Norpace (Disopyrmaide)

[vmcmahon]

Hi all,
I have recently been to see Dr sherrid in St Lukes and he is recommending that i go on Norpace. This involves a 3 days trip to St lukes. Has anyone been thru this and how have the results been. I am currently on Sotalol and Verapamil. They indicate that they are taking me off sotalol but leaving me on Varapamil. Does this make sense..?

any comments appreciated

hope everyone is doing well

Vinnie

[Sarah]

Re: Norpace (Disopyrmaide)

I was on Norpace for ten years and it worked like a charm. It does dry you up a bit, or it can, so drink a lot of water and you may need sugar-free candies or gum if you get dry mouth (i never did but my brother did).

I'm sure they have some reason for no betablocker but it it makes sense to only be on a beta or a calcium and not both. You should ask them what they are trying to accomplish with that choice.

take care,

S

[Burton Borrok]

Re: Norpace (Disopyrmaide)

Oh boy Sarah,
998 and counting. Looks like you will be the third one over the one thousand mark, - Lisa, Reenie, then you.

Let me be the first to congratulate you on reaching the milestone. I know I’m jumping the gun just a tad, but it is a record worth celebrating.
Burt

[Sarah]

Re: Norpace (Disopyrmaide)

Dear Burt,

Thanks! FYI: I used to have all the hearts when I was a moderator here. Mean ole Tim wouldn't let me keep all my hearts! Boo hoo! Oh well, I'll have them all back soon.

Probably later today!

Take care,

S

[shirleymahoney]

Re: Norpace (Disopyrmaide)

Sarah

You have them back now darling, CONGRATS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Shirley

[Sarah]

Re: Norpace (Disopyrmaide)

Thanks, Shirley.

Vinnie, I'm sorry your thread was "high jacked" by my heart discussion.

Norpace doesn't seem to be used quite as much as other drugs. I think once amiodarone came out, most docs just went straight for it instead. However, amio has a lot of side effects.

You can use the search function to find more Norpace posts.

S

[Quinn]

Re: Norpace (Disopyrmaide)

I have been on Norpace for 47 days now. Prior to that I was on a beta and a calcium blocker plus warfarin. I was having an Afib between 4-10 days apart. I am symptomatic in AF which means just walking a few steps leaves me breathless.

I started on Norpace June 1 and have been AF free since then. 47 days counting today and I am counting. It is a class Ia antiarrhythmic which I think slows down repolarization. Not sure would have to check.

Side effects? Bright lite made reading difficult and a constant headache. Both of which have lessoned dramatically. According to the ACC Consensus document beta, clacium, disopyramide, and coumadin is the suggested protocol...

[Rene' Koenig]

Re: Norpace (Disopyrmaide)

Vinnie,

I have been taking 2 Norpace CR 150 mg twice a day and Verapamil SA 180 mg once a day for the past 13 or 14 years. I had a myectomy in 1990. Prior to that I was taking a much higher dosage of Verapamil, I think 420 mg. (?)...I just remember the Dr. saying that they could not raise the dosage at all, along with the Norpace. I tried several other meds. prior to that...I just remember my BP went very low and I could barely stay awake! It's been so many years ago, I can't remember what other meds I tried. I saw Dr. Lever in Cleveland 3 years ago and he kept me on the exact same meds & dosages that my Cardiologist had me on, so he must think they are effective for me also. Over the past 15 years I have run out of medicine a couple of times and didn't take any for several days. My chest squeezed so bad and I was so short of breath I could barely walk around! So, obviously the meds work! My brother takes Solotol and that seems to work for him.
Hope they help you!
Rene'

[angusjcampbell]

Going on Norpace

Hi Vinnie
I know this is an old post and I am hoping you are still around this list. I just saw Dr. Sherrid and got the same news; I'm going into Roosevelt in a couple of weeks to start Norpace. I'm curious how you are fairing after what is now about 6 months. And I'm curious about your overall visit; I've been around hospitals a lot but never as an in-patient. ("What, NO PUB!?")

I was just had my diagnosis of HCM confirmed this week by Dr. Sherrid. I also take Atenelol for high BP and it has been unwittingly treating/ masking the HCM symptoms for many years. While I have always been active, I've had some curious and scary issues with shortness of breath under certain conditions, but test showed nothing ( I now know that they did not know what to look for). When I went to a new cardiologist , Henry Novack, and told him that my symptoms curiously abated right about the time my GP doubled my Atenelol for BP reasons, he had a spark of an idea and went back to look at my old stress-echo films. Bingo. He sent me to see Sherrid, right upstairs, and he confirmed with a new stress echo after heavy meal and no meds. Walking around the city that day with no Atenolol made me feel a hundred years old!

I'm looking forward to relief, but disappointed I'll be so medication-dependent. OTOH, from reading this list I see that I am really lucky!

All the best

[Cynaburst]

Angus - I too will be starting Norpace in a couple of weeks. I have been on atenolol for about 2 years, but it isn't doing enough to reduce my gradient.

I am not sure if I will have to be hospitalized when I start the medicine because I have an ICD, and the reason that they hospitalize you is to make sure that the medicine doesn't cause you to have a dangerous arrythmia, and if it does, then you are monitored in the hospital.

I am interested to hear if anyone else has anything to add on Norpace since this post was begun a few years ago. I am very hopeful that it will relieve my gradient. If not, it may be off for a myectomy for me.

[angusjcampbell]

Norpace

Cynaburst- Thanks for the info. I was wondering why, if the drug has been around so long and is generally "safe", I still have to end up with hospital stay. I'm new to this HCM (although it's apparently not new to me) and am still learning.
Good luck and we can compare notes in about a month.