Maarten Vasbinder lives in Isaan. His profession is general practitioner, a profession that he mainly practiced in Spain. On Thailandblog he answers questions from readers who live in Thailand.
Do you have a question for Maarten and do you live in Thailand? Send this to the editor: www.thailandblog.nl/contact/ It is important that you provide the correct information such as:
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Dear Martin,
My details:
- Man
– 65 years
– do not smoke, drink alcohol very occasionally
– length: 1.74 m; weight: 89 kilos.
In April 2015 I was talking to the desk clerk at the desk of my school and suddenly couldn't utter a word. The employee immediately called for help and I was put in a separate room. I was able to walk there myself and after a few minutes my speech came back. I was asked the well-known questions to check whether I had had a cerebral hemorrhage. Through the GP I ended up in the Deventer hospital where I got a brain scan and further extensive medical examination. In fact, all results were good. Just a little too high blood pressure.
During that period I was busy winding down and ending my working life, selling my house, giving away household goods, looking for replacement temporary accommodation, finding a good home for our beloved cat and saying goodbye to family and friends. . A hectic and emotional time. I was in the process of taking early retirement and moving to Thailand at the end of December of that year.
In the final interview at the hospital, the doctor could do nothing but determine that I was in good health. When asked about clinical pictures in the family, cardiovascular disease came up several times. Among other things with my father, 2 uncles and a brother. Then the doctor decided to prescribe me Clopidogrel and Atorvastine and a medicine for stomach problems. I was probably less assertive than usual at the time and got the prescription meds from the pharmacy.
I have been living permanently in Thailand for almost 6 years now and I take the mentioned medicines on a daily basis. Have my blood pressure measured regularly at the local clinic. That is generally good. I am currently working on my overweight: healthier food and drink, exercise in my own small gym and a Nutrilite cure. I lost almost 1 kilos in 4 week. And continue for a few more weeks.
I now have 2 questions:
- Can I just stop taking the 2 drugs mentioned? I feel and am in good health. And the use of the medicines mentioned have consequences for the amount of my health insurance here in Thailand.
- Assuming I go through with it, do you have any suggestions for cheaper alternatives?
Thank you in advance for your response.
Regards,
R.
******
Dear R,
You can stop the Atorvastatin without any problem.
As far as Clopidogrel is concerned, the following. Clopidogrel is a platelet inhibitor, which makes your blood less likely to clot. So does aspirin.
I can't judge from here how your blood vessels are doing. You probably had a TIA 6 years ago, which, as often happens, was not objectively diagnosed.
You are now 71 and at an age where the pros, anticoagulation and cons, risk of bleeding, cancel each other out when using clopidogrel or aspirin.
So stopping and not stopping give more or less the same risk.
If you stop, you can also stop the stomach protector a week later.
An alternative to clopidogrel is Aspent 81 (Aspirin) 1 tablet before breakfast. However, that can also cause stomach problems.
If you want to be sure, you can have your coronary arteries assessed by the cardiologist. That's a lot of research though.
Yours faithfully,
Dr. Maarten
Do you have a question for Maarten and do you live in Thailand? Send this to the editor: www.thailandblog.nl/contact/ It is important that you provide the correct information (see list at the top of the page).