something new

Jezza

Well-known member
Hi guys,

A while ago I talked about trying out a new kind of medication, back on the old forum', namely an Imidazoline 'blocker', and I'm now actually trying ot out, so I thought I'd share some results/thoughts with you.

Basically, I started thinking about this when I came across a study on the web about symphato-inhibitors, while I was searching for something to cure HH already, since the medical world won't do it...Anyway...

The theory always told about primairy/idiopathic HH (a concept I don't really believe in but still) is that an 'overactive sympathetic nervous system' is responsible for the increased level of sweating impulses. In theory, this figures; at least to the extend that the SNS is directly responsible for endocrine sweating (hands, feet, partly axillae) and indirectly for exocrine sweating (rest of the body). I always assumed that, if this was true, then probably you couldn't do anything about it, mainly because there wasn't anything done about it by medics eventhough this is there official diagnosis...

But then I read about moxonidine and rilmenidine, two relatively young (1989) medications that do basically the same thing, namely, inhibiting sympathetic activity by selectively blocking Imidazoline receptors in the brain stem. Their primairy use is against mild to moderate high blood pressure (which is ok, since I have that too, eventhough I'm not overweight, I'm 23 and my veins are fine, so the high BP is in fact consistent with an overactive SNS). So I thought that if the theory is correct, then inhibit the SNS and directly attack the sweating...And my GP was willing to give it a try, so I've been on moxonidine .2 mg/day now (lowest dose) for the last two weeks...

The sweating hasn't gone completely, but I think that sometimes it is less than it would usually be. However, sometimes it seems that there's a burst of stress and then there's the sweating again, albeit with some delay. I feel it has some positive effect, especially on my hands and feet, but it is not enough, which is why I'm upgrading to .4mg/day now (after consulting the GP of course). BP went down just a little in the meantime, yesterday at the GP's it was 136 over 84, so definitely not too low yet...

With these kind of meds it always takes a little time before you get full results, so I'll let you know how it progresses from here. At least I fel good about doing something with some sense of attacking the problem itself and not a symptom...Would be good if some of you could try this too (moxonidine or rilmenidine) so we could compare results (with cooperation from a qualified doc of course :D).
 

BiGz

Well-known member
hmm.. I'm 23 and last time I went to docs had a blood test which was fine but my BP was high too might look into this but I'm betting I can't get hold of those drugs here
 

Jezza

Well-known member
It would actually be interesting to find out if any more of us HH sufferers have a high BP. It could be yet another symptom we have in common and be helpful in identifying possible causes.

My BP without taking any medication would typically be between 140+ over 90 to about 170 over 100. The 2nd number is most important anyway. While that is not yet WTF!?! high it is a lot higher than you'd expect considering my weight age and non-smoking habits. I'll start a new topic...
 
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