Sovaldi and ribavirin side effects

[Dawnmh]

I am on my 12th day of Sovaldi and riba for GT 2.  Yesterday I experienced blurred vision and dizziness for a few seconds.  I wrote my Dr.'s nurse and she said these were not sides of these drugs, although right on the riba bottle it does say "may cause dizziness".  I went to the ER at the prompting of this nurse and my BP was quite high.  I am already on bp meds.  Is this a normal side effect of either of these 2 drugs?  I am concerned and I am normally very active and am now afraid to do certain activities because of that experience.  I had no warning and I really need to know why my BP was so high.  It was well controlled prior to starting these meds. And the ER where I live was a waste of my time. Thanks to anyone that could help me here.

[KimInTheForest]

I am on my 12th day of Sovaldi and riba for GT 2.  Yesterday I experienced blurred vision and dizziness for a few seconds.  I wrote my Dr.'s nurse and she said these were not sides of these drugs, although right on the riba bottle it does say "may cause dizziness".  I went to the ER at the prompting of this nurse and my BP was quite high.  I am already on bp meds.  Is this a normal side effect of either of these 2 drugs?  I am concerned and I am normally very active and am now afraid to do certain activities because of that experience.  I had no warning and I really need to know why my BP was so high.  It was well controlled prior to starting these meds. And the ER where I live was a waste of my time. Thanks to anyone that could help me here.

Hi Dawnmh. Sorry to hear about your problems. I know there have been a number of people on the forums who have reported a sharp increase in blood pressure (like 30 points) while on Harvoni, and that the increase goes away when treatment is over. I have not heard anyone mention this with Sovaldi and riba. Doesn't mean it isn't possible though.

Have you checked your potassium levels on your labs? If anything is washing potassium out of your body (like for example drinking a lot more water than usual and peeing more), that could maybe result in an increase in blood pressure. Potassium is very important in the regulation of blood pressure. And many of us on treatment are deliberately drinking much more water than usual.

Potassium level is usually shown with the rest of your chemistry panel including liver enzymes. At least on my labs that's where it is. It is a good thing to monitor your potassium while on treatment.

Here are some foods high in potassium:

beans
dark leafy greens
potatoes (with skin)
sweet potatoes
squash
dried fruit
yogurt
tuna (fresh, frozen or tinned)
salmon/halibut/mackerel/turbot
avocados
mushrooms
bananas
tomato sauce
orange juice

good luck!
kim

[Dawnmh]

Thanks Kim and I do try to eat really well when I feel good enough.  I will try to up the potassium and see if that helps.  I really do think it's the Sovaldi though.  I take it later than the riba in the morning.  Maybe I shouldn't.  But I hate the stimulant effect these drugs give.  Dawn

[KimInTheForest]

Hi Dawn. Here is a link to a long thread where various forum members are discussing the increase in blood pressure they experienced while on Harvoni:

http://forums.hepmag.com/index.php?topic=1744

Harvoni is Sovaldi+ledipasvir. So it is possible that Sovaldi may also affect some people in that way. With the Harvoni people, I think most of them reported that their bp returned to its normal level after they stopped Harvoni.

Good luck!
kim