I Hate Dialysis Message Board

Dialysis Discussion => Dialysis: F.A.Q. (Frequently Asked Questions) => Topic started by: daddyslilgirl91l on August 29, 2008, 09:25:52 PM

Title: What can help really bad cramps in hands and legs?
Post by: daddyslilgirl91l on August 29, 2008, 09:25:52 PM
One of the people my dad goes to dialysis with said pickle juice. My dad tried and it barely works.
Title: Re: What can help really bad cramps in hands and legs?
Post by: flip on August 29, 2008, 09:30:53 PM
Tonic water, even better if you add a little vodka.
Title: Re: What can help really bad cramps in hands and legs?
Post by: breezysummerday on August 29, 2008, 11:51:52 PM
From what I have learned, figuring out the dry weight at the beginning
of dialysis takes time. Ask the unit to start out with 2 kilo's at a time.
Title: Re: What can help really bad cramps in hands and legs?
Post by: KICKSTART on August 30, 2008, 01:52:53 AM
Its usually a sign of de-hydration , so i expect drinking a little will help stop them . If i get them, i tend to drink about 1/4 glass of water and it seems to stop them.
Title: Re: What can help really bad cramps in hands and legs?
Post by: flip on August 30, 2008, 12:38:43 PM
seriously, tonic water contains quinine which helps relieve cramping
Title: Re: What can help really bad cramps in hands and legs?
Post by: G-Ma on August 30, 2008, 08:18:49 PM
The nurses in ND, in center would put hot clothes on my legs and instantly eased the cramps...they also tried massaging which just seemed to make the cramps worse and as flip says..the tonic seems to assist.
Title: Re: What can help really bad cramps in hands and legs?
Post by: jbeany on August 31, 2008, 08:46:43 PM
Try adjusting dry wt up, or lowering the rate of fluid pull.  Do they happen at the end of the run only? 

I find that on days I have more fluid on, I'm more likely to cramp.  If I use a stress ball to exercise my hands and spend some time flexing my legs and feet in the chair about halfway thru the run, I'm less likely to cramp up.
Title: Re: What can help really bad cramps in hands and legs?
Post by: twirl on September 05, 2008, 08:55:05 PM
anyone tried pickle juice and vodka

my doc gives me a script for something that is not as good as the drug that was banned but it helps

one tech used to rub our legs but he got fired
Title: Re: What can help really bad cramps in hands and legs?
Post by: skyedogrocks on September 05, 2008, 09:02:40 PM
I gave Rob pickle juice once.  The reaction was not good and the cramps didn't go away.

I'm going to get some Tonic Water and see if it helps the next time Rob cramps.
Title: Re: What can help really bad cramps in hands and legs?
Post by: Wallyz on September 20, 2008, 01:50:35 PM
seriously, tonic water contains quinine which helps relieve cramping
Quinine used to be proscribed to dialysis patients, and it really worked.  Listen to flip.  They stopped it because someone came up with more expensive anti cramping medication.
Title: Re: What can help really bad cramps in hands and legs?
Post by: BigSky on September 20, 2008, 04:42:06 PM
 Regulation by the United States Food and Drug Administration

From 1969 to 1992, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) received 157 reports of health problems related to quinine use, including 23 which had resulted in death.[10] In 1994, the FDA banned the use of over-the-counter (OTC) quinine as a treatment for nocturnal leg cramps. Pfizer Pharmaceuticals had been selling the brand name Legatrin for this purpose. Doctors may still prescribe quinine, but the FDA has ordered firms to stop marketing unapproved drug products containing quinine. As of 2008, Pharmacists will not sell quinine even if the patient has used a prescription for it in the past.[citation needed] The FDA is also cautioning consumers about off-label use of quinine to treat leg cramps. Quinine is approved for treatment of malaria, but is also commonly prescribed to treat leg cramps and similar conditions. Because malaria is life-threatening, the risks associated with quinine use are justified for that condition. But because of the drug's risks, FDA believes it should not be used to prevent or treat leg cramps.[11]-Wikipedia




**Legatrin PM - is acetaminophen and diphenhydramine---essentially Tylenol and Benadryl