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My Mother and her family need to know whats going on with her. I’ll try to keep this short. Since July of this year for four months, she’s had a pacemaker put in, colonoscopy, endoscopy, and a CT scan of the abdomen. Her hemoglobin was low, while her kidney level was high (Aurora Kidney Failure). Both of those are now where they should be for an 81-year-old woman. Now her primary found out her thyroid is underactive.


Taking the following medication…
Acetaminophen (Tylenol) 325 mg
ALPRAZolam or Clorazepate (Anxiety) 0.5 mg
Bayer Aspirin (replace Coumadin) 81mg Daily
BuPROPion (Depression) 150 mg Once A Day
Darbepoetin alfa (Anemia Caused by Kidney Failure) 60 mcg (Injection)
Docusate or (Colace - Stool Softener) 100 mg Twice Daily
Levothyroxine (Thyroid) 50mg
Metoclopramide (Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)) 5mg
Metoprolol (Blood Pressure) 25 mg. Twice Daily
Omeprazole / Prilosec (Stomach Ulcers) Twice Day
Pantoprazole (Acid Reflux) 40mg Daily
Rosuvastatin or (Crestor / Cholesterol) 10 mg


What she’s suffering with on a daily base is she’s tired, pain in her lower back, an upset stomach - feels like vomiting (sometimes she does), lightheaded and a sometimes a pain sensation back of her neck.


Her primary says the meds will make her feel like that, but she thinks something is going on and it’s being overlooked. Can you help her and suggest what else may be going on?


Medical History…
1. Aneurysm (AAA) 3.5cm/New MRI - Diagnose Approx 2000
   NOT found in 2011
2. Diverticulosis
3. I.B.S.
4. Acid Reflux
5. Osteoporosis: Degenerative Disease & Scoliosis
6. Hiatal Hernia
7. Atrial Fibrillation - AFIB - Nov 2011
8. High Blood Pressure


Thank you for your time.
Scott (son)

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Hi Scott, Mum has a significant disease burden, more than we can begin to advise on this forum.
I will focus on some of the medications.
Metropolol can have side effects that meet all her complaints.
Aspirin may help prevent blood clots and heart attacks and strokes but can also be very irritating to the gut and cause bleeding. There are newer medications to replace warfarin but they are incredibly expensive whereas coumadin and aspirin are very cheap.
Does she also have osteo arthritis in addition to the scoliosis and osteoporosis?
Tylenol is usually but don't know if this is the case with kidney failure
Does she really need to be taking something for cholesterol?
I would also question the need for two proton pump inhibitors.
Given the disease burden your Mom is carrying I think the most important question to ask her Drs is what her prognosis is. I think the family needs to think about Mom's end of life care and focus on comfort rather than curative treatments. Kidney failure in itself is something that leads to death sooner or later. I don't expect this is what you wanted to hear but from what you have written this is the conclusion I see and should be presented to her MDs probably not in her presence. She will work it out for help eventually so giving her bad news will only add to her burden
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What a mess.

Just off the top of my head, and claiming no pharmacological expertise but having come across them before, these two for example:

Omeprazole / Prilosec (Stomach Ulcers) Twice Day
Pantoprazole (Acid Reflux) 40mg Daily

are both proton pump inhibitors, which work in exactly the same way, and if you look them up you will immediately see that they are, I quote: "not normally taken together."

I wonder how many of the other meds that applies to?

All I can say is, if it were my mother I would want to put that whole px in front of a pharmacologist and ask for comments. Then take the comments back to the primary and ask for a review with a strong focus on quality of life.

Poor woman. She must rattle.
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IMO way too much going on with your mother for me to speculate.

Pericarditis can be caused by acute renal failure as well, which could also explain her fatigue & poor appetite. Back pain could be from the AAA if it ruptures. This is unlikely; although I cannot diagnose her. 

A good idea would be to have a pharmacist review her medications for sure as stated above. 

Anything else is pure conjecture on my part.

Do you not have a good relationship with her doctors and feel they wouldn’t give you time to explain all this? Your mother is very sick. We don’t know her lab work, 

Good luck to you! 
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Scott, this is an incredibly complex situation, with a LOT of meds. What did the doctors say? They're really the only ones who have access to the records, especially the tests and bloodwork, and can give you a precise answer.

Your mother's had a lot of medical work in the last 4 months. That alone could wear her down, especially the anxiety preceding the tests, and the nature of the tests themselves (endoscopy and colonoscopy), which are uncomfortable to say the least.

Is the PCP doctor coordinating the care, or do you have specialists for the cardiac and other issues?

I feel badly for your mother; she must be so uncomfortable, but I really do think you or others in your family need to have a sit down discussion with some of the doctors. Was anyone from the family present during these various procedures and tests?
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You can also take all of the meds to a pharmacist to assess possible interactions and what the best schedule is for taking them. I too have hypothyroidism. The doctors must start you out on a low dose of medicine and test in 3 months. Dose is often changed at that point. Being tired is a symptom of that disease. But many people don't know how important it is to take that medicine on its own, on an empty stomach and then not eat for an hour! I had to fight the nurse in my Mom's memory care facility to get that med administered properly. And things like grapefruit make many medicines useless.
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Hiatal Hernia will cause pain too. My Dad had a wedge under his pillow when laying down to keep him elavated. More pain when laying flat.
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Prilosec is an acid reflux medication. I see she receives Metoclopramide for Gerd which is a acid reflux problem. Maybe one of the meds can be cut out. Your Mom has a lot wrong with her that could cause pain.
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My aunt takes a few of these meds. So I'm familiar with some of the side affects. Metoprolol causes the pulse to go down. I noticed my aunts pulse was in the 40s so I bought an oximeter and started recording it. She now only takes it when her pulse is 60 or over BUT with a pacemaker I'm not sure how that would work. Most (pacemakers ) are set to keep the heart at least at 60. (she takes two other BP meds as well)
The thyroid meds can do a real number. The thyroid is extremely important. My aunt was skipping hers so her STUPID primary upped her dosage from 80mcg to100! When she did take it she became constipated (didn't know she was) she wouldn't get out of bed, throwing up, not eating, not losing weight. BP going up. Temp going up. When her aid said her breath smelled like poop I took her to the ER. Her BP was so high they thought she was having a stroke. Turned out she was severely constipated. Dr mentioned she had too much thyroid on board. Next day after an enema symptoms started all over again. Took her to the medical center top hospital ER 2 hours away. Same thing too much thyroid. Still constipated. They requested that I take her to a gastroenterologist. I made her an appt with top guy at the med center. He looked at her blood work and tests Results I had with me. Poked around a bit said take her off the colace. Put her on polycarbonate glycol 350 (miralax) daily and the most important thing he said..., take her to a geriatric primary. Which I did all that he said. I then took her to the geriatric primary. They reduced the thyroid to .075 mcg from the 100 and made sure she took it 20 to 30 min before coffee with at least 4 oz of water.
I also started my aunt on probiotics daily. She feels fantastic at 91. I recommend that you start looking for a geriatric primary to manage her meds and look for a top gastro and cardio. 
It's worth it. Also I would recommend you read 'Being Mortal' by Atul Gawande. 
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I would suggest three things. First, as others have suggested, a review of your mom's meds by a pharmacist. They can look for problems with interactions between the large number of meds your mom is on. Secondly, I'd immediately stop the cholesterol meds. I stopped them for both my mom and dad and my dad lived to 92 and mom lived to 97.5 years, both in pretty good shape to the end. My mom's only major issue was a lack of short-term memory, which I believe could have been caused by the Lipitor she was on for years. Thirdly, and most importantly, I would bet your mom is on the SAD diet (or Standard America Diet). That kind of lifestyle can cause or contribute to all of your mom's gastrointestinal issues. If she would be willing to start eating a whole foods, plant-based (NO animal products), and even no oil diet, she'd see her kidney function improve (kidney issues can come from too much protein from eating SAD), her IBS lessen or go away entirely, and her GERD disappear or reduce significantly. For the latest in evidence-based nutritional info about the healthiest way to eat, please search on nutritionfactsdotorg for each of her conditions to see the scientific evidence for what I'm saying. Good luck. You sound like a very caring son and your mom is lucky to have you as an advocate.
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No disrespect to pharmacists, most of whom are fine and conscientious professionals, but it is their primary role to sell medicines. Pharmacologists, by contrast, study them - so it's a consulting or clinical pharmacologist you want on board.
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