Posted by Helen on: 09.25.2008 /
I have weekly liver function tests since I was taking Imuran for Crohn’s. On Monday my levels were abnormally high for the first time which has initiated lots of other blood tests to see what’s going on.
Last week I was sent home from the hospital on two antibiotics and was taking Tylenol some of the time. Now I’m reading up on it, Tylenol seems to cause high liver levels in lots of people even at no higher than the recommended daily dose. These levels often indicate liver disease but what I read says the levels generally return to normal after a while.
I was vaguely aware that it’s easy to overdose on Tylenol but had no idea ‘normal’ levels could do this. Or perhaps it was the Tylenol in combination with the other drugs. But there were no warnings anywhere about taking Tylenol with them among the copious warnings on the information fact sheets and no doctor warned me about it.
Anyway, hopefully the high liver enzymes are a drug reaction that will go away after a while rather than an indication of disease. I already have enough wrong with me :) My levels were down somewhat yesterday (Wednesday) which was encouraging.
Comment by: Randy
1Interesting. I’m an Advil man myself. Can’t get enough of ‘em.
(just kidding)
Glad your levels are heading south. Hope you’re also feeling better!
Comment by: Helen
2They told me not to take Advil (ibuprofen) when I was diagnosed with Chron’s. Before then I used to take it regularly for pain relief.
I’m feeling somewhat better, thanks.
Comment by: Duh-sciple
3May healing seek you and find you. Amen.
Know that your cyber fans are cheering for you to get the best medical care possible… and this fan is being selfish because he believes that you have a voice that needs to be heard.
Stay in One Peace,
Duh-sciple
Comment by: Steph
4What many people also don’t know is that stronger pain meds, ie vicodin, percocet, have tylenol in them, often 500mg per pill. So anyone taking ‘just a tylenol’ in between for breakthrough pain is overdosing. I always warn my patients take one or the other, not both and keep at at least 6 hours even if the bottle says 4.
Advil goes through the kidney not the liver, but it can irritate the stomach which is probably why they told you not to take it with crohns.
Hope your levels come down ok!
Comment by: Jason Horton
5One of my many temp jobs was to work at Boots the Chemist. I got on quite good terms with the pharmacist there. He had lots, I mean far more than is comfortable, and lots of stories about doctors prescribing drugs that react badly with other drugs and never checking the details. It’s not surprising, a doctor prescribes a drug to combat a symptom or cure an illness. They aren’t trained pharmacologists. Fortunately the pharmacists are trained and often spot these errors. That’s why I always use a competent pharmacist that I trust and try to avoid drugs when I don’t actually need them.
Paracetamol is in an awful lot of medicines as well. I’ve also heard that it takes a long time to shift.
Luckily the liver is one of those organs that is really good at regenerating and recovering from damage. I say one of those organs but I think it might be the only one that can actually grow back. Don’t quote me on that though.
Comment by: Seren
6Helen, I think your site is amazing. I browse often, and it is so helpful for me as the only athiest in a family of Christians. If only everyone thought like me, life would be so much easier… But i’m stretched and stretched instead!!
To clear up, acetaminophen is the US adopted name for paracetamol.
xx s.
Comment by: Helen
7Thanks Duh-sciple.
Steph, that’s a good point about tylenol being in lots of other things. I was not even taking 8 a day every day or taking anything else with Tylenol in but perhaps that in combination with 2 antibiotics was the problem.
I know they warned me off Advil as soon as I was diagnosed - I got the impression it can irritate the lining of the intestines also?
Thanks for hoping better for me. My levels are down quite a lot already and my doctor is pleased. I’ll be talking with her tomorrow - I have an appointment.
Jason I went to ask the pharmacist who collects lots of money from me this year for meds for advice when I was nauseated after I came out of the hospital. He was surprisingly unhelpful. The others I’ve talked to in the past have been great, but this one seemed like he didn’t want to be bothered to talk to me. He interrupted me before I explained what was going on and then said “yes that’s probably it” when I asked a question and ripped up his printout of my expensive meds and walked away. In 24 hours I knew that ‘wasn’t it’ so basically he didn’t help at all. I don’t expect them never to get anything wrong - although it does seem unlikely that a person who doesn’t bother to listen is going to get much right.
I’ve been reading about the liver this week and it does seem to have a remarkable capacity to heal/regenerate; plus I think what I’m experiencing is a temporary drug reaction that should go away now I’m not taking whatever caused it.
Thanks for your comments Seren. Yes, it is very stretching being around people who think differently, isn’t it? :) Thanks for mentioning that Tylenol = acetominophen = Paracetamol - the brand names vary depending where you live. It’s useful to know these things if you travel and are trying to find familiar medication!