coumadin disoning

[mary duda]

My mitral valve was replaced with a Stjude valve in emergency surgery in march. I will bo going back to work next week. The INR on my protime continues to be about 2.1 on 10 mg coumadin. I am also taking a lot of other protein binding drugs. does anyone else have this problem? the INR for mechanical valves should be at least 2.5. is it something to really worry about?

 

[bvdr]

Hi Mary,
I sure would feel better about you being above 2.5. Mechanical replacements in the mitral position are more likely to cause problems so I think you need to be careful. Are you having your dosage upped?

I'm new on warfarin too and have decided to try to stay in the upper part of my target range. I'm alot more concerned about having a stroke than I am bleeding.

So you are doing well with your new valve. That is great news.
I hope everything goes well with you and that your return to work goes smoothly.

Betty(bvdr)

 

[JimL]

Hi Mary and welcome! I, too, feel more comfortable when my INR is over 3.0 -- it was 2.4 last Friday, so I upped my dosage 1 mg per week -- I've been fluctuating a lot lately.

10 mg isn't that much; I take 6 normally, but an increase in activity would up my dosage as well.

 

[Ross]

I guess what we'd need to know is, what all are you taking, what is your diet like or consist of, how much excercise do you get, are you stressed alot, etc.? So many things can influence INR and there are hidden things too, like carnation instant breakfasts, boost, ensure? and so on. We even have a scapegoat that we use here in the forums-Rains Dog!

(P.S. Rain where is your dog now?)

 

[Nancy]

Hi Mary-

Welcome to the site.

Yup, it needs to be in range (2.5-3.5). Joe's been on Coumadin for 25 years. His doctor likes his to be near 3-3.5. He's got 2 mechanicals and is in afib. But nevertheless, you have a mechanical, yours needs to get up there. People's dosages can vary a lot, so whether you're taking 10mg or 15 mg, doesn't matter, as long as the dosage gets you where you need to be.

Maybe you could space out your other meds, say 2 hours from when you take Coumadin. Might help, only guessing.

Nice to hear that you're feeling well enough to go back to work. That's great.

Take care,