Dexilant

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MountainReader

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If you read back, I've got years of postings. I joined this board when my reflux had become severe after years of being under control.

It really is an individual thing regarding how each person reacts to the different PPI's.

I was taking two PPI's per day to get my symptoms under control for years. I was able to make a good transition to the 60mg Dexilant. It was only a couple years ago that the PPI's became less effective for me.

I will say that I'm a bit unusual in that my reflux is the most severe several of my specialists (PCP, GI doc, Pulmonologist, ENT) have ever dealt with. They aren't sure what else to do for me because my LES just doesn't close. I've even had a successful Fundoplication, but even with that, there has to be some give in order to be able to eat so it leaves the acid coming up the majority of the day.

While the Dexilant is the best of the PPI's for me, I still have "flares" where I have trouble keeping my reflux symptoms under control. It is still my go-to prescription for the long-term though. Unfortunately, it looks like I'm a lifer on PPI's.

My GI doc does recommend supplementing with Calcium and probiotics. They gave me samples of a brand name probiotic, but I expect the doctors office supports that one. I know the GI doc is a Nexium representative and I refuse to take it. I go to one of those Good Neigrabroador Pharmacies and they carry a refrigerated probiotic that is 1/2 the price and is actually stronger than the other. It never hurts to discuss things with your pharmacist if you have a good relationship with them.

I would encourage you to do a search for that manufacturers coupon though. $50 off a prescription is nothing to sneeze at.

The TMJ connection is interesting. My TMJ specialist is very holistic. He is concerned about how "sick" my body is and he advocates diet changes to help with inflammation to get the body healthier so the TMJ can "heal" better. Many of the things he fooRAB he recommenRAB are fooRAB that my GI doc has told me not to eat because of the reflux. It gets really really confusing. I try to do just find a happy medium.
 
I definitely agree that diet has a lot to do with things but it can be confusing trying to cope with the two conditions. I've been able to get my TMJ problem under control by physical therapy.The disc is dislocated and doesn't move. I know the technical term but it isn't coming to mind at the moment. I didn't think it was possible for PT to help and I was ready for surgery but so far so good. It is by no means perfect but it is manageable.

Have you ever had apnea due to your GERD? I've had episodes while on my back of snoring and then a stop of breathing. I've never had that in my life! I'm not heavy and I don't have a large neck or tonsils. It is so strange.

Thanks for all your information. I'll stick with Dexilant for now but so far I haven't noticed a huge difference from Nexium. I'm only on day 2.
 
Hi everyone,
For those of you who have tried Dexilant I'm wondering how the drug is working for you. I've been on Nexium 2 years and still have breakthrough episodes. My doctor says I can try Dexilant but I am concerned about taking a bit of a higher dosage. I'm already border line anemic. I was also wondering what kind of side effects you might have experienced. I noticed one of the common ones is a cold which I thought was strange. I'd hate to get one if I start it! I've done very well on Nexium in regarRAB to side effects except for tiredness. I've read some reviews online and many more seem positive rather than negative. Would love to hear if someone here has tried this and how it compares to Nexium or Aciphex.
Thanks!
 
The good news for me is that while my last flare from July-Septeraber was horrible, I have had things under control reflux-wise since October. I'm keeping my fingers crossed my winter cold-air triggered asthma doesn't trigger. All the asthma coughing makes the reflux flare. I wear an ugly face mask to warm the air before it hits my lungs. People give me funny looks, but if it works... I know the Dexilant plays a role during the times things are under control. At least as much as it can be under control with my LES not working.

I just started on iron in August when they discovered my Anemia...ironically they checked it as part of my bloodwork during my bad flare. I've been on Ferrous Sulfate. I was bumped to 3 times a day, but have just been taking one for a while. I haven't had any side effects at all other than darker BM's. I know it absorbs better with calcium and they recommend drinking a glass of OJ when you take it, but I kind of skip that part. My iron levels were normal in Noveraber when I had my last panel of bloodwork done. (Unfortunately, it came back positive for autoimmune issues...one thing after another.) My B12 levels though had gone way down. I'm now on B12 shots for a while. I'm hoping the corabination works.

I think the worst part of the coughing and TMD is the post on my splint. I bite my tongue every time... probably kind of funny to watch. :)

Keep giving it some time for things to work. I know for experience things can get under control, the difference just isn't always immediate.
 
My symptom flares run in about 4 month cycles. During that time, I end up having a lot of difficulty breathing, I cough a lot and my throat gets really irritated. pH testing has confirmed I had acid in my throat 56% of the night even on medication and sleeping on an incline. During this last year, I've had 2 overnight pulse-ox tests. The first came back normal. The second showed repeated perioRAB where I wasn't breathing. I eventually had a sleep study done. Interesting thing happened here though. Between the time of the pulse-ox test and the sleep study, I started treatment for my TMJ. Because I'm a bruxer, I ended up with a daytime repositioning splint and a nighttime TMJ/Bruxism splint. My night splint has a post that comes down and rests in behind my lower teeth. It keeps my lower jaw forward. They had me wearing this splint when they did the sleep study. I came back better than average in my oxygen readings. I know the splint played a part in my good readings. I wonder what it would have been otherwise. They often use oral splints to treat sleep apnea.

This is a long response, but I know my Pulmonologist works with me on my reflux issues since they effect my breathing. He is a sleep specialists as well. Interestingly enough, my TMJ specialist also works to help people with sleep disorders. That is why he made a custom designed TMJ splint for me that also helps with my breathing.

My TMJ PT also says that all the coughing I do from my reflux makes my TMJ worse. Who would have ever thought there is a connection through seemingly unrelated things. The trigger point releases and therapy she does helps me get through the reflux flares that make my TMJ worse. It also helps with my alignment issues caused by the TMJ.

You probably don't want to hear this, but my GI doc has me try each PPI for a minimum of of a month, preferrably 2 months before determining whether or not it will help. It takes a long time for LPR irritation to heal up. It was only after that time that I moved on to trying another.

Do you have throat irritation with your reflux? If so, I got a recipe from my ENT to help some. I'm listing it below. It is actually from a handout from the Texas Voice Center.

Gargle recipe for dry and irritated throats

1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp clear corn syrup
6 oz. warmed distilled water

You gargle gently for two "long, boring" minutes then spit. He recommended not rinsing afterwarRAB.
 
Thank you again. I know I should wait longer on the Dexilant but so far it is not helping much. Sometimes I have a flare and nothing works until it calms down. This could be the case.

Thank you for the solution to gargle. I may try it.

What do you do for your anemia? I'm taking some iron and wondering if that may be causing the GERD to be worse. I take iron biglycinate.

I could imagine coughing being bad for TMD. Not a good corabination. The muscles must tighten up. The strain of it as well has to be aggravating particularly if it is ongoing.

Oh well, I'm waiting to see what I'm going to do with the medication. I may have to forgo my iron for awhile. This is something new I started due to anemia. If I take it away and it doesn't help then I may switch to yet another medication or wait it out.

Thanks again for everything Mountain Reader. I'm sad you still have to deal with lpr/gerd even after surgery. I wish there was a cure for this.
 
I've been on Dexilant for a couple years. Prior to that, I had spent extended time on all other PPI's. Nexium had extremely horrible long-term side effects for me. Aciphex did nothing at all for me. Protonix no longer worked, Zegrid didn't help either. Prevacid Solutabs twice a day did help some. I switched to Dexilant from there since they have same active ingredients. While Dexilant doesn't take care of all my symptoms, I have done much better on it than I did other PPI's. There is also a $50 manufacturers rebate coupon that is good for each refill that I've used since I started it that helped me afford the prescriptions.
 
My rheumatologist changed Nexium to Dexilant 60 mg once daily. I have been taking it for
about 4 months now and haven't had any episode of GERD. I have not experienced any ill side effects. It is more expensive than Nexium.
 
Thank you Mountain Reader. I think I've also seen some of your posts on the TMJ boarRAB. I have that also! Ugh! The only thing is I remeraber is Prevacid did not work as well for me as Nexium. Protonix did absolutely nothing and Zeregid caused me chest tightness. Aciphex worked well but caused me constipation. Do you have any problems when first taking Dexilant at all? I may just try it and if it doesn't work I'll switch back.
 
Thanks Mountain Reader. I have a few things going on and so it can be quite a time of anxiety when it is one problem after another. I know you understand. I'm still having that problem losing air but it seems to happen in the mornings. I think there is mucus back there from the GERD by morning and it makes the problem worse. I have a splint I wear at night for TMD which works well but I'm not sure if it helps keep the jaw/tongue forward. My PT said the guard looked great when lying on my back. I had such a horrible night last night. I couldn't sleep. when I finally did dozed off in the morning, my tongue slipped back and I woke up to breath and this was while raised up and on my side! Also before bed a blood vessel burst on the bottom of my foot right before bed and it was SO painful. I thought it was a blood clot! It is very blue and hurt like heck to touch. Never had anything like it. It is a little bit better this morning but still very blue. It is always something and this can get depressing.
Do you wear a mask when you go out? Have you ever used a cpap machine?
 
Anxiety does play a role. I know when my reflux is irritating my lungs and my breathing gets bad my anxiety level goes up.

Mornings are aweful for me when my reflux is flaring up. Sometimes it takes an hour or two for things to calm down. I found that my acid reflux was actually making it up into my sinuses making me cough up tons of junk in the am. I also go through tons of kleenex during that time as well.

I can't help you with the foot thing. Sorry. :(

I had a sleep study a couple months ago. It was supposed to be with the CPAP during the second half, but the sleep splint I have that puts my lower jaw in the forward position keep my air readings so high (above normal) that they didn't see the need to even try the CPAP. Makes me wonder how the results would have been without the splint since some of my last pulse-ox overnight results were abnormal.

I have cold air asthma. I have a couple great masks I wear when I go out. One is a double layer of fleece and the other has an inner carbon filter. We get some really bad inversions with red air quality really do bad things for me. Times like now, it is cold in the valley with blue skies above, but the valley is filled with fog and the air pollution keeps getting worse and worse. That charcoal filter really helps. Both types of masks are the loop masks that go over the ears and don't fall down like scarves do.
 
does nexium work for LPR? im on it now but my genius dr put me on double dose for 4 days and then told me to take only 1 pill (20 mg) WHAT THE HELL, im showing him all my LPR online research next time i see him, we all know lpr has to be treated with double dose or more smh
 
Hi there, I'm not in a good place right now. Where did you get the splint that keeps your jaw forward? Mind is top fitting acrylic splint that works very well for my TMJ. Should I ask my regular dentist?
 
Hi there,
I suffer from both GERD and LPR. Nexium has kept my symptoms under control but I took the 40mg once a day. At times I would flare and I'd live through it and then it would eventually calm down. Overall, I have found Nexium and Aciphex to help me the most. I can't imagine taking only 20mg for lpr but I;'m thinking the doctor wants to try and get you as low as possible because taking these meRAB. long term are not good for you. I suffer from vitamin deficiencies because of it. I think minimally you need 40mg for LPR.
 
How long did it take for the dexilant ti work for everyone? today is my 5th day and it comes and goes during the day. I find at the end of the day it seems to help the most. Thanks guys!
 
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