Q. My 9-year-old son has a wart on his toe that is about the size of 4 or 5 regular warts clumped together. He has had every topical application available multiple times without result. His doctor recently prescribed Tagamet. Does this really work and are there any side effects?
A. Tagamet (cimetidine) was developed to reduce stomach acid and cure ulcers. Somewhere along the way, a chance observation suggested that this medicine might stimulate the immune system and cure warts.
Research testing this off-label use has been inconclusive, with some trials showing benefit in up to 80 percent of patients and others showing cimetidine to be little better than placebo. Some dermatologists consider the use of Tagamet to be quackery. Others maintain it is helpful for precisely the type of resistant wart your son has.
Side effects are not common. Tagamet is associated with headache, drowsiness, confusion or dizziness in a few people.
Q. My husband has taken a number of cholesterol-lowering medicines over the last several years including Lipitor, Zocor and Pravachol. Each time he experiences muscle pain and weakness and has to stop the medicine. The doctor does a blood test and insists the drug is not responsible. But when my husband stops the medicine, his pain disappears.
He is now on Crestor. In one month it has lowered his cholesterol from 320 to 194 but he has a lot of pain in his shoulders and upper arms. He can’t even ride his bike anymore, something he loves. He has also experienced memory problems, especially with names. Could these problems be related to the medicine?
A. Statin-type drugs such as Lipitor, Pravachol and Zocor may cause muscle pain and weakness, even when muscle breakdown is not detectable in a lab test. Pain can occur in specific muscles like arms, shoulders or legs or be more generalized. The newest drug in this class, Crestor, is expected to behave similarly.
Memory problems have also been reported with some of the statin cholesterol medicines, although this connection is controversial. We are sending you our Guides to Cholesterol Drugs and Heart Health plus an interview with a physician who has studied memory problems and statins. Anyone who would like this hour-long CD and the Guides may send $17 in check or money order to Graedons’ People’s Pharmacy, No. CL-CD-354, P. O. Box 52027, Durham, NC 27717-2027.
Q. How long can you use a drug beyond its expiration date? I have a bottle of Tylenol that expired on 11-01-03. Is it safe to use?
A. Medications do not suddenly lose effectiveness or become toxic the day after they “expire.” Those dates are frequently flexible and manufacturers try to build in a safety factor beyond the actual expiration date.
In many states pharmacists automatically put a one-year expiration date on prescription bottles, even if the actual medication has a shelf life of a few years. When in doubt, ask your pharmacist how long you can safely take your medicine.
Q. For years our family was plagued with canker sores. Then we read that some toothpaste contains an ingredient call sodium lauryl sulfate. We eliminated it and the canker sores disappeared.
A. SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate) is an agent that makes toothpaste foam. One small study suggested that eliminating this ingredient might indeed curtail canker sores.
