Has anyone tried the new Med? Results? Would you recommend trying?

Thanks,

Kelly in Portland

http://forum.parkinson.org/index.php...dopa-capsules/

My wife was diagnosed with Parkinson's 14 years ago and had deep brain stimulation 6 years ago which has been a blessing, yet her use of 25/100 sinemet has increased to 10 times a day with wearing off problems and having to wake up twice in the night to take the meds which contributed to daytime fatigue. A week and a half ago she switched to Rytary 36.25/145 taking 3 pills three times a day
7am, 3pm, 11pm according to the prescribing recommendations provided by Impax. She had occasional dizziness the first 2 days but this resolved with time and she has none of the side effects that are listed as possibilities. The results she has had so far are excellent-better energy and speech, much better mobility
with significantly less off time and whole nights of uninterrupted sleep which has reduced the fatigue factor to a point where a short afternoon nap lets her bounce back. Parkinson's is still with her but Rytary has mitigated many of the issues she was facing under the old medication regime. So far so good. We worked carefully with our family physician who was totally supportive of trying Rytary.

Background; Before Rytary I was able to walk, exercise 1/2 hr daily,and function adequately 75% of the time. I took 12 25-100 Sinemet daily. My downtime between dosages of Sinemet averaged 15 minutes. I have been on RYTARY ER 48.75-195 MG Caps 3 every 8 hrs. 9PM 5AM 1PM. It has only been 4 days. My 9PM caps have extended my sleep to approx 8 hrs and I feel good when I awake to take my 5AM dose. Before Rytary I would get up after 5 hrs of sleep for 2 and !/2 hours shuffling around for 15 minutes before my Sinemet started to kick in. I would then go back to bed for 2 hours. Although my 9 PM Rytary last 8 hrs my 2 other doses seem only to last 6 to 7 hours so I supplement my down time with 1 Sinemet. I postulate that I only get 6 to 7 hours with my daytime pills because of food interfering with absorption ie. any kind of food. I also think stress plays a part. When I am on I feel much better than the Sinemet, (think more clearly, function better} and don't have to remember to take pills every 2 hrs. I have experienced nausea. The co-pay for me is $40 monthly. I realize it has only been 4 days but it is a new drug and wanted to get info out. I will update you again in a couple weeks.

Thank you all for the informative posts. How does Rytary differ from generic carbo/levo sustained release?

My husband (75) has been on Rytary for one week. He has had Parkinson's approximately 14 years and had been taking a combination of Stalevo and Carbidopa/Levadopa immediate release for a total of approximately 1100 Levadopa per day. It was initially recommended he take 2 tablets 195 three times per day and 3 tablets at bedtime. The first dose was started about 5PM and he was very dyskinetic and, in fact, barely slept that first night because he was so 'wired'. Though he continued moderately dyskinetic for the next couple of days, he had 'on' time of 4 to 4.5 hours between 5 hour doses. We obtained some 145 capsules and are in the process of trying to get the right combination to maintain smooth distribution. Overall the sleep is much, much improved...deeper and longer. Thinking is clearer and, of course, the 'on' time improvement is tremendous.

Did you have dyskinesia before ... what is your experience now? Thanks for any information ...

Did your wife have dyskinesia before and, if so, do you see any change now? Thanks for the information

My wife's medically related dyskinesia was eliminated 6 years ago following deep brain stimulation surgery and system turn on. She has no dyskinesia with Rytary
nor with the drugs she was using previously Pacopa or sinimet ir.

for the information. Sounds like it's working very well for you. We are still trying to find the right combination and will keep posting as we make progress. So little data is available right now; we really appreciate the information.