Other active ingredient in Benadryl itch gel helps with skeeter syndrome swelling, not camphor
By Joe Graedon, M.S., and Teresa Graedon, Ph.D.
Q. I was fascinated by your article on skeeter syndrome, because I, too, have suffered for weeks with itchy, swollen mosquito bites. What I use to calm a bug bite is camphor. This is the active ingredient in the gel put out by Benadryl and is also an ingredient in Vicks VapoRub.
A. The makers of Extra Strength Benadryl Itch-Stopping Gel list camphor as an “inactive” ingredient. The active ingredient is the topical antihistamine diphenhydramine. Camphor is one of the active ingredients in Vicks VapoRub.
Camphor does have Food and Drug Administration approval as an anti-itch cream, ointment or gel. Another reader shares her success with the same product:
“Bugs love to bite me, and then I itch like crazy. I haven’t found anything better for bites than Benadryl Gel or the generic drugstore equivalent. It doesn’t make you sleepy the way a Benadryl pill does, and it stops the itching immediately.”
Q. My doctor prescribed gabapentin for severe back pain. It affected my vision and caused muddled thinking and loss of concentration and coordination. After I’d been on it for two months, my husband said: “What is going on? You’ve never been this way before.” After 30 years together, he knows me pretty well.
When I talked to the doctor about the side effects, he said he knew about them but didn’t want to scare me off taking it!
I stopped taking gabapentin and got my brain back. Then I started a regimen of targeted stretching and diet changes, along with some chiropractic care. My back has never felt better. To me it seems unethical for a doctor NOT to tell a patient about potential side effects.
A. Many other readers have complained of brain fog or fuzzy thinking when taking gabapentin. We agree that doctors should disclose the most common and the most dangerous side effects when prescribing any drug. They also should lay out a plan for discontinuation.
No one should stop this drug abruptly. The Food and Drug Administration requires this in the official prescribing information: “Adverse reactions following the abrupt discontinuation of gabapentin have also been reported. The most frequently reported reactions were anxiety, insomnia, nausea, pain and sweating.”
If it is necessary to stop this drug, it should be done gradually under medical supervision.
Q. When the assistant in the doctor’s office takes my blood pressure, it hurts. In fact, I have wondered if the pain in itself makes my blood pressure skyrocket. They pump it up again, and it still hurts really, really badly. Does anybody else have this problem?
A. Pain can raise blood pressure. Unfortunately, your experience is not rare. Another reader reports: “The new automatic blood pressure cuffs at the doctors’ office hurt like heck. Suddenly, they said I had high blood pressure and put me on a medication that made me cough.
“I quit that med. When I was at the office several months later, I insisted on manual blood pressure readings. I was not surprised that my blood pressure was back to its usual 116/70. Apparently, pain does raise your blood pressure!”
Blood pressure cuffs come in different sizes. The wrong cuff could cause pain. You should also get time to relax before a blood pressure reading. Your arm should be supported at heart level. Never talk while your blood pressure is being taken.
To learn more about proper blood pressure measurement techniques and reliable home devices, you may wish to read our eGuide to Blood Pressure Solutions. This online resource can be found under the Health eGuides tab at www.PeoplesPharmacy.com. It also offers many practical strategies for controlling high blood pressure.
In their column, Joe and Teresa Graedon answer letters from readers. Write to them in care of King Features, 628 Virginia Drive, Orlando, Fla. 32803, or email them via their website: www.PeoplesPharmacy.com. Their newest book is “Top Screwups Doctors Make and How to Avoid Them.”