I love reading success stories but unfortunately I cannot share one yet. Tomorrow it will have been three weeks since I have been taking acyclovir (800mg 3x a day). Since it is a self administered medication (my GP is an ignorant!) I rely on advice of people on this forum. My question is how long do you have to stay on this medication before giving it up due to poor results? I have had some really good days but I have to admit that I have had regular attacks that come every 4 days. (They used to come every three to four days in January.) What has changed is the fact that they are quite mild and much shorter. I used to have 10 hour long attacks with vomiting and nystagmus. Now, they last about 2 -3 hours and I do not vomit at all.However they are still present! And that ear fullness which drives me mad!! In doctor Gacek's protocol it is mentioned that each case should be reviewed after three weeks which I am doing now counting on your advice and sharing your own experience with me. Oh, by the way, I had ENT appointment on 6th Feb ( was waiting for it since 2nd Dec '15) When I went to the doctor I was told I had been booked into the wrong clinic ! and I was given another appointment for 6th April. It will have been 4 months since the referral classified as "urgent" by the referring doctor.
Take it for 6 months at the highest dose before giving up. Also, try Valacyclovir and Famvir before giving up on antivirals.
Marta, first 3 weeks isn't enough for most people to get total vertigo relief. The antivirals need time ti totally suppress the virus. Second the way I see it you are getting improvements and that's a good sign the AV is working. Many get worse before finding relief as the AV is battling with the virus until it can suppress it into a latent state. Third, if you can get your hands on valacyclovir as scott said, that's the preferred antiviral for Meniere's now by Dr Gacek, it seems to work better for most. I would suggest stick to the starting dose for awhile longer and then reassess
You are still in the so early stages. Although we would like an immediate impact, I found that it is important to hold on to the smaller victories initially. While you may still have experienced some attacks, what you are experiencing is shorter and less of an impact than before. YEAH! I know that none would be better - but I am sure if you think back to the 10+ hr attacks - during those you would have given anything to only have it for 2-3 hrs. Hold onto that. Stay on the full dose for longer. I took the generic valtrex and I was on the load dose for 2 months before tapering. I know how hard it is - but focus on the good parts. Shorter attacks, less intense attacks. Those two are HUGE. Take a deep breath, embrace the improvements and I believe you will continue to progress. But I also agree that if acylovir doesn't work, try one of the others. Good luck. And congrats on your improvement so far.
Imback there are long term studied of safety and efficacy of acyclovir 5-20 years. Long-term suppression of recurrent genital herpes with acyclovir. A 5-year benchmark. Acyclovir Study Group http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8481018 CONCLUSION: This study extends the safety and efficacy profile of oral acyclovir in the suppression of genital herpes to 5 years. The majority of the patients were recurrence free on an annual basis during suppressive therapy. Therapy was well tolerated. Acyclovir usage was not associated with serious side effects or cumulative toxicity. Valacyclovir for Herpes Simplex Virus Infection: Long-Term Safety and Sustained Efficacy after 20 Years’ Experience with Acyclovir Full text: http://jid.oxfordjournals.org/content/186/Supplement_1/S40.full
Thanks Vicky, you are amazing. I have mentioned before I want a blood test to.see if I have the virus.
The fact that you are having some improvement sounds very promising. I was having partial results with acyclovir and then switched to valacyclovir and had much better results. I have learned recently that the particular generic brand seems to make a difference for me. The Ranbaxy brand works.