Acyclovir anti-viral treatment : For you newbie's

I have a bunch of Valtrex sitting in the cupboard and may try this. I am also about to start your regimen John. Should I start everything but the Lysine until I am done with the Valtrex start up?

 

For those of you who have had success with anti-virals, does it help with all symptoms (fullness, tinnitus, vertigo)?

 

It helps with every symptom there is....the earlier in the course of disease you are, the more drastic the improvement you'll get. Every attack will do a little more irreversible, permanent damage...it's very important to get taking antivirals early in the disease. I started only 6 months into having symptoms and had 100% total relief of ALL symptoms for the past 5 years. But i stopped taking it 4 years ago and was perfectly fine until this February. I now have a bit of permanent hearing loss in my left ear after this flareup. I'm not too happy about it! I am back on Acyclovir and was told by Dr. Richard Gacek to stay on it for the rest of my life if i want to keep my hearing and balance and keep it from spreading into my other ear. I dont plan on going off of it anytime soon. Maybe when they come up with an HSV1 vaccine, THEN i will stop taking it.

 

There is no reason why prescription antiherpetic drugs (Valtrex, for example) shouldn't be taken along with lysine. Taking them concurrently hits the herpes virus from two different biochemical angles.

The same is true of the entire regimen, which can be taken along with prescribed drugs.

Let us know how this progresses.

--John of Ohio

 

I don't have vertigo but it helped with distortion and tinnitus in a major way. Fullness, not sure I really had that, can't remember. It wasn't a major issue for me.

 

Edited

 

I usually have side effects with drugs, supplements, you name it. I did not have any side effects with either acyclovir or famvir even though I took them for an extended (several months) period. When I first thought of taking acyclovir I had that very fear. It was my family dr who was in favor of it for me and I told her that. She said they are relatively side effect free (as drugs go). She looked it up as I sat there and told me acyclovir was metabolized in the liver 'like most drugs' but that was all. I took it 5 times a day per the regime for acyclovir and never had the slightest side effect, which once again is very unusual for me. Almost everything at least makes me itch. Later I took famvir 3 times a day for 10 days and then twice a day for the remainder of 3 months. After the famvir course I asked the dr (this time my oto from House Clinic) that I had a concern if I should need it again in the future that I would be putting my body through too much. She said aids patients take these drugs for many years. I have not needed to take it again since but I am relatively reassured. This as compared to my body's reaction to dyazide and maxide which almost sent me to the hospital with a low sodium, causes me great pain in my arthritic joint when I take it and cramps in my muscles.

The lysine as I understand it is taken not as a supplement in the sense that you have a shortage of lysine and you need more but as a drug on an empty stomach to interfere with the replication of the virus. In this context I don't assume it is necessarily any less likely to cause problems than the antivirals and you do need to take lysine continuously forever from what I read. So in that context I don't see any evidence that it is more benign approach than acyclovir or famvir. As drugs, acyclovir and famvir have to be tested and the results published in order to get fda approval. While no guarantee, this is more information than is available to my knowledge about the use of lysine used in this way to retard the replication of viruses. Finally the aniviral drugs work faster and since they are not part of a larger regime it is more clear if they are working what is working or not working and there is no risk of side effects from the other parts of the regime.

All that said, I have a bottle of lysine and bioflavanoids in my medicine cabinet which I was preparing to try when I stumbled on the acyclovir which worked so well for me. If I could not find a doctor to prescribe antivirals or could not tolerate them for one reason or another I'd try lysine. However if I couldn't tolerate antivirals because, for instance, I had a problem with my liver, then I would ask the doctor if I was likely to have the same risk with lysine.

 

Lysine is an essential amino acid, which means that the human body cannot synthesize it and must obtain it through food sources. Lysine aids in building muscle tissue, recovering from injury or surgery, and absorbing calcium effectively. It also helps the body produce antibodies, enzymes, and hormones. Lysine supplements are also sometimes used to treat outbreaks of the herpes virus.

Humans must consume 1-1.5 grams of lysine each day, either through the diet or through dietary supplements. Though lysine deficiency is rare, it can be serious, resulting in anemia, lethargy, hair loss, weight loss, loss of appetite, enzyme disorders, and growth and reproductive problems. Many animal and plant-based foods are rich in lysine. Fish, legumes, and cereal grains are among the best sources.

Clinical trials have shown lysine supplements to be effective in preventing recurrences of herpes outbreaks, and sometimes in lessening their duration. However, only fairly high doses, over 1000 mg and sometimes up to 3000 mg, are useful in this context. In addition, it has been speculated that another amino acid, argenine, may interfere with the effectiveness of lysine against the herpes virus.

For this reason, herpes sufferers using lysine supplementation are advised to lower their argenine intake and to keep their lysine to argenine ratio high. Dairy products are high in lysine and relatively low in argenine, while nuts are high in argenine and quite low in lysine. Therefore, nuts should be either eaten with cheese or avoided altogether by herpes suffers using this method.Another problem with using lysine supplements to manage herpes is the possible negative side effects associated with regular high doses of lysine. Gastrointestinal distress and renal impairment can both result from excessive lysine intake, such as that suggested for herpes patients.

Lysine supplements in high doses are not recommended for those with compromised renal function or risk factors for liver or kidney disease. Most doctors recommend taking lysine only when herpes outbreaks are imminent, rather than on a regular basis.

My self personally:

Years ago before I discovered Acyclovir here on this site incidentally, I tried Lysine for my herpes outbreaks and remember it did nothing for my Meniere's, however it did speed up my herpes recovery. Iin those days the Doctor told me not to take Lysine any more then 3 months at a time. (this was about 15 years ago, so dosing recommendations may have changed)


I personally wouldn't take Acyclovir or Lysine on a extended long term daily basis.

What is Acyclovir?
Acyclovir (ay-SYE-kloe-veer) is an antiviral used to treat shingles, chickenpox, and genital herpes ( which can cause painful lesions and blisters ), herpes simplex and herpes zoster. Antivirals work for only one kind or group of virus infections.

Acyclovir can help those with HIV live longer by preventing herpes simplex outbreaks. Acyclovir is also used to treat a viral infection that shows up on the sides of the tongue, called lenkoplakia and widespread herpes virus infections in newborns. It does not cure herpes, but does help relieve the pain and sores heal faster.

Acyclovir works against HSV type 1, 2, and VZV. Acyclovir is considered the drug of choice for treatment of mucosal or cutaneous HSV infections caused by HSV 1 and 2 in immunocompromised patients. It's also used for treatment of severe first episodes of genital herpes infections, for herpes encephalitis; for neonatal herpes infections and for treatment of varicella-zoster infections.

How does Acyclovir work?
Acyclovir interferes with the enzymes the virus needs for replication of DNA in cells and prevents the virus from multiplying. It is also incorporated into the virus DNA chain which terminates replication.

What side effects do users of Acyclovir report?
Side effects, that may go away during treatment, include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or headache. If they continue or are bothersome, check with your doctor. Some people have reported hair loss from prolonged use. Others have reported dizziness, fatigue, skin rash, anorexia, leg pain, medication taste and sore throat.

The digestive side effects are reduced if taken with meals. Some nausea can be avoided with eating strategies like eating dry salted crackers and not lying down after you eat.

Medications found helpful in reducing nausea include Compazine, Reglan, and Phenergan. Aspirin or other pain pills may help with headaches. Your dosage can be adjusted if your side effects are severe.

 

Larry, did you have any of these side effects? Just curious because I had no side effect at all, not even a funny taste in my mouth, where as I can't take much of any other medicine without a side effect.

 

A very good question June, When taking Acyclovir as recommended in the study ( http://www.bekkoame.ne.jp/~ms-7/english1.htm ) 400mg 5 times daily = 2000mg a day, it is not always easy to take on a full stomach without gaining weight...

I often took Acyclovir on an empty stomach with no side effects at all for me... having said that however some people have reported some of the above side effects, so in that rare case or if you can't be bothered taking 5 times daily, you can get a script for 800mg and take 3 times daily with meals.

 

Wow, you mean I can blame my weight gain on it! Just kidding, I did not notice any weight issues either.

One of the advantages of the other antivirals which I am told are based on acyclovir - whatever that means - is that you don't have to take them as often. With the famvir I took it 3 times a day for two weeks and then twice a day. But I was never so happy to take a pill 5 times a day as acyclovir because it was a miracle drug for me. I do not remember taking it with or without food. I think I took it so often it was probably both with and without. I always drink tons of water so that would not have been an issue for me. One of the antivirals may have said something about that, I can't remember now. While I am duty bound to admit I got my first and greatest improvement from acyclovir my oto who prescribes famvir says it is supposed to cross the blood brain barrier best of all the antivirals.

 

For me the anti-virals helped with fullness and vertigo, unfortunately did little for my "T"

 

Hi Larry,

Yes i personally don't like to take medications unless i absolutely have to. I'm actually quite the health nut and have always been concerned about consuming medications, preservatives, pesticides etc. My doc really wants me to stay on a maintenace dose for life and swears 800mg daily of Acyclovir is extremely safe long term. I do feel uncomfortable about taking it that long, but would hate to see my symptoms return again if i stop. I guess for now i'll stay on the maintenance dose for up to year, like i did last time, and then see how i feel and decide what to do then. In the mean time, i make sure i drink tons of filtered water, eat very healthy and workout daily. I tried to cut back to 400mg daily a couple weeks ago, and sure enough, after working in the hot sun all afternoon, my hearing started heading south and the fullness started coming back, so i went back to 400mg twice daily and knocked it back down. I think the virus is weakened but still lurking and just waiting for the acyclovir to stop and for me to get stressed or too much sun or intense exercise. Those are my triggers. Eventually the virus will weaken and go dormant i would think. But for now, i'll continue the maintenance dose, keep the symptoms at bay, and worry about the long term side affects when my 1 year is up. I read a study where taking one 800mg Acyclovir pill per WEEK has almost the same recurrence results as taking a daily maintenace dose. So maybe i'll consider that down the road. Something to think about anyways....

Take care
Johnny

 

What kind of cost is involved for Acyclovir if you have insurance?

 

I'll

I will have to let one of the Americans answer that one, maybe June or Johnny...

 

so....I haven't taken an anti-viral yet. I just started doing JOH, not on lysene yet. Should I be taking an anti-viral? Are there any available over the counter? My perscriptions are getting expensive. Thanks.

 

Bastet, I get my Acyclovir over the counter here in the Caribbean, but in most places a script is necessary...

You will never know if anti-virals will work for you unless you give them a try

Be well / Larry

 

Acyclovir generic is quite inexpensive...not exactly sure of the per pill price, but it is a fraction of the cost of valtrex. I pay a 7 dollar copay for my generic acyclovir scripts.

 

I took both acyclovir and famvir generics (US). Not sure what the pre insurance price was but it was not expensive for me.

 

With the generic anti-virals you have to watch out for the crap coming out of India... a lot of bad press lately with their products.