Medication Not Being Digested Posted: 12-18-07 01:55am
Hello,
I am new to this forum and am writing on
behalf of my Dad. He is 75 years old and
was diagnosed with Parkinson's about 10
years ago. He has a Parkinson's Dr. that
he sees regularly and has kept Dad's
disease under control through medication
until recently. Dad contracted e.coli and
had to have emergency surgery to remove
his large intestine. He now has an
ileostomy bag and his Parkinson's
medication is not being digested through
his small intestine. The nurses are
finding them in his bag when they change
it. His primary meds were Requip and
Sinemet. Apparently they were time-release
pills. They changed his medication to
smaller pills that he would have to take
more often, but they are finding them
undigested in his bag. He is also taking
medicine for diabetes, blood pressure, and
colesterol, which are all being digested.
They started crushing his pills and
putting them in applesauce yesterday. I
talked to him on the phone last night and
he asked me to go on some Parkinson's
forums to see if anybody might have a
suggestion. He is recovering in a nursing
home and doesn't have access to a
computer, and probably wouldn't be able to
type anyway. His tremors are so bad that
he can't sleep or feed himself, and his
rehab is going backwards. We thought he
would be home for Christmas, but they
won't release him until his medication is
under control. We realize that this is
probably a pretty unique situation and are
hoping that someone out there has some
experience or suggestions for us.
Thank You
Did you ever get a solution? I have
Parkinson's disease and take Sinemet (not
the slow release one). 3 years ago I had a
subtotal colectomy and they were worried
about whether I'd be able to absorb my
meds. They mentioned that it was possible
to receive them in liquid form through a
nasal tube. In the event I didn't have a
problem. At one point my neurologist was
considering implanting a pump to give me
my meds (this was nothing to do with my
bowel problems). I am now going to have an
ileostomy as what's left of my colon has
finally given up. Despite my problems I
try not to let it get me down - it's just
one more of life's challenges!