Cosopt

Question: How many eyedrops are there in a 10 ml bottle of Cosopt? My Kaiser pharmacy insists that 2 bottles should last me 100 days but I run out way before that time when I am using 4 drops per day. In the past other pharmacies have given me 3 10-ml bottles for 100 days. So, how many drops are actually in a 10-ml bottle?

Answer: 20 drops per ml is the accepted equivalence. HOWEVER......every medication is different depending on the viscosity, surface tension, temperature, diameter of the dropper, etc. In my calculations I've always used 15 drops per ml. Not because of some reference book, but years and years of doing this.

Question: Cosopt eye drops side effects? By stopping the drops and starting again I have discovered that some unpleasant health issues are actually caused by the eye drops. My main side effects are bouts of diarrhoea in the early hours, frequent peeing, insomnia, nightmares, tingling feelings and general feeling of unwellness. Does anyone have anything to say, other than go back to the Consultant who prescribed, who denies that these side effects are caused by the medication.

Answer: Data sheets for doctors regarding medication list all relevant side effects so far recorded. Cosopt does not list diarrhoea or urinary frequency Insomnia and nightmares are listed however as rare side effects. It might help if you told him 2 of the effects are listed. If you report other side effects he is duty bound to 'yellow card' report all these events to the CSM= Committee on Safety of Medicines, whether or not he believes them to be due to the drug!

Question: Cosopt New Bottle? I have noticed in the Cosopt website (http://www.cosopt.com), that they are producing 10 ml of Cosopt fluids in bottles instead of the usual 5 ml, which it was mentioned that they are discontinuing the 5 ml bottles. When will they start distributing the 10 ml bottles in pharmacies? The pharmacy I go to (Walgreens) still have the 5 ml Cosopt bottles, since I use the medication prescriped by my eye doctor.....so that's why I was wondering. Thanks to anyone who can answer, in advance. :)

Answer: Ask the pharmacist who does the ordering. If you want the bigger bottle, they can order it special for you. Just ask. Though that bottle has been discontinued, the pharmacy still might have a lot of it in storage, and will use it until gone or reaches expiration.

Question: Any doctors or nurses around? Can taking two glaucoma medications cause a dilantin level in the blood to rise? My gf's level was taken two weeks ago and it rose to 17 from being at or around normal for a long time. The only change she has made to her meds is that two eyedrops were added for glaucoma. One is called "cosopt', the other is "Alphagan'. Other than that, we have no clue why it rose.

Answer: A normal dilantin level is 10-20 so 17 is still in the normal range. until her level reaches 30 she is not toxic. I have looked up the medications she is taking and there is nothing stating a contraindication or a indication for increasing dilantin levels. Is she drinking enough water and is she going pee ok? If so, then it is apparently clearing her body just fine. Make sure, since she is on prolonged therapy with dilantin, that she has an adequate intake, not excessive, of foods high in vitamin D and that she has some exposure to sunlight....wear a hat and sunglasses. And as I'm sure she knows, the flu vaccine may increase her seizure activity so if she gets a flu shot her dosage may need to be adjusted for a time. The only thing I know that for certain will increase dilantin levels is drinking alcohol so if she had a few drinks close to when her blood level was drawn that may have temporarily increased it....but like I said, its still well within the normal level. Hope this helps, my best to you!

Question: How can i control or improve my eye sight, i have bad glaucoma? i have bad glaucoma had it since i was a child, i am under treatment using lumigan and cosopt.The pressure is low smtimes but my vision changes sometimes i see good smtimes i dnt see clearly.I am worried on how to controll my vision and keep the vision i still have pliz help

Answer: Exercise your eyes. Read books newspapers or magazines. Dont sit in front of the tv or computer all day. That ruins them. Maybe a couple hours but not much more.

Question: Why are prescription medications so expensive these days? What were the reasons prescription medications so expensive without insurance? I have a prescription medicine named Cosopt that cost me $50.00 per 5 ml bottle WITH insurance (they only paid some of it, but I forked out $50.00 each month), that I have to take daily. There are no generic with Cosopt, unfortunately. I also noticed that other people at the pharmacy had to pay over $100.00 for their medications, and my mother had to pay over $100.00 for her cholesterol medication (yes, only one each!) that she has to take the rest of her life, and yes she has insurance. I wish they would lower the cost of prescription medication and stop ripping us off. *shakes head* What were the reason why they cost so much money though?

Answer: The official line from the pharmaceuticals is that they need to recover costs involved in pharmaceutical research. Many consumer groups, however, contest this and say the profits are way out of line. btw Suffice it to say that there is also something known as natural or alternative medicine; some have had positive results. You can find plenty of info pro and con. (Obviously I am talking about some specific prescription drugs, not prescription medications in general.) Of course only an MD is qualified to prescribe and oversee prescription medications. 1 min. ago--some of these especially the newer ones are marketed rather aggressively--ads on prime time tv & 2 pg ads in magazines like Time & Newsweek--you can imagine the advertising budgets--they always say ask your doctor about such & such--as a result people see their physician to inquire about such & such a drug, sometimes putting the physician in a difficult position (like they have already made up their minds that this med is right for them)

Question: Is there a chance that u loose ur eyesight if u have glaucoma but takng treatment? i have glaucoma since i was young, but i take eyedrops (cosopt, lumigan), im a college student now and im afraid if ill loose my eyesight with getting older

Answer: Yes, there is a chance you will lose your eyesight, even taking the medication, but there is an almost 100% chance of losing it by not taking them. Talk with your doctor about your condition and ask anything you want to know. You should be as fully informed as possible about your condition.

Question: Is there a chance that u loose ur eyesight if u have glaucoma but taking treatment? i have glaucoma since i was young, but i take eyedrops (cosopt, lumigan), im a college student now and im afraid if ill loose my eyesight with getting older

Answer: yes, its still possible. even when your IOP is controlled and never goes up...there's STILL a possibility. not a probability, but a possibility. make sure you keep on it. IMO most glaucoma patients probably need to have annual testing with a GDx. thats the most cutting edge glaucoma technology IMO: http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-wSz1Uw8haa.._wmbA0eEWaW4?p=155

Question: how can i control or improve my eye sight, i have bad glaucoma? i have bad glaucoma had it since i was a child, i am under treatment using lumigan and cosopt.The pressure is low smtimes but my vision changes sometimes i see good smtimes i dnt see clearly.I am worried on how to controll my vision and keep the vision i still have pliz help

Answer: Go to the doctor regularly. Use your eye drops as directed. Eat a healthy diet and get regular aerobic exercise.

Question: I need help for my son.? I KNOW this is not the place for this. I am EXTREMELY desperate. I am a single father of a 8 your old girl and a 5 year old boy. My son, Ryan, has congenital glaucoma. He was diagnosed when he was 8 months. He takes 2 drops; Cosopt and Xalatan. He needs BOTH drops. I cannot afford the co-pays right now. The total comes to $38. IF there is ANYONE that can help PLEASE. Again i know this is NOT the right place to ask. However i have tried EVERYWHERE and i guess becasue they are steroids or something like that they will NOT give samples. I can pay it back on Friday but he NEEDS them 2morrow morning or his pressure will begin to rise in his eyes. It can be done through a GreeDot MoneyPak from CVS, Rite-Aid or Walgreens. You can just load it with $38 and give me the number off the back and i can load my prepaid card. ANYONE? I can give my phone number or ANY documentation if needed. You just go to a CVS Rite-Aid or Walgreens and get a moneypack....they are green..where all the prepaid cards are..its NOT a prepaid card...but a money pack. The you load the $38 onto it at the store counter....then you just give me the number off the back. First thing Friday i will mail you the money back.

Answer: Sir, can't you go to the emergency Room and get those drops for free? If your son is in that much need of these drops please go to the emergence room. Drop you pc. You only need to drop the cost or about 1-2 months for your son. Drop ur computer or go cheaper for a short while. I'm am sorry, but I can't help you because of trust issues. Good Luck and Have a Nice Day.

Question: Can ANYONE help me?!? I have to get 2 drops for my 4 year old son who has glaucoma. ? I need a $25 Greendot MonayPack. I am short $24.83. The two drops are Cosopt and Xalatan. His insurance is not paying for them now for some reason. He HAS to have them and i am a single dad of two who does not know anyone. I am willing to give ANY info about me you need. I will pay back on Friday ANY way you need me to. PLEASE help. Email me at pongmaster24@yahoo.com. Thank you!!! I know its bad to ask in here but i am desperate!!

Answer: Go to the nearest Emergency Room. They will give you the drops for free if you don't have insurance. That being said, the Health category would be a better place to ask this question, not in Video and Online games.

Question: why would an eye dr NOT give me ALPHAGAN for eye pain? (background details included)? ok i've had glaucoma since i was 11. i've successfully been using cosopt eye drops twice a day in my right eye since i developed it. my left eye did not respond to it as well so i ended up having a tiny tube placed in my eye and that worked great. since last summer my left eye has felt dry and painful and i get headaches. i went to one of my eye specialists and he said to use saline eye drops and that dry eye and sinus problems were the cause cuz my eye pressure was fine and my eyes looked stable. i tried this for a few months and it didn't seem to help. i went back and he said that i could try cosopt in that eye to see if it helped the dryness, pain, and headaches even though my pressure was fine and everything still looked stable. i tried it and it didn't help. i went to my other specialist a couple months ago and he said that my pressure could be spiking suddenly and causing my problems. he gave me a sample of ALPHAGAN and told me to use it once per day. i did and it seemed to help everything. i ran out of a it a while ago and the dryness, pain, and headaches have come back to i called yesterday to have them send an actual prescription over to my pharmacy. i told the girl what it was and she said "WHAT? HE WOULDN'T GIVE YOU A SAMPLE OF THAT FOR WHAT YOU'RE DESCRIBING!" i said that he infact did and i had the container sitting right infront of me. she INSISTED a few more times that he would not have given that to me. she then said hold on let me look your file and came back on the phone and said "OH YEAH HE DID" so she sent over a prescription. so here is my question...why would she insist that the dr did not give me that eye drop for my dryness, pain, and headache symptoms?

Answer: Alphagan would not be expected to reduce eye pain. As you know, glaucoma is generally symptomless unless you have major spikes in your pressure. Thus a drop that only reduces pressure would not be expected to have an impact on eye pain or dryness. It is an alpha receptor blocker and that may have some impact on your eyes besides lowering your pressure. I would say that Alphagan is more likely to leave your eyes feeling good than Cosopt is.

Question: any quick way to lower eye pressure in two weeks? So I have glaucoma and ive had it for a while now. i use drops (cosopt iopodine and travatan)..but ill be honest I do forget to take them alot. its not like i avoid them or anything i just forget sometimes. I am really worried because I have had surgery for my other eye (right eye ...the left one is still kickin) and it not only wanders and looks weird but i cant even really see out (bleb possibly blocking it but doc doesnt want to take the risk of removing it or changing the wandering thing because of possible risk of infection and more problems) of it and im worried that ill have to have surgery for this one too. I have had a laser procedure in july and now have a doc appt in two weeks to see how it is going...if it didnt drop the pressure then i will probably have to go in for surgery. I know i miss eye drops sometimes but i usually am ok with it. I am just so worried about it tho. I dont want to not be able to see out of both eyes... i have no idea how i would do things (im in college and i have tonssss of homework on a regular basis). Also three weeks after my laser thing in july ... I had a syncope episode and broke my nose... the ent also found a tumor growing in between my eyes and stuff and it was close to all the nerves and brain and it was pressing on the nerves... i had it removed and im fine now... do you think that that could possibly have lowered the pressure? (i hope it did) ...my eye doc does not know about the tumor thing yet but i will be sure to mention it to him on my appt. I remember when i woke up after the removal of it .. it was like i could see tons better and smell alot better (but it kinda went away could have been the anthesia) I just want to know is there any quick way to lower the pressure. ex: double the eye drop doses ... vitamins... diet... exercise... letting the peeps rest... idk. much appreciated. =) (oh and sorry about telling so much i just wanted you guys to get the full story.) k mr im an eye doc. ....why the need to say that? I have lots of health problems and i have over 15 medication to take daily so please dont say that I do it because i dont feel like it or what have you. I have more than my eyes to worry about daily. I appreciate it but honestly I dont need the guilt trip.

Answer: Taking more of a drug than prescribed will not reduce your eye pressure further. You just need to take the drops exactly as prescribed. That's what the doctor wants anyway. He wants to know what your pressure is when you are treating your eyes as directed. That way he will be able to make an informed decision as to how to proceed. Not trying to be rude but it never fails to astonish me how a patient will claim to be worried about going blind from glaucoma but then refuse to take their eye drops as directed. It just doesn't make sense. If you are truly worried about going blind in both eyes then there is a very simple effective solution. Just take your drops like you should. EDIT: I agree completely that you do not need a guilt trip. That is not what I gave you. What I gave you was simple and cold honesty. That is what you need. The world generally is pretty simple if you break things down. If you do things like you should you generally will do pretty well. When you don't do the things you should -- that's when problems occur. So be honest with yourself and commit yourself to taking your drops like you should. Not rude. Just honest.

Question: can a baby be delivered vaginally if the mother has GLAUCOMA? or would a c-section have to be done? while i'm not pregnant now i do plan on having children at some point and i have glaucoma. i have wondered this for a while now but since i am not pregnant i haven't asked my eye specialist about it yet. i'm just curious at this point since i have glaucoma is it possible for me to deliver vaginally or would i need a c-section? my glaucoma is completely under control. (my pressure is usually between 12-18 in each eye). i take cosopt eye drops twice a day in my right eye for it and i had a tube inserted in my left eye to control the pressure cuz the drops weren't working. btw i have also had several other eye issues including 4 detached retinas (twice in each eye). also i was born with coloboma and recently had cataract surgery. i'm not sure if any of that contributes how i deliver a baby i figured i'd lay it all out there. WOW "sam" you make me out to be some sort of idiot when you are the one that has no knowledge of the subject. glaucoma is not an eye infection it is an eye condition. LOOK IT UP! "yagman" THANKS SOOO MUCH. i appeciate your educated answer. ignorant people drive me nuts. its like if you have no knowledge in the subject just skip the question ya know? and to everyone else don't assume that the answer is obvious and try to make me look like a fool cuz you are the fools and my question has knowledge of having the condition behind it.

Answer: Don't be upset with your other answerers. It is not unusual for those who are ignorant in an area to not be aware they are ignorant and therefore, make statements that to them seem logical. As to your question, actually, it is a very good question. What you are asking is whether or not a valsalva maneuver (valsalva refers to any maneuver which causes someone to strain or forcefully expel air from the lungs under resistance. This can occur with weight lifting, giving birth, or even playing a wind instrument.) can affect either your intraocular pressure or affect the ability of your heart to force blood into the optic nerve head. There haven't been many studies done on this and I'm not sure there is a consensus of opinions but I will refer you to one study. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles… I'm going to do a little more looking into this.

Question: If anyone can help me and my son? I KNOW this is not the place for this. I am EXTREMELY desperate. I am a single father of a 8 your old girl and a 5 year old boy. My son, Ryan, has congenital glaucoma. He was diagnosed when he was 8 months. He takes 2 drops; Cosopt and Xalatan. He needs BOTH drops. I cannot afford the co-pays right now. The total comes to $38. IF there is ANYONE that can help PLEASE. Again i know this is NOT the right place to ask. However i have tried EVERYWHERE and i guess becasue they are steroids or something like that they will NOT give samples. I can pay it back on Friday but he NEEDS them 2morrow morning or his pressure will begin to rise in his eyes. It can be done through a GreeDot MoneyPak from CVS, Rite-Aid or Walgreens. You can just load it with $38 and give me the number off the back and i can load my prepaid card. ANYONE? I can give my phone number if needed or ANY documentation. This is VERY much for real.

Answer: excuse me, but you have a computer and time to spend on the computer? My guess is that you probably have a cell phone also. If you stopped your computer costs you could purchase the meds.

Question: Can ANYONE help me?!? I have to get 2 drops for my 4 year old son who has glaucoma. ? I need a $25 Greendot MonayPack. I am short $24.83. The two drops are Cosopt and Xalatan. His insurance is not paying for them now for some reason. He HAS to have them and i am a single dad of two who does not know anyone. I am willing to give ANY info about me you need. I will pay back on Friday ANY way you need me to. PLEASE help. Email me at pongmaster24@yahoo.com. Thank you!!! I know its bad to ask here but i am desperate!!

Answer: damn dude, not to be rude but if it's this bad head to the train station and beg. I'm not being offensive or anything but do it. Good luck.

Question: Am I at risk for something? I am 19, and I take a beta-blocker, Cosopt, for glaucoma. I know that beta blockers lower heart rate, and I notice that mine is under the normal range, at 54. However, I do excercise somewhat consistantly. Should I be concerned?

Answer: Go to the hospital. If you don't think it is anything seriou which most 50 year olds do but yet they are not smart enough and yet they put it on Yahoo so yes go see a doctor.

Question: Using cosopt eye drop for glaucoma and have a SULFA allergy? so i've been taking cosopt for 14yrs now. in 2009 i had a bad sinus infection and was prescribed bactrim and about 5 minutes after the last pill on the 10th day of taking it i broke out in hives all over my body. i needed steroids to help it go away cuz it was only getting worse instead of better after a couple days. the allergic reaction was very severe on my head/face/ears and took the longest amount of time to calm down. since then if i do something like brush my hair a little harder than usual (like if i'm a rush) or accidently bump the hair brush bristles against my ears the area gets hot, red, and itchy for a while. i have always thought this was odd since i have not taken sulfa drugs since that reaction (well or so i thought) and it doesn't seem to effect any other part of my body. today i was looking to make sure that the antibiotic biaxin is not a sulfa drug cuz i just started taking it for a sinus infection (i get them a lot so weaker antibiotics just aren't cutting it anymore). anyways in my search i discovered that cosopt is a sulfa based drug and now i'm putting things together like perhaps i have the slight reactions on my head and ears due to the cosopt. also pretty much since i had the hives with batrim my eye seems to easily feel dry, hot, itchy, and gets a bit puffy. i have an appointment with my retina specialist next week so shoudl i bring this up or since the reactions aren't "terrible" should i just leave it alone and continue to take the cosopt as i always have? cosopt works very well for my eye pressure so i'm afraid that if i say something and they switch the eye drops that i'm using that my glaucoma will become out of control. what do you suggest i do?

Answer: you can consult with a pharmaceutics,since they are trained to know what medicines contain maybe they can come up with another eye drop that doesn't have a sulfur base to it.The drug companies have added sulfur to many meds to give them a longer shelf life .Most drs aren't aware of the sulfur being in the meds they Rx.,due to so many new meds on the market these days. I had to do that to find an eye drop that worked for my allergies,since everyone made my eyes worse. Once the pharmaceutics knew about my sulfur allergy,he made sure every medicine I am Rx'd is sulfur free.

Question: using cosopt eye drop for glaucoma and have a SULFA allergy? so i've been taking cosopt for 14yrs now. in 2009 i had a bad sinus infection and was prescribed bactrim and about 5 minutes after the last pill on the 10th day of taking it i broke out in hives all over my body. i needed steroids to help it go away cuz it was only getting worse instead of better after a couple days. the allergic reaction was very severe on my head/face/ears and took the longest amount of time to calm down. since then if i do something like brush my hair a little harder than usual (like if i'm a rush) or accidently bump the hair brush bristles against my ears the area gets hot, red, and itchy for a while. i have always thought this was odd since i have not taken sulfa drugs since that reaction (well or so i thought) and it doesn't seem to effect any other part of my body. today i was looking to make sure that the antibiotic biaxin is not a sulfa drug cuz i just started taking it for a sinus infection (i get them a lot so weaker antibiotics just aren't cutting it anymore). anyways in my search i discovered that cosopt is a sulfa based drug and now i'm putting things together like perhaps i have the slight reactions on my head and ears due to the cosopt. also pretty much since i had the hives with batrim my eye seems to easily feel dry, hot, itchy, and gets a bit puffy. i have an appointment with my retina specialist next week so shoudl i bring this up or since the reactions aren't "terrible" should i just leave it alone and continue to take the cosopt as i always have? cosopt works very well for my eye pressure so i'm afraid that if i say something and they switch the eye drops that i'm using that my glaucoma will become out of control. what do you suggest i do?

Answer: Tell your doctor. Let him worry about alternatives. My prediction is he will be stopping the Cosopt. No doctor wants to use a medicine to which you have an allergic history.