AboutDr. Ravindra Bhaskar Ghooi Expertise I can provide information on drugs and medicines, their actions, uses, interactions and adverse effects. To avoid confusion, generic names of
medicines may please be provided. I am a pharmacologist, having worked
on animal and human pharmacology, and presently I am the Dean of Bilcare Research Academy, where we teach courses on clinical research. We dont work on saturdays and sundays, hence questions reachng me on these days will be replied on Monday, please bear with me.
Question if my father is 60 years old and he has tremors and stifness. he is on sinemet but his symptoms return before the next doese. he has apathetic and sadness, poor apetite and constipation, he has trouble falling asleep and wakes up early because he is worried. he has blurry vision and he kicks and turns when he sleeps. he has restless leg syndrome and BPH. his mother has alzherms and his father had colon cancer. he lost 10 pounds in 6 weeks. he is taking terazosin, ferrous sulfate, pyridoxine and he is on sinemet 25/100 tid. i was wondering should we increase his sinemet dose to 25/250 and can you explain why or why not. thank you
Answer Hi John,
Your father is on a dose of 1 tab thrice a day of Sinemet. This is the usual starting dose. This dose can be stepped up to a maximum of 8 tablets a day (now he is on 3 tablets a day). I feel there is room for increasing the dose.
Your comment that his symptoms return before the dose, suggests that the present dose is inadequate to cover his needs. For this reason I advice an increase.
However sinemet is a prescriptive drug and you may not be able to purchase the drug as required, hence a physician's prescription may be required. This depends upon the rules of the country you reside in and my advice will not be of much use. Please convey my thoughts to your primary physician and he may do the needful.
Some of the side effects that he has are certainly of sinemet but he seems to have other symptoms which cannot be explained on this basis, hence consultation with a specialist is necessary.
The family history of Alzheimer and colon cancer is an important consideration in the treatment and he should be evaluated for colonic health at regular intervals.
Ravi Ghooi
