I Had My First Apretude Injection 2 Days Ago

[+ Gar1eth]

I was apprehensive about how painful it might be after reading about it online. But as usual the  people with the most problems are the ones who show up more frequently on the online forums. . The injection wasn't bad. I take Repatha injection every two weeks for high  cholesterol. You want to talk about a painful injection. 
 

So far so good after the Apretude injection. They say it takes 7 days to achieve protective tissue levels in 95% of subjects. You can continue Descovy or Truvada until then. 
 

To be totally honest I did have a complication. But I don't think it was due to Apretude. I collapsed about 30 minutes after taking it. I became  lightheaded. I stood up. I became more lightheaded, and my legs started trembling. And I fell. 
 

But I think it was a blood pressure issue unrelated to the Apretude. My BP is not consistent. Sometimes my antihypertensives don't work. My cardiologist has me taking an additional medication at that time. So I did before I went to bed. But only had about 5 hours of sleep. My BP was still on the higher side when I awoke. I took my usual medicines, and the extra medicine. 
 

EMS was called when I collapsed. My systolic BP was 100. They took me into the ambulance. They asked questions. I started feeling better. My BP went up to 116. I decided to go to the hospital to get checked out. Eight or nine hours later, I stepped out of the hospital almost as good as new.
 

But I think all this was the cumulative effect of the extra BP medication and not the Apretude. I will however be staying in my doctor's office for 30 minutes after the next injection to make sure. 

Edited Monday at 06:14 AM by Gar1eth

[+ SirBillybob]

To be honest, I’m having to guess the chronology of events described in the third and fourth paragraphs combined. Glad you are OK, though. With q2wks injections Hx under your belt you are a trooper hardly in need of a Victorian fainting couch, thus far, or you’d be pretty bruised up.  

One small variable sometimes overlooked with injections is a vasovagal response, where transient hypotension can occur even in people who aren't overtly needle-averse, not necessarily consistent across or within contexts. In those cases, being fully "relaxed" can paradoxically lower blood pressure further, whereas some are coached to use light muscle tensing to maintain perfusion. Not saying that's what happened here, but with variable BP and medication adjustments, the physiology could line up in that direction.

Edited Monday at 12:11 AM by SirBillybob

[San Angelo]

Ewww no. 

[+ Gar1eth]

8 hours ago, SirBillybob said:

One small variable sometimes overlooked with injections is a vasovagal response, where transient hypotension can occur even in people who aren't overtly needle-averse, not necessarily consistent across or within contexts. In those cases, being fully "relaxed" can paradoxically lower blood pressure further, whereas some are coached to use light muscle tensing to maintain perfusion. Not saying that's what happened here, but with variable BP and medication adjustments, the physiology could line up in that direction.

It probably was some degree of a vasovagal reaction-but most likely precipitated by the low blood pressure. When I went to bed Thursday night (actually Friday morning), my SBP agent taking it in the morning and evening seemed to be hovering around 151. Now my BP isn't that consistent anyway. But my usual BP meds are Telmisartan (an angiotensin receptor blocker) and a diuretic. Because of a hip that needs surgery, I've been taking Meloxicam -an NSAID which is not that great for kidneys in general, and it may antagonize the effects of the Telmisartan. 
 

The cardiologist has me taking hydralazine ( a vasodilator) as an additional medicine. Usually I only take 10 mg -3 times a day as needed. But I've noticed if I take it at bedtime-it usually doesn't do much for my blood pressure. 
 

So Thursday night at bedtime (really Friday early morning) I took 20 mg of hydrazine. I might also have taken 4 mg of Cardura for prostate problems but which also has a mild antihypertensive effect. I can't remember if I took it as I don't always 

I woke up about 5 hours later to get ready for my doctor appt. At that time my SBP was still 151. So I took my regular BP meds and 10 mg hydrazine. 

About an hour later at the doctor's office my SBP was 132. I received the Apretude and left. I made it to the lobby and sat down for a whirl because either due to all my medical problems or deconditioning, I get out of breath very easily. 
 

While I sat down, I started feeling worse. I felt clammy and lightheaded. I had a feeling my BP was going down. The security guard at my request brought me some water. I drank a small amount but still didn't  feel great. I had an urge to (pardon the TMI) defecate. I stood up. I felt lightheaded. I made it to the security guard's desk. My legs started trembling, and I collapsed to the floor. 
 

The security guard called EMS, and the events played out as I discussed above. 
 

3 hours ago, San Angelo said:

Ewww no. 

Was this  response to getting Apretude?  Please explain.