like a shadow of my former self, my lab puppy's name is Shadow. A great name for her since she shadows me everywhere I go. Me and my Shadow.
Hi, yes, that's one reason these boards are good, you can hear more aspects of a situation sometimes. These treatment nurses and docs aren't necessarily going to "cover the waterfront" on all of these things, they are usually too busy to read all the latest research or just disinclined for whatever reason... My feeling after all that I've researched is that you can develop allergies to substances when youre immune system is low, like in infancy or whatever. They give soy in some infant formula, perhaps too much of it. Our immune systems aren't fully developed then of course, hence an allergy can develop, that's also why many are allergic to dairy. (Another reason for good ole mother's milk!) Fortunately, allergy testing is more less expensive now and can just involve finger pricking, if you want to do all that. They even have some of this testing at a pharmacy I go to.
Oddly enough about food and substance allergies, we can have a high craving for what we are allergic too, that can be a tip off. My mother has a huge craving for chocolate, and had been having bad stomach cramping. I told her to knock off the chocolate, and the stomach cramping went away. This after she had been going to docs and getting tested for it to no avail. I guess only some docs that pick up on stuff like this.
Sometimes with small allegies they can manifest themselves in small ways like that. Sometimes they indeed can be life threatening, like some people and bee stings. My mom will still insist on eating chocolate now and then and then she'll pay the price, ha! There is evidence that some alcoholics are allergic to alcohol, hence the craving there, though allergy is just one component to that disease.
My cleaning lady's daughter had "infantigo"(sp?) on her face and it was causing her a lot of embarrassment...I told her to see if she knocks off milk (after she told me her daughter loves milk and drinks loads of it with morning cereal) and switch to soy or rice milk to see if it cleared up, it did. She also doesn't like soy milk as much as dairy so it's cut down on her cereal eating, which is probably a good thing. That's another thing about soy milk, many say that if you only drink less than 6 oz a day it shouldn't be a problem. So if you want to go to get tested for soy allergy by all means do so, or just cut it out as some suggest it can aggravate a thyroid condition in bigger quantities if you have an allergy to it. You can goole it and read a lot of research on this pro and con.
I just bet that many would clear up some chronic conditions if they just found out the offending culprit, but many docs don't know about this themselves like I said - though many dermatologists do. But yeah, if it's easier for you, just switch to rice or almond milk. Hope this helps, remember I'm no doc you can run this info by him if you want or though there might be a chance that he'll just look at you crosseyed, ha ha!
Oddly enough about food and substance allergies, we can have a high craving for what we are allergic too, that can be a tip off. My mother has a huge craving for chocolate, and had been having bad stomach cramping. I told her to knock off the chocolate, and the stomach cramping went away. This after she had been going to docs and getting tested for it to no avail. I guess only some docs that pick up on stuff like this.
Sometimes with small allegies they can manifest themselves in small ways like that. Sometimes they indeed can be life threatening, like some people and bee stings. My mom will still insist on eating chocolate now and then and then she'll pay the price, ha! There is evidence that some alcoholics are allergic to alcohol, hence the craving there, though allergy is just one component to that disease.
My cleaning lady's daughter had "infantigo"(sp?) on her face and it was causing her a lot of embarrassment...I told her to see if she knocks off milk (after she told me her daughter loves milk and drinks loads of it with morning cereal) and switch to soy or rice milk to see if it cleared up, it did. She also doesn't like soy milk as much as dairy so it's cut down on her cereal eating, which is probably a good thing. That's another thing about soy milk, many say that if you only drink less than 6 oz a day it shouldn't be a problem. So if you want to go to get tested for soy allergy by all means do so, or just cut it out as some suggest it can aggravate a thyroid condition in bigger quantities if you have an allergy to it. You can goole it and read a lot of research on this pro and con.
I just bet that many would clear up some chronic conditions if they just found out the offending culprit, but many docs don't know about this themselves like I said - though many dermatologists do. But yeah, if it's easier for you, just switch to rice or almond milk. Hope this helps, remember I'm no doc you can run this info by him if you want or though there might be a chance that he'll just look at you crosseyed, ha ha!
I do use soy milk, but I wasn't aware there was a thyroid issue. I've just gotten my 12 week labs which showed a big drop in TSH - I'm now at .2 so that makes me "hyper" I guess. They are going to do more tests this month to rule out autoimmune causes. How does soy affect thyroid? Maybe I should switch to rice or almond milk? Gosh, it seems like whatever you do there's some reason why you shouldn't do it! :)
I don't have any of those sides except maybe itchy eyes, but it sounds like some folks have made some good suggestions. I just wanted to congratulate you on your remarkable progress -- 540 at 4 wks and clear at 12. That is wonderful. I am 1a and started at 1,500,000 and was 2,320 at 4 wks and am waiting for the results of my 12 wk now. I hope I do as well as you. And welcome to the forum. You found THE place to be.
Kathy
Kathy
Wow, just reading through this site and I'm so glad that someone validated the Homeopathic eydrops for women that I go on about! They do have them for men too, and they are not that expensive. Once again, they are called Natural Ophthalmics Homeopathic Eye drops for Women. I go to this site that has many remedies for things, I really love this site and the doctors there, they are out of New Jersey. They even have drops that are stronger than these that are a bit more expensive. But these drops work so well for me, and everyone I've turned them on to, including my 97 year old dad who went to numerous opthomologists and tried numerous things. Really, other eye drops can actually make the problem worse because they use preservatives and alcohol which can actually have a drying effect overall so you need to use them all the time with not that much relief. With these, they stimulate your own tear ducts to work. Everyone that has tried them sing their praises to me. It's so nice to use a product that actually works! Here is their addy.
http://www.visionworksusa.com/index.asp
Also, aloe vera and oatmeal are the best things to use for the skin. A bowl of oatmeal a day would help your body to hold moisture in and of course it has other benefitial affects as well. Cougar, others, why not try drinking 4 oz a day of aloe vera juice, it's pretty much tasteless. I mix it with water and and another fruit juice. It replenishes moisture in the skin and it has a lot of anti-oxidant properties. My doc told me it would be fine to do with treatment, it's only a plant juice. Also, I would just apply straight aloe vera gel on dry patches, maybe alternate with an oatmeal based treatment as well, etc. See if it helps. Been drinking aloe vera juice for years.
Also, I used to have allergic reactions in the spring, etc until I cut down on allergen causing foods like dairy and wheat. Although I still have them occasionally I used to eat them a whole lot. I now drink just a few oz of soy milk or almond milk, although some people are allergic to that too. Sometimes when your immune system is compromised, allergic reactions will happen more often. See if that helps. I use a bread that doesn't have wheat, made from brown rice and almonds or cashews, it's really good. Of course, if you see no difference, that's not aggravating it then. I hope you find some relief whatever you do.
http://www.visionworksusa.com/index.asp
Also, aloe vera and oatmeal are the best things to use for the skin. A bowl of oatmeal a day would help your body to hold moisture in and of course it has other benefitial affects as well. Cougar, others, why not try drinking 4 oz a day of aloe vera juice, it's pretty much tasteless. I mix it with water and and another fruit juice. It replenishes moisture in the skin and it has a lot of anti-oxidant properties. My doc told me it would be fine to do with treatment, it's only a plant juice. Also, I would just apply straight aloe vera gel on dry patches, maybe alternate with an oatmeal based treatment as well, etc. See if it helps. Been drinking aloe vera juice for years.
Also, I used to have allergic reactions in the spring, etc until I cut down on allergen causing foods like dairy and wheat. Although I still have them occasionally I used to eat them a whole lot. I now drink just a few oz of soy milk or almond milk, although some people are allergic to that too. Sometimes when your immune system is compromised, allergic reactions will happen more often. See if that helps. I use a bread that doesn't have wheat, made from brown rice and almonds or cashews, it's really good. Of course, if you see no difference, that's not aggravating it then. I hope you find some relief whatever you do.
So it was YOU who talked about the eyedrops! Thank you so much - they really have helped. I have been mixing aloe juice with pom and cranberry, but I find that unless I dilute it with lots of water, the mix upsets my stomach. I may try cutting back on wheat and dairy too - the only problem is in the am I need something with fat in it for the Riba and about the only thing I can get down is whole milk yoghurt (yuch!) I'm not much of a meat eater and breakfast is more of a chore than a pleasure. I know that the meds are causing my constant cough and post nasal drip because they increase sensitivity to allergens and I sure would love to find something to turn off the mucous-works and it would be lovely to avoid the sinus infections I'm prone to. Thanks again for your suggestions!
I go to Mayo in Jacksonville, FL and when I first went there in April I saw Dr. Dawn Ferguson in Hepatology. She was great and I really liked her and then, darn, if she didn't up and move to MN! Perhaps you have, or will, run into her - she's been there since July. She knows a lot about sinus problems too. I would think that Mayo could find some explanation for your eye problems .... I'm sure they've considered bacterial infection. Have you been on antibiotics or anything? Maybe it's not something due to tx? Let us know if you find out anything more and, in the meantime, good luck and I hope it clears up soon.
Wendy
Wendy
Oh I'm so glad you found them! When a product works this well you want people to use it. I have this thing about "dryness"... I hate it! I tutor this 16 year old girl and she doesn't take care of her "alligator" skin and it freaks me out! She doesn't seem to mind having dry skin, eeeek! her hands feel positively reptilian! Same with my eyes, I can't stand dry eyes!Sometimes I think I'm in the wrong business, I should be selling beauty products, I probably sound so obnoxious! Anyway, so glad they have helped you, maybe go to this site and scout out some other things to help you, I really like their products. Also about the aloe vera, yeah, maybe just dilute it with some more water, and take it with food. The cranberry is pretty acidy, another juice that's high anti-oxidant and not as acidy on the stomach as cranberry is pomegrante, it also guards against bladder infection, etc. Also blueberry. aaaah, sometimes vanity can help keep us healthy as well! take care.
Oh and forgot to tell you, have you ever tried soy milk? soy smoothies? (if you don't have any thyroid probs) Silk Soy Vanilla milk has loads of fat if you don't use the low fat kind, ha ha, and it tastes really good and thick. I do smoothies with blueberries, a banana and soy milk (with a little bit of yogurt) and I mix some whey protein in there...you can feel it energize you a bit. I would think that would be a good breakfast for tx cause you don't have to chew.
Also, "Food for Life" is the bread that I eat, they have a few non-wheat breads that are very tasty and nutritious. See if you can cut back on the wheat and dairy and maybe your mucous probs can get better. Wheat and dairy cause a lot of mucous! ha ha! Hope this helps.
Also, "Food for Life" is the bread that I eat, they have a few non-wheat breads that are very tasty and nutritious. See if you can cut back on the wheat and dairy and maybe your mucous probs can get better. Wheat and dairy cause a lot of mucous! ha ha! Hope this helps.
I'm right with ya Rocker, I've been using a filtering system in my shower for years, it's the best for skin and hair, especially in a hard water district like Los Angeles. Steaming is really good for detoxing the body, (I would think there would be a big need for that on tx) and better to do it with without chemicals in the water. You'll see a difference in how soft your skin and hair is. And I guess guys like softness too, ha!
Also, this sounds weird, but I take the removable shower head and aim it right at my liver area for awhile, with very warm water, you know, to get the circulation going there, then I always rince with cool water to stimulate overall circulation.
Also, you want to close the pores in your skin and scalp. A coldwater rinse on your hair will also make it more shiny.
While we're at it, so many people like soft towels to dry with, big mistake, you need to slough the skin with very hard grain cotton towels and rub the skin dry without pulling it. That's good for circulation as well. It takes the dead skin cells off the top layer of the skin which allowes the skin to breath and get rid of toxins. Anyway we can detoxify the blood and skin is good, because the skin is our largest organ. I feel this all helps the body heal, along with making the skin very nice.
Also, this sounds weird, but I take the removable shower head and aim it right at my liver area for awhile, with very warm water, you know, to get the circulation going there, then I always rince with cool water to stimulate overall circulation.
Also, you want to close the pores in your skin and scalp. A coldwater rinse on your hair will also make it more shiny.
While we're at it, so many people like soft towels to dry with, big mistake, you need to slough the skin with very hard grain cotton towels and rub the skin dry without pulling it. That's good for circulation as well. It takes the dead skin cells off the top layer of the skin which allowes the skin to breath and get rid of toxins. Anyway we can detoxify the blood and skin is good, because the skin is our largest organ. I feel this all helps the body heal, along with making the skin very nice.
cougareyes
carpedi
Thanks for reponding to my post. I wish I could add a picture of my face. My eyes have been dry and sandy feeling, but eye drops have helped that. Don't have the side of blood in nose. My eyeslids (up/below), nose at bridge and side, are just very, very swollen. Can hardly open my eyes in the morning. Eyes not crusty...just swollen and red. My doctor at home and then an allergist were no help. Hopefully Mayo doctor can look more into this. At my visit in July when this started, he said he had never seen this side effect of the tx.
carpedi
Thanks for reponding to my post. I wish I could add a picture of my face. My eyes have been dry and sandy feeling, but eye drops have helped that. Don't have the side of blood in nose. My eyeslids (up/below), nose at bridge and side, are just very, very swollen. Can hardly open my eyes in the morning. Eyes not crusty...just swollen and red. My doctor at home and then an allergist were no help. Hopefully Mayo doctor can look more into this. At my visit in July when this started, he said he had never seen this side effect of the tx.
Except for the swelling I've had trouble with my eyes for weeks, I'm in week 14 now. They burn, itch, and my eyeballs feel gritty; they are raw and scabby. Now my nose is starting to burn and feels extremely raw.
I use moisture eyedrops, not sure if they are helping or not; who knows it might be worse if I didn't. Also been using saline nasal spray and rinse my nostrils with water. Dry crusty bloody stuff comes out.
My skin itches and burns and I have rashes in a few spots, there's even spots on my body where the hair has disappeared(I am a guy). I know this is a sx of the meds; all we can do is stay as hydrated as possible. As in water, lotions, etc; and if it gets too bad, see a doctor.
Good Luck
I use moisture eyedrops, not sure if they are helping or not; who knows it might be worse if I didn't. Also been using saline nasal spray and rinse my nostrils with water. Dry crusty bloody stuff comes out.
My skin itches and burns and I have rashes in a few spots, there's even spots on my body where the hair has disappeared(I am a guy). I know this is a sx of the meds; all we can do is stay as hydrated as possible. As in water, lotions, etc; and if it gets too bad, see a doctor.
Good Luck
I've had itchy, red, and dry eyes since the beginning of tx. someone on this site suggested an eyedrop solution made by Natural Opthalmics called Dry Eye Drop Formula for Women (I believe there's one for men too). I found it by googling and sent for some and it's great. I think it actually stimulates your eyes to make tears and after a few days I hardly need it now. I also have had sinus infections, the same crusty, bloody nasal passages that Cougareyes described, and my doctor says that the meds make us extra sensitive to allergens and it simply is part to tx. Saline irrigation, Flonase (which irritates my nose and I don't use it often),and antibiotics for bacterial infection is about all we have to fight back with. I've sent for some spray that is supposed to kill mold in the nose and throat and also an oil based spray that hopefully will address the nasal irritation, but they haven't come yet. Will see how (or if) they work. Good luck to you both.
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