My IV Vanco test dose (full dose) went well but I ended up with red man syndrome in the last 10 minutes or so of the infusion.
My anxiety was shooting through the roof though as I have never had an IV before and didn't know what to expect.
PICC line goes in tomorrow and regular infusions start right after.
Thing I liked the most is no bags to hang, no pumps, no stand, just hook it up. Very convenient!
[ 17. December 2008, 03:28 PM: Message edited by: designt1 ]
Posted by TO LIFE (Member # 12371) on :
Hi Their,
I was on Vanco for about 5 weeks, the dotox was rough. I believed it helped to eat healthy and light. Wish you the best. Roz
Posted by Boomerang (Member # 7979) on :
Why aren't there any bags to hang, no stand, etc.??
I'm confused...is it just a shot?
Posted by designt1 (Member # 16568) on :
Well it was just a pressurized ball that dispenses the meds. Now I have the pump, bags, etc...
Posted by Boomerang (Member # 7979) on :
Oh okay.
So how is it going? Noticed any response yet?
Posted by designt1 (Member # 16568) on :
Going pretty good so far. Mind feels a lot clearer, knees still swollen a bit but not hurting like before. Only a little over a week into it though.
Posted by Boomerang (Member # 7979) on :
Sounds like you are doing good. Best wishes for continued improvement!
Posted by bcox (Member # 2604) on :
What would be the dif in this and gettign IV with roceph?
Posted by designt1 (Member # 16568) on :
Don't really know to be quite honest. I am allergic to the class of antibiotics that rocephin is in so I couldn't take it.
Posted by psano2 (Member # 11711) on :
Are you experiencing strong herxes w/the vanco?
Posted by designt1 (Member # 16568) on :
I had one HUGE anxiety attack about 8 days into the treatment. I think that was my herx.
I've had panic attacks since 1998 so I know how to distract myself and get calmed down. I've also been on clonazepam since 1999 for them which helps me out a lot.
Trust me when I say that NOTHING was quickly helping on this one. I took more clonazepam, drank some herbal tea, paced the parking lot for about 2 hours, and was still going strong.
By the time the panic attack finally went away, I felt like I was reborn. I thought that panic attack was going to last forever.
That's really the only thing I got from the vanco that I would consider a herx.
This was just me though, other people may have a herx like crazy on it.
Posted by designt1 (Member # 16568) on :
Just want to add that I was going to go an additional 2 weeks on it, but my ears started ringing like crazy. So I was only able to do my initial 4 weeks.
If I have to another round of vanco, I will not hesitate.
Posted by disturbedme (Member # 12346) on :
Glad it went so well for you.
Posted by just don (Member # 1129) on :
tell me more on redman syndrome,,,and bart herxes on Vanco,,,fer-just don--
Posted by OptiMisTick (Member # 399) on :
My knowledge of it is that the patient can get it from running in the Vanco too fast and it is dosage related, and due to histamine release from the speed of infusion.
For a 500 ml. bag one patient I know had to run it in over a two hour period to be on the safe side.
The physician should be consulted about the correct speed to infuse the Vancomycin.
One can get dial-in tubing that goes from the bag to the picc clave, and the patient dials in the recommended speed. Some folks do feel the tubing can be re-used for two to three days, keeping the ends covered and maybe protecting the tubing in a plastic zip=loc and in the fridge. Ask the IV pharmacy about the dial=in tubing.
Some patients count the drops with regular tubing and learn to slow it way down so that they hit the correct timing and don't get Red Man Syndrome. (since dial-in tubing is a little more expensive)
My understanding is if you get Red Man Syndrome, stop the IV immediately and it should die down. However I am not a doctor, read more on it or consult the physician.
Folks should also keep an Epi=pen around and read how to use it when they DON"T need it, not wait till they do.
I was using 250ml bags of saline over 90 minutes. I had an infusion pump which I could input how big the bag was and how long I wanted to infuse for and it calculated the ml/hr for me.
When I got the red man syndrome, it only takes a few minutes for it to die down to the point of being tolerable. Mine happened at the end of my infusion, so when they injected the saline and heparin, my color went back to normal almost instantly.
My insurance covered almost all of it, so I never used tubing more than 2 times. I would one tubing for the 2 daily doses then throw it out.
Definitely get an Epi-Pen!!! And carry it around with you everywhere while you are on the vanco or any IV abx in my opinion.
Herx's are different for everyone, so there is no way to tell how you will herx from Vanco.