An Omaha woman and her doctor believe she suffered cardiac arrest because of a dangerous interaction between a prescription and an over-the-counter diet pill.
Rena Duhan, 35, looks good and feels great. She's lost 25 pounds in just a few months.
'I've just been watching what I've been eating instead of using diet pills,' said Duhan. 'Not munching at night, and exercising.'
KETV's Brandi Petersen first interviewed Duhan in February, after the diet pills she mentioned turned her life upside down.
'The crib was here,' Duhan said in the first interview, standing in her niece's room. 'I reached in to pick her up and that's the last thing I remember.'
Duhan suffered cardiac arrest. It was approximately four minutes before paramedics restarted her heart.
Duhan's friend and coworker, Dr. Mike Peters with Methodist Healthy Systems, saved Duhan's life with a relatively new hypothermia treatment. He told KETV Duhan beat the odds by not only surviving, but recovering without brain damage or long-term side effects.
Dr. Peters also pieced together what is believed to have caused Duhan's heart to stop.
'I have like four herniated discs in my neck, so I was on, I thought, like a low-strength pain medicine,' explained Duhan. She was also taking an over-the-counter diet pill she had purchased at a local health store. Both warned of possible side effects.
'You see all of the side effects, every medication has side effects,' said Duhan. 'You never think, oh, this could stop your heart. You could collapse and oh, good luck with you.'
Duhan believes she had been taking both medications for six months to a year before the cardiac arrest happened.
Dr. Peters says while pharmacists screen for drug interactions between prescriptions, over-the-counter drugs and supplements can go under the radar.
'When you're taking prescription drugs and then you start adding to that some of these over-the-counter medicines, the potential for drug, drug interaction goes way up,' said Dr. Peters, who told KETV those interactions can cause serious problems.
Dr. Peters adds that patients may not tell their health care providers they are using additional drugs, assuming that because they are available over-the-counter they are safe. He also said many patients use the directions listed on the bottle as a guideline rather than a rule.
'We find people take far more of the over-the-counter drugs than they were originally intended to use,' said Dr. Peters.
Duhan is now healthier than she has been in years, thanks to her own hard work and dedication to her new lifestyle.
'I think, 'diet pills? Really?'' said Duhan. 'If you do it the right way, it's so much easier and it's so much more rewarding.'
Duhan's advice to others is to know what is in all pills you are taking.
'I understand people have to take medications, we all do,' said Duhan. 'But know what those medications can do.'
Dr. Peters suggest telling your health care provider everything you are taking. He says some of his patients just bring in every bottle in one big bag, and his staff members go through them one by one. He also says to throw out old prescriptions, noting they could interact with new prescriptions and other things you are taking. Dr. Peters also notes many supplements and health food products are not controlled by the FDA.
Entities 0 Name: Duhan Count: 11 1 Name: Dr. Peters Count: 7 2 Name: KETV Count: 2 3 Name: FDA Count: 1 4 Name: Omaha Count: 1 5 Name: Rena Duhan Count: 1 6 Name: KETV Duhan Count: 1 7 Name: Dr. Mike Peters Count: 1 8 Name: Methodist Healthy Systems Count: 1 9 Name: Brandi Petersen Count: 1 Related 0 Url: http://ift.tt/UyMB2W Title: How Well Does A Drug Work? Look Beyond The Fine Print Description: Anybody who has ever seen a drug advertisement or talked over the pros and cons of a medicine with a doctor can be forgiven for being confused. Sorting out the risks and benefits of taking a medicine can be complicated even for professionals.
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