For a while I've been trying to figure out why there wasn't anything I could find in the literature on the treatment of CRPS-induced swelling with a class of drugs called diuretics, basically drugs designed to increase kidney functioning as a way of removing excess fluids from the body. My interest having been piqued by the ballooning of my feet over the last few months, six years into RSD/CRPS, to to point that over the last couple of weeks I haven't been able to fit into one of two pairs of sandals that had stood me in good stead through August and September.

Turns out that the stumbling block on the use of diuretics for CRPS induced swelling was over a significant point, wherein the concurrent use of diuretics and narcotics tends to produce something called orthostatic hyotension "(also known as postural hypotension, orthostatic intolerance and, colloquially, as head rush or a dizzy spell) is a sudden fall in blood pressure, typically greater than 20/10 mm Hg, that occurs when a person assumes a standing position, usually after a prolonged period of rest." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orthostatic_hypotension

After waiting for a call this evening from my internist/cadiologist, he faxed me a letter instead, suggesting that my best options were continuing my restriction of salt, which is already very low, wearing support stockings (a non-starter where I can't tollerate any compresssion around my ankles) and keeping my legs" elevated [above my heart] as much as possible." A certainly well meaning suggestion . . . .

So it goes and now we know.

Mike