I had an afib attack a month ago. I was placed on Eliquis (against my better judgement). I'm 70 years old, never having an attack before. My blood pressure has been out of sight ever since. I'm now on 3 different medications for it. I'm now having some stomach pain and don't know what it's coming from. Looks like it could be a UTI or Diverticulitis attack. Anyone have any issues like that after being on Eliquis for 30 days.
Hi Marianne,
Did you have and were you treated for high bp prior to going on Eliquis? If you were, then your CHAD risk score is at least 3 (1 for age, 1 for bp, 1 for being female) which is no doubt why they put you on thinners. That said, if this was your only afib attack, and it's been resolved, an argument might be made that a reasonable choice is to not take them at this point, especially if you're having side effects. This, of course, should be discussed preferably with one or two cardiologists, in addition to an EP. I have a CHAD score of 2, was also suggested thinners by an EP, but my cardiologist felt it was reasonable not to go on them given my episodes are distinct, few with years inbetween.
Have you discussed your stomach pains with your doctor and did they run blood tests? If not, it would be prudent to make sure there's not gastro bleeding.
As to your rising bp, it could be the Eliquis, thinners in general, or it could be coincidental. You should know that there are other widely used thinners you could try and see if it's the Eliquis causing the problem. Two thinners in the same class are Xerelto and Pradaxa. And then there's another class of thinner called Warafin which was widely used before the newer thinners and still has a place in certain cases.
My EP put me in Xerelto after my last afib episode but I decided to switch to Eliquis based on what I read. A couple of hours after taking Eliquis I had an anxiety attack, something I rarely have. Could be coincidence or it could have been the Eliquis. To be safe I immediately switched back to Xarelto for the rest of my one month course. Now i'm not taking any thinners.
Jim
Ive been on eliquis for almost 2 years. I have accepted the fact that even though I did want to be on it, my risk for stroke is great because of my age and the fact that I have afib. I have never had any of the symptoms you described. I went off Pradaxa because of negative side affects and have been fine on eliquis ever since. Your problems may be caused by your other health problem. Good luck.
Talk to your doctor about your dosage, that could be why your blood pressure is high. I was on 125mg then i had an afib bout and they doubled it and dropped it to 180 thats,what I'm on now! I still ended up getting a pacemaker! Hope you can find what works for you! Good luck@
Forgot to mention that I was 70 at the time