Singulair and shock

October 22, 1998 I had resp. failure (with intubation). My new pulmonary doctor put me on Singulair 10 mg once a day, a few weeks after. Within time, I started to have numbing and tingling in my face, arms, and legs. March of 1999 the symptoms worsened and started causing pressure in my face, arms, and legs, and anxiety started to kick in. I was told I had neuropathy and to take mobic. Symptoms getting worse, and went to a rheumatologist in June 1999, and he was suspect of singulair. The doctor thought that what I was experiencing was due to the singulair. He (the rheumatologist) discussed this with the pulmonary doctor and the pulmonary doctor did not believe this to be the case. Not forgetting, in March of 1999, I had a ct of the sinus area, and low and behold 1/3 of the cavity was and probably still is full of polyps.

As time went on, symptoms getting worse, and not one bloody doctor could figure out why I was feeling this way. In addition, at times, I was put on steroids for my asthma (not including my inhalers).

Two years ago, my body went into shock, leaving my left side very different than my right side. Affecting: my head, my face, my eye, my ear, my esophogus, my lungs, my arm, my leg.

I have been depressed and anxious not knowing what the heck was going on with me.

Recently ruled out thyroid, and lupus, and possibly ms.

Last weekend, I reviewed the letter from the rheumatologist (dated 1999) and the ct report from March 1999 (regarding the sinus/ polyps) and made copies to present to a pulmonary doctor that I have recently been seeing.

This past Monday the 10th, I had my appt with him. He knew of my situation from the last few visits (in addition, I had met him this past March for a pulmonary rehab program, and thought he seemed to be knowledgeable and compassionate). While waiting for him to enter the exam room, he had read those reports before entering.

The doctor looked at my hands (red as a beet and swollen) and said "You have Churg-Strauss Syndrome, and get off the singulair."

I had done my homework from a few weeks ago, where I looked up untreated polyps.
Untreated polyps, can turn into vasculitis. There are many types of vasculitis, to include Churg-Strauss Syndrome.

I then cross ref CSS and singulair, and low and behold, BINGO!

I have been suffering for ten years, physically and emotionally because of this drug!

There is also recent updates from the fda (fda.gov) regarding singulair, of which most recently includes anxiety and depression.

I suggest before taking singulair, be aware of the side effects. As soon as a side effect comes up, contact your doctor. Also, be aware of existing conditions (like me, sinus problems and asthma) for this could lead to churg-strauss syndrome.

This info is indicated on the actual disclosure (the paper insert that indicates studies, side effects, etc...) not the handout that is given with the drug.

By the way, I am now working with a new rheumatologist in Los Angeles (Cedar-Sinai affiliated) and a new neurologist.

mdklezmer

My 10 year old daughter has been on Singulair for 5 years- I am in shock of all these postings! I logged on because someone mentioned the possibility of weight gain as a side effect. Has anyone experienced that?

IS THIS SITE AN ANSWER TO OUR PRAYERS?

A little while ago less than two hours, after a very emotional, difficult battle with my daughter, we had yet another heart to heart to try to do better. At the end of our talk WE PRAYED for guidance to know how to help the situation. So I'm here looking for a link to her behavior fron the ADHD medication and I see someone had posted about Singulair side effects. I was floored! I have never thought that Singulair was not a safe drug. No doctor has ever mentioned any negative side effects to me regarding it. The more I'm reading about it the more in shock I am. Have I and her doctors been doing this to my daughter? My 12 1/2 yo daughter has been on Singulair for probably 10 years. She was a 28 week preemie and had severe lung issues so it was a needed medication. Her behavior has worsened the older she has gotten. Because of mostly anger issues and problems in school about a year ago she was started on ADHD medications. We are currently trying to find "the right one" . I feel so awful. Could all her misery have been caused by this little pill that was suppose to help her? Why has her pulmonoligist continued to give it to her although she has not had any serious asthma problems in years? I think I will stop all medications and see what happens. My daughter has also been on amytriptylin for about six months also for severe migraines. What do you think? Should I stop all of them cold turkey or gradually decrease one at a time? I would GREATLY appreciate any advise.
Thank you

I just wanted everyone to know that I am still here and concerned about everyone who is having side effects from Singulair. Sometime within the next few weeks I am going to post a summary and conclusion about all of the research that I have posted. I hope to come up with a well organized concise statement about why everyone who experiences side effects from Singulair should stop using the drug immediately. Not everyone has an adverse reaction to this drug. For those who do, it is very dangerous to continue this medication even for one more day.

STOP IMMEDIATELY IF YOU SUFFER SIDE EFFECTS FROM SINGULAR. WHEN YOU SUFFER SIDE EFFECTS FROM SINGULAIR, THE REASON IS THAT YOU ARE NOT COMPATIBLE WITH THE DRUG'S GENETIC BASED MODEL.

Singulair targets the CysLT1 receptor, which is a gene. This gene is not the same for everyone. If your doctor does not understand that the mode of action of Singulair has a genetic component, then tell him/her.

hi, im not sure what to do. my 3 1/2 year old daughter was today given the prescription for singulair. i voiced my concerns to the doctor after my friend telling me its no good due to the side effects.she said that there are risks and side effects with any drug you take but for some reason i don't feel right about this. don't doctors know better than this. anyway Would like to know if all the people who take singulair suffer some sort of side affects or is it minimal? or going by this side it looks like its probably best not to give it to her at all.

In September of 2007 my then 13 year old daughter was put on Singular for mild asthma. At the time she was a straight A student, vice president of our school and a popular girl who's guidance counselor described as "the glue of her grade" because she was so well liked. In November she told me that she was struggling with advanced Latin and Science. She asked to drop down to on grade Latin so we did. In December her science teacher notified us that she had a C average. She told me that she thought she had ADD/ADHD and she couldn't keep up. At the same time she was having a lot of problems with friends at school and we just attributed it to being 14. 3 weeks ago we discovered that she is significantly behind in English and it was then that she told me that she is been having horrific night mares. She said that they usually involve someone killing her or her killing herself. She said that they were so graphic that she couldn't repeat it out loud. She also said that she would feel waves of anxiety that would come over her at school and she would act "witchy" to the kids in her class for no real reason. She said that sometimes when she is trying to do her homework she will read the same passage for 2 hours and still have no idea what it's about. She also said that the suicidal thoughts from her sleep happened during they day and that she had thoughts of her harming herself. Fortunately her pulminologist told us that this may be caused by singular and we immediately took her off of it which was 2 weeks ago. She has only had 1 "bad dream" not even a nightmare since. She had one anxiety attack 3 days after she was off it and she describes her moods as the "cloud lifting....slowly". Now, we have to pick up the pieces. Her grades have suffered, her friendships have suffered and most of all her self esteem is very low. I'm grateful that we found out the cause but I feel as if my daughter lost a year of her life and I worry that because Merck won't admit there are side effects we can't find out how long it remains in their system. Is anyone else concerned about the long term affect and has anyone pursued a class action suit to try to get this drug tested properly?

I have two sons on Singulair, my three old was suspended today from pre-school for bad behavior. Screaming, biting, scratching, and hitting have been going on for the last few months. But worse the past two weeks. He has always been active and played like a boy, but he has been getting violent. We have tried positive reinforcement, praising good behavior both verbally and with rewards, I have tried time-out, being grounded, not being able to participate in activities, no t.v. and old fashioned butt spanking. All of this with no positive results. I am not looking for an excuse for my child's behavior, but could Singulair really be the cause of his aggression?

Well I just got back from my psy. appt. for anxiety for myself my 11 yr old son was the one on the monster drug anyways I made sure I told her about all this (she treats only adults But still thought I'd mention it) & even mentioned this w/s I dont know if she'll check it out but at least I feel like I'm holding to my promise about spreading the word about this I have posted it on a birth community with hundreds of parents on it, I have told the allergy doc, reported the S/E's to the FDA, I told my therapist & also my son's therapist Both were in shock!! & also I will be tellling my son's psy. next week when he sees him, I want all the docs to know what is happening to hundreds of ppl on this drug maybe some will actually look at the other meds someone takes & think hmmmm maybe try stopping the singulair to see if they improve?

I hope I'm helping I feel as though I am, too bad I have no idea if the docs will even care or listen But At least I feel good for telling them our story :)

1st post 4/3: 8 year old boy with suicidal ideation...now 7 days off Singulair. His teacher reported to me today that my son is not the same child that he was 5 days ago. She stated that she hasn't seen him this happy or enthusiastic since the beginning of the school year. This was UNSOLICITED.
I told her that I took him off of Singulair last weekend. Unbelievable. My husband and I are still in shock.

I am posting this because I am just outraged reading all these e-mails and it is exactly the same thing over and over again. My son is now 6 and has been on singular for a little over a year. He was started on it after a asthma attack over the Christmas holidays. Prior to taking the medication he was a sweet loving kid. Honestly because he was so good we could not wait to have another one. Then came these crying spells for no reason. Then out of no where he would attack and kick and scream like someone was killing him even if you just asked to put your shoes on. It was crazy. Never made the connection to the singular. He started kindergarten and it was the same thing there. One week we happened to be really short on money due to an emergency and could not refill his prescription till the following Friday. And looking back now it was the first week that there were very little problems with him and he got all good remarks that week from his teacher.Well again at the time we did not make the connection.Back on the drug and back with the aggressive and bad behavior. Then our local t.v. news did a story about this medication. We looked at each other in shock and thought how could we have missed this? We decided to do our own test and took him of the medication again. While the hacking cough is back his mood swings have all but vanished and he is back to normal minus a few crying spells the last few days. I am confident keeping him off the meds. those will disappear soon enough to. We are only into day 4 off our test and already the diff. is huge. Something needs to be done about it now.

My son is 10 yrs old and has been taking Singulair for over 4 years. My husband and I have seriously been talking about taking our son to counseling and have been feeling helpless on how to help him with his feelings. He gets good grades but over the last few months he has been so emotional and cries very easily. We could tell he was extremely sad at times and would have very high highs. and low lows. He would get angry quickly and also complain of stomach pain. My husband and I did ask ourselves if maybe he could harm himself. Although he never mentioned anything about hurting himself, he did say he was afraid to go sleep at night and thought about death. We have started going back to church and thought he was worried about what happens after you die ie, eternal life. Last month I asked my husband to check out one of his Asthma medicines (Advair) for side effects because I had a feeling that this could be from a medication. It never occurred to me that it would be Singulair. My mother called me this morning and read an article to me. She had noticed his "sadness" when she came to visit. So here I am reading all of these similar articles from families going through the same things!!!! I am in shock and in tears!!!! We have a doctors apt in two days and will not be taking this pill again. PLEASE LET YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY KNOW ABOUT THIS! Many children will be diagnosed with add and given other medicine. My heart aches for what he has been going through! I am soooo glad I received that call about the article. My prays will be with you all.

I too am in shock as well as relived about the news on singulair. Last night my 15 year old son called me (he's at the beach on spring break w/ friends), first he said Mom don't be mad but I haven't been taking my singulair and I feel better he then proceeded to tell me what he saw on the news about singulair and he was not ever taking it again. My son has been on singulair for the past year and as I write this I want to cry thinking of how I have treated him the past year because he went from a loving happy child to a tired, moody, grades falling, bouts of anger where he would tell me to just leave him alone he didn't care anymore about school or anything. He would stay awake at night and I couldn't get him up in the morning. Over the past 8 months I've had him at the Dr.s office trying to tell them something was wrong with. He shouldn't be so tired, angry, falling asleep in class. He was tested 3 times for mono with neg. results and I was told it was his age. Last month at my wits end I took him to the Dr. and demanded a complete blood work up because either something was very wrong with him or maybe he did developer teen add or emotional problems. The doctors diagnosis: depression and fluctuating hormones of a teenager. I'm furious at myself for all those nights trying to understand why he could pay attention in class, wouldn't remember his homework, getting angry when I would tell him theres no way you can be that tired all the time, telling me he hated fighting with me over school,and just wished he could quit school altogether. He even lost interest in his favorite sport and would get so frustrated at how he felt he would cry at night say he was sorry he didn't know why he felt so mad inside and I would try to understand but not know what to do.
I asked his Dr.s on several occasions if singulair could cause him to feel like this and every time they told me no and blamed on his age and being depressed about school. He will not be taking singulair again!.

My daughter who is 8 has been taking singulair for about 3 years. Her behavior has changed so much and the doctors said it was normal kid things......
She went from a sweet child to one who seems to have these horrible mood swings which cause her to lash out and say mean things, nobody loves her, she wants to run away, she hates me. She gets so angry and slams doors and acts like a child having a tantrum. She has had stomach problems which we went to doctors/specialists for a year......stomach aches at night/sometimes 24 hours a day. She has nightmares and wants me to sleep with her. She does not want to open her curtains because she thinks monsters will come in the windows. She has bad OCD related to germs. She now wants me to go with her when she plays at a neighbors house, she seems to want to know I am close by.
She is very independent and to start this clingy behavior this past year is not normal.
A relative is a doctor and thought my daughter has a touch of ADH but she is honor roll and very well behaved in school so maybe my relative is noticing anxiety in her. I need to call the doctor today and take her off this. I don't know if there is another medication to put her on or if she should be on it. She takes qvar and abuterol inhaler along with claritin D.
I just feel sick reading all these horror stories. I was being told her behavior is normal tantrums to get our attention. Now I know none of this is true.

I have an 8 year old son who has taken Singulair to treat his asthma for the last 4 years. I have been reading everyone’s posts since yesterday and I am in shock, so many of the stories are similar to ours. I have been trying to figure out what is wrong with my son for the past year. My son has had sever mood swings, anxiety, depression. He has also complained of leg pains, and stomach aches. He was once a sweet easy going child and over the past few years has turned into a negative, sad child. He has told me that no one loves him, that he wishes he would die. He also started fearing riding elevators and a constant panic when we would go to new places fearing that we didn’t know how to get home. When he started with these problems, I went to my pediatrician and asked her about the singular if this could be a side effect. I was told that this is not one of the side effects and was referred to a child psychologist. We have been going to the psychologist for the last 9 months to treat my son of these issues. He was prescribed Zoloft to help with the anxiety. I asked the doctor who prescribed him the Zoloft if Singulair could be the problem before we started giving him another medication and was assured that his symptoms were not because of the Singulair. I can’t believe that this drug has been causing all of these problems for my son. I feel so bad that I did not figure this out sooner. My poor son has been put through hell and I was the one causing it. I am going to be speaking to his doctors first thing this morning. I am not going to give him this drug any longer!! My only fear is that he has taken this medication so long what has it done to him? How long will it take to get this out of his system? Does anyone know? I am seriously thinking of filing a lawsuit. I wish everyone the best.

I am sitting here in absolute shock. I cannot believe all that i have heard from the wonderful people posting on here.
My son has been talking singular for 2 yrs now. I did take him off in the summer months. He was given this medicine for allergies and bronchial problems he seem to have in the winter. He is 5 and was also diagnosed with epilepsy. He has "absent seizures" and has had a difficult time finding a good combo of meds to treat the seizures. Last summer he seemed to be very good, had no seizures for months and i thought that Sick Kids had found a fix. When winter came around I put him back on singular. I am guessing about a month after i was back on the phone with the doctors telling them that again this epilepsy meds were causing sleeping and anxiety problems. HE has been on 3 diff meds since and still having sleeping, pains, headaches and contently scared of everything. We signed him up for skating lessons, and had to cancel do to the music would cause him to have an all out panic attack. TV commercials that have any type of Bass cause him to walk backwards around the TV so he will not see it. I have been blaming the epilepsy meds all along. I am sooo frustrated, if this is the cause of all our problems i will be so hurt and angry. This medication that we were told is a simple product that a lot of people are on has seemed to be a worse nightmare. I will calling my doctor tomorrow and discussing this.

my daughter has been on Singulair for 4 days now. She is 2 years old and has bad food allergies that cause very bad eczema. She also has been diagnosed with the start of asthma. After going to an allergist, we were told that she should try Singulair and Allegra for a couple of months to treat her seasonal allergies which have been causing coughing at night and skin break-outs, etc. A day or so after she took the medicine ( Singulair chewable tablets- I haven't started the Allegra yet, it seemed like too much for her to be on ) she has been having very loose stools, and quite a few throughout the day. Also she has hive- like bumps on her back. I stopped giving it to her the day before yesterday because the medicine was the only new thing she had been introduced too. The stools seemed to slow down and the hives seemed to be going away, but she was coughing bad last night, so I gave it to her again thinking maybe all she had was a stomach bug. But this morning we made countless potty stops and her back is bumpy again. Does anyone else have this problem?

I'm totally shock..about this....my 10 year old daughter is been on singular for the past 2 years, and she struggles in the school with concentration issues, sinus infections ,cramps in her legs, nose bleeds..and after reading this I can not believe that I 'm intoxicating my child because the pediatrician never told me about those side effects.....I can't believe this medication is in the market with safe issues....So what is the real meaning of safety for the doctors in our days.....scary!!!

I have been on Singulair for just over a year now and I never thought I had any side effects from it until my fiance told me I shouldn't stay on a tablet for too long and to check on the net for the dangers, so I found this site. I said I have not had any side effects but having read a number of side effects experience from other people I can now recall within the last year telling my fiance:
1) Lately I feel like I am nearly going to have a panic attack, only sometimes and I don't know what brings on this thought.
2) Sometimes I stop eating something because I get this sudden thought in my head that I am allergic to it and my throat will swell up, and I start convincing myself my throat is swelling a little bit, and then I feel like I am going to have a panic attack
3) I experience the itchy hands every few months, and itchy eyes
4) Two weeks ago I took two days off work because I was so lethargic and so unmotivated, went to the doctor and he could not explain why I felt like that. The same week I was feeling very depressed.
5) I had a huge row a few months back with my fiance and for the first time in my life the thought came into my head about what it would be like to commit suicide, I wouldn't do it, but the fact I was curious is scary
6) I have strange dreams all the time, and now I recall that when I started singularity I knew this was a side effect and accepted it
7) Here is a new one, not sure if anyone else has noticed this, but in the last year I have suddenly become allergic to things I was never allergic to before. Or perhaps I always was with no symptoms but suddenly I have symptoms which involve swelling of the eyelids and red patches on my face, caused by cherries, or a rice I bought in marks and spenders. Never had allergies like this before and these two arose in the last two years. Also every time I take a shower I have a temporary red rash on my legs afterwards, doesn't matter what shower gel I use, its like I have an allergy to hot water.
8) And finally, has anyone else suddenly developed psoriasis, I developed it just 6 months ago, couldnt link it to anything but now I am writing all this down it comes to mind maybe its the Singulair two.

I cannot believe 10 minutes ago I just told my fiance I can take this tablet forever, its completely natural.