Pulse Dosing, Tapering, and Other Methods of Treatment

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Bobbie
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Pulse Dosing, Tapering, and Other Methods of Treatment

Postby Bobbie » Tue Aug 09, 2005 1:01 pm

Posted: Fri Jan 18, 2002

This was originally posted by Lauren under "treatments." Thanks, Lauren.

PULSE DOSING

For those who've tried a few rounds of "cures" for c-diff and are hitting the outer limits of frustration, and who also have doctors who are willing to be creative and work with them, here's what finally worked for me:

Take Vancocin HCL 250 mg. three times daily for at least one month (90 pills). This should leave your bottom half feeling relatively normal for a while. The normal dosage would be 125 mg. four times daily, but then you have to get up in the middle of the night to take one of them and I don't think that helps. With 250/3 you get 8 hours sleep.

Then taper down to vanco 4 days taking it, 2 days off for three cycles of this routine (about 2 1/2 weeks - 36 pills).

After that, go 3 days on, 2 days off for another two weeks (27 pills).

Then to 3 days off 2 days on for another couple of weeks (18 pills).

Then 4 days off, 1 on for another couple weeks (9 pills).

Finally, have about 30 pills left over so you can take it once a week if necessary (your body will tell you if the lower half is getting iffy - you may be able to zap the problem with one days' worth of the drug).

The whole time you're doing this, take 1 Culturelle (lactobacillus GG) per day (order from ConAgra.Com). Keep the Culturelle in the frig. Others on this web site might recommend an additional probiotic or two - they can't hurt.

My doctor let me "play" like this - and it seems to have worked. I have been drug free now since May and feel terrific, even though I had to take doxycycline for Lyme disease this past month. Before this, I suffered with c-diff for almost two years. I still take Culturelle as "insurance".

The logic of the dosing is in the behavior of the bug itself. Since c-diff is spore forming, it may form spores and go dormant when under attack by an antibiotic. So what you do is kill off as many as you can, then stop the drug and let a few spores hatch. Then you kill off some of those, stop the drug again and let more spores hatch. Kill 'em off again, etc., etc. Tracy's case history is what gave me the idea, and has an even better description of this rationale.

This regimen may also work just as well with Flagyl. I personally prefer vanco as it is not systemic, it's less likely to have side effects, and doesn't limit your life apart from having to swallow it periodically. You can still have a glass of wine and if, like I was, you are a breastfeeding mother you don't need to give it up.

Good luck to all!
Last edited by Bobbie on Fri Jul 22, 2016 5:04 pm, edited 4 times in total.
Reason: Updating

Bobbie
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Postby Bobbie » Sat Mar 21, 2009 12:43 am

Lauren originated this method (her doctor agreed) when tapering failed for her. This method has worked for some of the posters on this site, including Nancy. Always "run it by" your doctor first.

Bobbie
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Tapering Schedule

Postby Bobbie » Fri May 15, 2009 3:30 am

LindaSp supplied this info. about her daughter Kimberly's tapering schedule.

I just got this from Kimberly, now 98 days off meds!

Prescribed for her 3rd reoccurence:
Vancomycin 125 mg 4x/day (4 times a day) for 14 days,then
125 mg 2x/day for 7 days, then
125 mg 1x/day for 7 days, then
125 mg every 2 days for 8 days (4 doses)
125 mg every 3 days for 15 days (5 doses)!

Hope others are able to post in this success forum by using this tapering dosage!
Thanks for all the support!
I have been spreading the word through my nursing connections for sure!
Linda

Bobbie
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Re: Pulse Dosing Regime/Tapering Schedule

Postby Bobbie » Sun Jan 29, 2012 2:53 pm

Anne posted this info re. tapering Vanco.

250 4 X a day for 2 weeks
250 3X aday for 2 weeks
250 2 X a day for 2 weeks
250 1X a day for 2 weeks
125 1 X a day for 2 weeks.
This taper method has good success for many people.

Misscshell24
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Re: Pulse Dosing Regime/Tapering Schedule

Postby Misscshell24 » Sat May 09, 2015 12:21 am

This Vanco taper/pulse is what worked for me:

Four times a day every day for 10-14 days,
then every other day for 4 cycles (8 days of alternating one day on vanco and one day off),
then every third day for 4 cycles (12 days),
then every fourth day for 4 cycles (16 days),
then every fifth day for 4 cycles (20 days), and stop.

Every day you take Vanco it is a full four doses of 125mg or 250mg, whichever you're taking - my doc typically recommends 125mg; however I did 250mg every 8 hours or three times a day, so I could get 8 hrs of sleep and not have to wake in the night to take a dose and he agreed it would be ok to try.
Michelle

Bobbie
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Re: Pulse Dosing Regime/Tapering Schedule

Postby Bobbie » Fri Jul 22, 2016 5:03 pm

Dianlynn contributed this info.

1) First you do two weeks of Vanco 125 mg 4 x a day. I'm done that. Now I do a Vapor Taper for week 3 & 4 which is 375 mg Vanco at once every 3 days for 2 weeks. Then 250 mg at once for 2 weeks. Then 125 mg all taken at once for one week. That is a full 8 week taper and different from other tapers I have read here. She said it allows the spores which are hiding to come out and get hammered.

2) She said is is very important I do the Kefir at the same time. She said there was a study that Kefir is as good at eliminating CDiff as Vanco. The study said 5 oz 3 X a day one hour before meals or 30 minutes after. I'm doing way more than that but Kefir is one of the few things that works for me so it keeps my weight up. This makes sense. Fill the gut with good bacteria throughout the day.
Dr. Colleen Kelly's Method of Treating. C diff
3) No PCR stool testing. She said it is useless and flawed and the diagnosis for her is made based on how the patient responds. Given I have fairly formed stools, a significant decline which includes very WD, mucus, temperature and feeling very sick means I call her. Based on that conversation, she will decide next steps. She actually ripped up my CDiff stool paperwork in front of me. To her, it's about how the patient responds during the taper.

4) Take Culturelle and Florastor daily not near the Vanco. She did not recommend other probiotics but was very emphatic about Kephir. To her, that is the more important thing for people to drink throughout the day.

5) If this fails, then we go right to a Fecal Transplant. She is booking them a week out or so. A week? Are you kidding me? I figured 6 months. How is this even possible?

6) If all goes well, I see her in mid September and then do a colonoscopy in 6 months with her.


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