Pain Pump Narcotics Affect Hormone Levels
If you have a pain pump, did you know the narcotics in it, may affect your hormone levels?
Some background on me… I’ve used the Medtronic intrathecal pump since 1995 (Well, I’m actually on my third pump, due to battery replacements). Up until the last two years, the only medication I’ve used in the pump, has been baclofen. This drug has helped my leg spasms, and back tone.
I started having pain in my lower back and legs, that was not allowing me to sleep. I’ve always had some type of pain, but it’s been tolerable (the burning in my legs in 1995 was anything, but tolerable. Thank God that went away. That’s another story though). My doctor recommended combining the analgesic narcotic, Dilaudid in my pump, with the baclofen. Dilaudid is similar to morphine, but has less side effects. I’m currently on a small dose of 0.3093 mg/day.
So, I’m getting a refill of drugs last week, and my nurse informed me that the Dilaudid could affect my testosterone level. She said, after time, the drug lowers the level of testosterone output in the body. This can lead to depression, loss of sex drive, apathy… you know, the usual stuff. I’ve been feeling as fine as a paralyzed guy can feel, so wasn’t to worried about it. It’s good to know though. She had one patient that had less testosterone being produced than a corpse. They gave the guy some type of hormone medication, and he feels like a new man.
Narcotics in the pain pump will affect estrogen levels in ladies, so another caution there.
I don’t like taking medications, but sometimes you must. Trying to tolerate pain, or spasms, can wear a guy out. The pump has helped me feel better. Knowing the side effects those drugs produce will help me stay that way.
August 30th, 2008 at 8:19 pm
Hello, I have been getting dilaudid, clonadine, and preprivicaine since 2001. In that time I have had 5 catheter revisions and got sick of being cut so asked to go back to oral medication. My last operation screwed up my back big time. But, my doctor and his PA blew town unannounced and I was basically asking strangers. My pump shut down on August 8th and my dose is quite large. I have never seen or felt such symtoms. Every thirty seconds or so my body involuntarily stretched my upper legs and abdomen as though I was on a rack being tortured. Hallucinations, smells, tastes, emotionally strung taut. Worse than I ever imagined possible and of course the doctors just say go to the ER which is hopeless since they can at best interogate your pump and it is physically impossible to sit in a little room for 4 hrs. At any rate my pump was replaced and because it had been off for 12 days they had to start me on the lowest dose. Only after all this crazy shit do I look it up and find out that there was a class 1 recall on my pump all those years for doing exactly whast mine did (clogging the needle with tissue). Medtronic claims it sent out letters on august 7th 2007. Did you get yours? Your battery should have lasted 5to 9 years by the way. In closing I will tell you that the new pump is also on a class 1 recall… meaning a malfuntion is very possible and it could result in death. New doctors…new pump…same old sh**. BTW I am a medically retired psychologist and so I know some things about pharmocology. This company is killing people and prancing around like saviors. Their prices are absurd for one fill up with generic medications. I wondered why my docs had failed me and left me on the hook but when I googled my doctor’s name FRIEHS and Medtronic I got over 600 hits in .37 seconds. Google this pain pumps record and you’ll get 10 to 20 lawyers. As you may have figured out, these are recent events and
I’m still emotionally charged and in pain. Just be careful out there people and do your own research. You’ll be quite surprised when you do………later…..Dan