Going on IV's

[anonymous]

I am supposed to go on IV's early next week and will be having a PICC line put in. I won't be admitted to the hospital as it will be an outpatient procedure. I've felt poor for a couple months but the last couple days I've started to get my energy back. This is the first time in a couple months. If I'm still feeling better and improving by Monday, <i>do you guys think I should cancel the procedure? </i>

It will be four straight days of feeling good <i>if</i> I'm still feeling well on Monday. Just to play it safe I plan to go ahead and get the IV's. I'm just wondering what everyone else thinks. I'm shocked that I've started to feel better since my status really hadn't changed for a couple months. Incidently, I'm finishing my third week of oral cipro, so maybe that finally kicked in. I just had a dr's appt. last week and my pft's were down a little bit. My biggest problem lately has been lack of energy and congestion.

 

[JazzysMom]

You are starting to get your energy back, but what about the congestion. If it took 3 weeks for the Cipro to kick in then chances are good the iv's will be of a real benefit even tho you feel a bit better. Sounds to me lke it would be a good idea. If you relapse & have to reschedule you lost time then!

 

[anonymous]

My breathing is also a little better. The IV's will probably benefit me regardless, is that right?

 

[JazzysMom]

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote><i>Originally posted by: <b>anonymous</b></i>

My breathing is also a little better. The IV's will probably benefit me regardless, is that right?</end quote></div>



IMHO yes.....its been going on for too long which is probably why it took so long for the cipro to set it. Due to this the cipro alone may not be enough. Unless you are a frequent flyer of the iv's then I say you can use that boost!

 

[thelizardqueen]

I agree with Melissa. If its taken this long for the oral Cipro to kick in, you defintily want to take the benefit of the IVs. If anything, they will make you feel a lot better sooner then later. I should know, I just finished 2 weeks of IVs since being off them for 10 years, and boy do I feel a whole lot better!

 

[catboogie]

it's a tough call. i think it depends on how well you are able to bounce back from feeling crappy. are you doing extra treatments, getting exercise, eating well? i had this dilemma several months ago and my doctor gave me the following advice: you can only pull the trigger so many times. (meaning, ivs will only work so well for so long so don't rush into getting on them unless you know you really need them.) it is VERY hard to tell where you are at when you are in the midst of a feeling crappy phase of your life. my suggestion to you is to call your doctor and discuss your mixed feelings. maybe you can even go in for a quick PFT on monday to see if your numbers reflect how you've been feeling. also, if you've had a recent sputum test, ask what level your bacteria were? (i think it is a scale from 1+ to 4+ this is another indication of what's going on in there, although not a tell tale sign of being sick or well.) get all the evidence you can, analyze, discuss, and you'll be able to make a decision with confidence.

laura

 

[anonymous]

This would only be my third time on IV's in 18 years. I'm 26 and in January I was put on IV's for two weeks. The first time since 1988. If IV's only work for a short time before we become resistant it would seem odd that in European Countries such as Denmark that they are given every four months regardless of health status. Are they giving a different kind of antibiotic? I know this has been talked about, but in Denmark the cf median lifespan is 47. I have to admit, this crossed my mind when I was thinking about a second round of IV's.