Good

As someone who was on Avandia (twice) and was handed an information sheet from the company itself when I asked to be put on something else instead (because the company, and not an unbiased third party, would be so much more authoritative, right?), I'm glad to see this.

GlaxoSmithKline to pay $3bn in US drug fraud scandal

GlaxoSmithKline settles fraud case for $3 billion

I just hope that my time on the medication doesn't come back to haunt me.

Success, by the way

I am now on Actos instead of Avandia. The nurse practitioner left it up to me, but he gave me a 'fact sheet' that was put out by the maker of Avandia. It's true Actos is part of the same class and can cause congestive heart failure. I knew that. I was really more concerned with the heart attack/ischemia issue, to be honest. So I chose to try Actos instead. We'll see how that goes. The Avandia was not appreciably lowering my blood sugar, anyway, so maybe the Actos will do so. They gave me enough samples for a month plus a voucher for another free month, so that was nice.

(I didn't actually see my doctor to discuss it. He was at the desk, though, and offered me some sugar-free jelly beans that were yummy.) :)

I have an appointment tomorrow with my doctor

(who I cannot imagine rampaging with a sword, oh, okay, I can, but it's a frightening visual) about changing my prescription. His secretary knew exactly what I was about to ask for--she's apparently fielded several calls since the latest report came out. Anyway, score one for me for taking charge of my health like I should.

I really need to talk to my doctor

This is the third time I have been on the diabetes drug Avandia. I need to talk to Dr Nesbitt about trying Actos instead, due to concerns of heart damage from Avandia. Experts have told diabetics not to stop taking the drug without a doctor's okay, but it really looks like the drug has dangerous side effects. Personally, I don't want to have a heart attack because of something that was supposed to help me. Diabetics are already at risk for heart problems; they don't need anything to help push them along. I think they should pull it from the market. Of course, there's a lot of money and politics in play here, so we'll see how it turns out.
Research Ties Diabetes Drug to Heart Woes

Hundreds of people taking Avandia, a controversial diabetes medicine, needlessly suffer heart attacks and heart failure each month, according to confidential government reports that recommend the drug be removed from the market.

The reports, obtained by The New York Times, say that if every diabetic now taking Avandia were instead given a similar pill named Actos, about 500 heart attacks and 300 cases of heart failure would be averted every month because Avandia can hurt the heart. Avandia, intended to treat Type 2 diabetes, is known as rosiglitazone and was linked to 304 deaths during the third quarter of 2009.

“Rosiglitazone should be removed from the market,” one report, by Dr. David Graham and Dr. Kate Gelperin of the Food and Drug Administration, concludes. Both authors recommended that Avandia be withdrawn.

U.S.: Controversial diabetes drug harms heart: Internal F.D.A. reports are part of fierce debate over Avandia

GSK to face FDA meeting over Avandia safety record

Au Revoir, Avandia? FDA Reviewers Urge Agency to Pull Drug: Doctors, Diabetes Experts Split on Whether Drug Should Be Eliminated

Health Buzz: FDA Report Advises Avandia Be Pulled From the Market

Not unexpected

FDA Strengthens Warning On GlaxoSmithKline's Avandia

I'm out of Avandia and I'm considering staying off of it. If my blood sugar continues to run high, I'll ask Dr Nesbitt to put me on Actos instead.

Time to talk to Dr Nesbitt again

Actos Bests Avandia in New Study

I'm still on Avandia, since I have no history of heart problems. But it seems the evidence is swinging towards Actos as being protective, and Avandia not--which isn't good for GlaxoSmithKline, already dealt a terrible blow to prescriptions from original reports of heart attack increases shown with Avandia. Actos is made by Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America.

Cautious

I'm still not really happy to be on this drug, although I have no history of heart problems in my family that I know of, so the risk of heart attack should be small. And the studies are conflicting and flawed. So for now I'll stay on it.

Diabetes drug Avandia should stay on market: U.S. health panel rules

Sorry I haven't posted in a few days

My cable was turned off a little before payday. But now everything's square. So I'd like to catch up...

First, from Monday, there was the finale of 'Heroes'. I enjoyed it immensely; I'm glad we've gone through the introductory story arc now and I hope they can do some more character building over season two. I want to see where they go from here. Who is the man out there who is worse than the Boogeyman? Is there anyway for Peter or Nathan to have survived (everyone expects Peter will regenerate, but in the past, the brain had to be pretty much unobstructed. What about when it's atomised? Did Nathan go with Peter to the very end, or fly off once they were safely above the city? What exactly will happen with Sylar?) There were some questions answered, some posed. I'm really looking forward to the DVD collection, which among other things has the original pilot on it, apparently. It truly is a wonderful show, especially in how things intertwine in the best comic book fashion (I'm waiting for the 3D episode...didn't that wave hit several comic books back in the 80s or 90s? There are details that true comic afficianados probably catch that I don't, but even I know that Kirby Plaza was a reference to Jack Kirby, the famous comic book artist, for example. Anyway, I really have loved the show and all the extras that you can find at NBC.com/Heroes, including web comics, full past episodes, Heroes 360, etc.

Okay, on to the next subject...bunnies. What is it about bunnies lately? I've had three hop out in front of my car in the last couple of weeks. Fortunately I haven't hit one, but I'm beginning to think Mother Nature is trying to tell me something.

Speaking of animals, work continues to coax a mother humpback whale and her calf back downriver from Sacramento to San Francisco bay. They've tried recordings of whales to lure them, recordings of predators to spur them on, clanging noises, herding with boats--the next step is to try fire hoses, something that's never been attempted before. Meanwhile, they're trying to make an antibiotic delivery system to inject the whales, both of whom have apparently been injured by boats.

We were visited at work today by Thumbelina, the World's Smallest Horse. She's not even knee high. She's a miniature horse, but she's also a dwarf, so she's much smaller than most miniatures. She was adorable. She travels in an air-conditioned motor home around the country to raise money for children's charities.

The last night of bunny madness I was driving home after that close call and discovered a car overturned with lots of police lights going on of all places Beaver Creek, which is a residential street near my home. That same night I went to call a friend to let him know I was home safely and that was when I discovered that I had no cable, for I have Vonage, which requires an active cable connexion. So I tried my cell phone and then rememberd I didn't have any minutes (mine is prepaid--it's worked pretty well for seven years; I average about $10 a month). So, I went over to the laundry room, which usually has a phone hooked up when the pool has water in it for 911 (but you can usually make regular calls). Mind you, it's 2 am or so. I fall down the stairs and hit my elbow on the brick wall of the building, then discover they've rigged the phone for 911 calls only. Sigh. So I finally got in my car and went to a nearby gas station and bought minutes for my phone, then came back home and made the call. I know, I'm a danger to myself, although not usually to others. But, there was one time I didn't call and actually slept through getting a friend from work and the alert went off and D and her husband were dispatched to check on me. I had low blood sugar and didn't wake up until they got Cerys barking by tapping at the window. I didn't want a repeat. D has a two-year old and I don't think she'd appreciate it. :)

Speaking of D, she and I are going to go shopping Monday after I get home from visiting my mom and grandmother. I have a gift card for some clothes and she's going to take me out. We get together so seldom; I think the last time was last year when we went swimming at the pool with her son. And we don't get to eat lunch together that much. I miss that. Our schedules are so harried; you should have seen us with our calendars out trying to find a time to get together.

What else? Well, there's the health issues, like the fact that I just went on Avandia and now there's a lot of concern over cardiovascular health due to a study in the New England Journal of Medicine and now an FDA study that backs it up--and opens up questions for how it was approved with such data in place. Now I have to call Dr Nesbitt and see what he thinks. He might put me on Actos instead--it's in the same family and hasn't been associated with those problems--yet (although it has been associated with heart failure). Sigh. Sometimes I think my meds are kind of a crap shoot.

The other medical thing I wanted to blog about was this:

Anger Erupts Over Insurance Company's IQ Test for Weight-Loss Surgery

As the article pointed out, it's not like we require an IQ test to give someone chemotherapy, or refuse to give heart bypass surgery to those who may not know how to do aftercare because they're deemed too stupid. This is ridiculous. It's just another way for insurance companies to try to maintain their bottom line, but it's also discrimnatory.

I think that's all for now. My computer has downloaded some updates and keeps trying to restart, and it's getting very late. Sorry again about the delay. And as always, thanks for reading my ramblings. Good night.

I was at the doctor's for 2 1/2 hours today

but I was running behind by about 15 minutes, so we were both having issues. I spent the majority of it in one of the exam rooms on an uncomfortable chair; I really would have rather waited in the lobby. But Dr Nesbitt was apologetic, they were apparently having one of 'those days'. He's the only one in the practice and I like him too much (among other things, I like that he's Canadian--I don't know why) to really be annoyed. Anyway, I brought in my Excel chart of my blood sugar readings and he put me on Avandia in addition to the Glucophage (metformin) and Januvia. My evening readings are pretty good (tonight's was 127) but my morning ones are still high, although not as high as they were.

I had an appointment with my new therapist for the first time yesterday. I gave him the high (or low, depending on how you look at it) points of my life with my family, with my ex-husband and his partner, and life since that. It was a little overwhelming, although I asked if if I'd scared him and he said no. He said he thought it was very interesting and would continue to be so. I got the impression of an explorer coming upon a mountain to climb or a new continent. Somehow that should bother me, but it doesn't. I guess because I get to be a part of it. I see him again on Tuesday. This is the the fifth social worker I've tried, but the first man. He seems to have good professional boundaries and doesn't seem likely to jump to conclusions like the others. If it doesn't work out the practice also has a couple of psychologists, although they're harder to get in to see. I already have homework, to come up with a list (it doesn't have to be long) of coping mechanisms I'd like to work on and make more functional, like eating when stressed, or sleeping when stressed. I do both of those. I also forget anything unpleasant, hoard, and pick at myself. Sounds a little crazy, hmm?

Well, it's off to do laundry and notes. Cerys is lapping up the last of the remains of my fish, potatoes, and vegetables. Good night.