I am always amazed when people tell me they are taking multiple drugs but their doctors have not checked to see if there are any dangerous interactions between or among the various drugs. Often one doctor prescribes a drug without asking what else the patient is taking. Then if the individual is taking several drugs, real problems can develop. A friend called the other day saying he was having tingling in his fingers and toes and wondered what I thought the cause might be. I asked what medicines he was taking and found out that he was taking several different ones. "Has your doctor checked to see if there is interaction among or between the various drugs", I asked. The answer was "No". So, I made my usual plea that the individual speak with a phamacist he trusted to see what side effects or interactions could be caused by the various drugs. I have "cured" all kinds of symptons by making this suggestion. A doctor should always check about what medicines a patient is taking before prescribling something else and then check with a pharmacist to see if there are any dangerous interactions.
The Internet does list various side effects but not always interactions with other drugs. A good place to get answers is a hospital pharmacist. The UC School of Pharmacy in San Francisco had a doctors' number we could call and they were always ready to answer questions about interactions. I remember one little child who was taking seizure medicines a Stanford neurologist had prescribed. Unfortunately, the mother was not told of any side effects to watch for or questioned about other drugs the child was taking. By checking with the UC School of Pharmacy, I was able to prevent a possible fatal reaction.
I am always amazed when people tell me they are taking multiple drugs but their doctors have not checked to see if there are any dangerous interactions between or among the various drugs. Often one doctor prescribes a drug without asking what else the patient is taking. Then if the individual is taking several drugs, real problems can develop. A friend called the other day saying he was having tingling in his fingers and toes and wondered what I thought the cause might be. I asked what medicines he was taking and found out that he was taking several different ones. "Has your doctor checked to see if there is interaction among or between the various drugs", I asked. The answer was "No". So, I made my usual plea that the individual speak with a phamacist he trusted to see what side effects or interactions could be caused by the various drugs. I have "cured" all kinds of symptons by making this suggestion. A doctor should always check about what medicines a patient is taking before prescribling something else and then check with a pharmacist to see if there are any dangerous interactions.
The Internet does list various side effects but not always interactions with other drugs. A good place to get answers is a hospital pharmacist. The UC School of Pharmacy in San Francisco had a doctors' number we could call and they were always ready to answer questions about interactions. I remember one little child who was taking seizure medicines a Stanford neurologist had prescribed. Unfortunately, the mother was not told of any side effects to watch for or questioned about other drugs the child was taking. By checking with the UC School of Pharmacy, I was able to prevent a possible fatal reaction.