Posted by Margret on April 16, 2000, at 13:08:29
I have been reading postings on this board for some weeks and it has helped me a lot to understand the ways depression affects people's lives. I started to come here to learn and understand as a dear friend of mine is suffering from severe depression. I strongly recommended to him to look at this board himself but I have doubts he did that….. He also has almost daily (or nightly) migraines or headaches. Since the end of February he has been taking Manerix for his depression. For his migraines he takes Imitrex or Fiurinal for the headaches.
A while ago I came across information on German migraine sites (I am German, living in Austria) about a prophylactic therapy for migraines, Petalodex R (Petasites hybridus - butterbur root). After reading all I could find about it and even asking for information about it from the manufacturer for any adverse interactions with Manerix or possible side effects and being convinced there are none whatsoever, I recommended this to my friend. It took a while of procrastination from his side until he agreed to try it. So I had my sister in Germany get a supply for 6 weeks and send it to him (in Canada). Now, after it arrived and further hesitation from my friend's side and soft pressure from mine, he started to take it yesterday. This morning he told me he felt ‚completely wiped out' yesterday and he thinks it might be an interaction of the Manerix and Petadolex.
Now I am wondering if this is possible and I am very uncertain what to do.
Any ideas or advice on what to do now, if to continue with Petadolex or not, or maybe continue at a low dose, are gratefully appreciated.
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Here's a small part of the info I have on Petadolex ( there's a lot more…. but probably too much right now):MAGNUM: Migraine Awareness Group: A National Understanding for Migraineurs:
Petasites hybridus (Butterbur root) is the latest non-drug preventive treatment to be
come available in the United States. It is available under the name of Petadolex™ from the well respected German firm of Weber & Weber. In recent double blind studies it was shown 77% effective as a Migraine prophylaxis.Information from the manufacturer, Weber & Weber, in reply to my inquiry:
Petadolex has been on the market for three decades in Germany and has also
been researched extensively during this same period. During the entire time
that Petadolex has been available, there have been no known side effects,
and no negative interactions with other drugs or medications. Many people
use Petadolex for decreasing both the frequency and intensity of their
migraine headaches, and yet still rely on other known migraine medications
should an attack arise. There have no known problems arising from such
therapy combinations.As far as the anti-depressants go, this has not been researched as
extensively, but as mentioned above, experience has shown that Petadolex can
be used in combination with other medications without causing side effects
or drug interactions.Since herbal medications have gained more and more public recognition and
support over the past years, more and more research is going into studying
the interactions of drugs and herbal medications. I'm sure that both health
professionals and lay persons will become more educated in this regard, as
more information is published and made available. St John's Wort, for
example, has gotten much publicity over the past years as a natural
medication for treating mild to moderate depression. However, now studies
show that St. John's Wort should not be used in combination with certain
anti-depressive drugs, particuarily those which effect serotonin levels.The mechanisms of action of Petadolex are quite different than those of
anti-depressants, so there shouldn't be any complications in this regard.If your friend is interested in trying out Petadolex, please be aware of the
fact that it is not yet available for sale in Canada. This means that either
you will have to buy some in Europe and send it to him, or have him order it
through a friend or acquaintance living in the States, who can then send it
to him.
poster:Margret
thread:30220
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20000411/msgs/30220.html