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i've been on dilantin for over 10 yrs now and every single time they would check my levels the doctors would come back and tell me i needed to take my meds , i had to take my meds , why wasnt i taking my meds etc ... well i was Exactly like i was supposed to but to no avail they would just call me a liar and move on ! well anyhow i've recently found another new neuro that i LOVE , and when she said she was going to check my d levels i thought oh lord here we go , well i explained the whole thing to her & she said well have you ever had a protein deficiency test ( no never even heard of it ) so she said she wanted to do that as well ... well they called today & said that my dilantin levels had come back really low of course , but they were actually right where they should be , she said i had an albumin protein deficiency , and the doc would go over it at my next visit ( but thats not for a month and a half ) so can somebody tell me what that means ? the info i've found so far has been very confusing .... anyone know more ? thanks in advance
 
I googled albumin protein deficiency and here's what I found.
Albumin is an umbrella term for a type of protein which is water soluble. Numerous types of albumin can be found all over the natural world, and two of the most familiar examples of albumin can be found in egg whites and in human blood. Albumins are an important class of protein, and they are vitally important to health and well being for many organisms. Many plants and animals contain or secrete albumin.

A protein classified as albumin is globular, meaning that it is soluble in water. Globular proteins also have a roughly spherical structure. When combined with water, albumin and other globular proteins form a colloid, a solution which appears homogeneous although it actually contains multiple substances. The other type of protein, fibrous protein, such as that found in muscles, is not water soluble, and it has a different basic structure.

Within the human body, albumin is an important component of life. Albumin in the human body transports essential fatty acids from adipose tissue, otherwise known as fat, to muscle tissue. It also contributes to the regulation of osmosis, helping to transport hormones, drugs, and other substances through the blood. An albumin deficiency can lead to medical issues. A doctor may request a blood albumin test to learn more about a patient's medical condition.
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-albumin.htm
 
Albumin protein deficiency can be caused by malnutrition or malabsorption (as from Crohn's Disease), by chronic diseases like hepatitis or kidney disease, or by autoimmune diseases like lupus or rheumatoid arthritis. Any of those sound like they apply to you?

An albumin protein deficiency will affect the apparent blood levels of Dilantin, because Dilantin attaches itself to the albumin protein in your blood plasma. If your blood protein levels are low, then the Dilantin can appear to be low too. So the docs need to take that into account when calculating your Dilantin levels.
 
Albumin protein deficiency can be caused by malnutrition or malabsorption (as from Crohn's Disease), by chronic diseases like hepatitis or kidney disease, or by autoimmune diseases like lupus or rheumatoid arthritis. Any of those sound like they apply to you?

An albumin protein deficiency will affect the apparent blood levels of Dilantin, because Dilantin attaches itself to the albumin protein in your blood plasma. If your blood protein levels are low, then the Dilantin can appear to be low too. So the docs need to take that into account when calculating your Dilantin levels.
as far as i know none of that applies to me , besides E i have hypothyroidism , and my vitamin d is chronically low .... and on the note of dilantin levels once she accounted for that they were right , so at least theres that , do you know how they get the albumin levels back to normal or do they just need to know what they are to get my dilantin levels right ? thanks for the info in plain english
 
Your Dilantin levels are fine -- the neurologist just needs to keep in mind the albumin levels when looking at your results. Regarding your albumin levels: Generally speaking, low albumin = poor health, so you want to get your levels up if possible. Hypothyroidism is also a cause of protein deficiency, so that's probably the culprit. Improving your treatment for that should help with the protein levels.
 
Your Dilantin levels are fine -- the neurologist just needs to keep in mind the albumin levels when looking at your results. Regarding your albumin levels: Generally speaking, low albumin = poor health, so you want to get your levels up if possible. Hypothyroidism is also a cause of protein deficiency, so that's probably the culprit. Improving your treatment for that should help with the protein levels.
hopefully that will work , i guess i'll wait till i see my neuro again to find out how low the albumin was & see where i go from there . Thanks again !
 
This has been a very interesting thread.

I too am on dilantin, have been for 40+ years.

I was told I am B-12 defic., however I have notice that I feel much better when I eat eggs.
My Dilantin levels have always been in the therapeutic range except when I went toxic on it due to losing 39 lbs.

I had CBC, I'm wondering if this would have shown up in that test.
 
Something that I discovered many years ago with Dilantin is that when you are on it the medication for long periods the body can become immune.

Example, I started small doses of Dilantin as a young child (18 months) because during that period of time (late 1960s) it was the safest thing. Eventually I needed to be weened from it and onto another. Medications work different as each person has a different body chemistry.

My point is to pay close attention to every side effect you experience and take note in a monthly log.
 
Something that I discovered many years ago with Dilantin is that when you are on it the medication for long periods the body can become immune.

Example, I started small doses of Dilantin as a young child (18 months) because during that period of time (late 1960s) it was the safest thing. Eventually I needed to be weened from it and onto another. Medications work different as each person has a different body chemistry.

My point is to pay close attention to every side effect you experience and take note in a monthly log.
thanks suebear , it seems like it's still working for me , but it's kind of hard to tell how much it's doing because i've almost always been on something else at the same time as dilantin , but the doc seems to think it's still working ... as far as side effects i dont know where to begin it seemed kinda like when i was first diagnosed with epilepsy i began having loads of other problems but i was a teen and didnt know any better so now i couldnt even venture a guess as to whats a side effect of meds , what due to E itself and whats caused by my other medical problems , but i think i finally found a good neuro recently so hopefully i'll be getting more answers in the months to come
 
thanks suebear , it seems like it's still working for me , but it's kind of hard to tell how much it's doing because i've almost always been on something else at the same time as dilantin , but the doc seems to think it's still working ... as far as side effects i dont know where to begin it seemed kinda like when i was first diagnosed with epilepsy i began having loads of other problems but i was a teen and didnt know any better so now i couldnt even venture a guess as to whats a side effect of meds , what due to E itself and whats caused by my other medical problems , but i think i finally found a good neuro recently so hopefully i'll be getting more answers in the months to come

Glad that I was able to provide a thought that could help. I realize that it's frustrating. All the medication that I've been on over the years, it has taken me some time to figure out what is doing what but something I started doing is if I notice something is constantly happening, I make a note of the time periods in the log along with a question next to it so the next time I go in for a visit to the epitologist he will see the side effect or effects including my question. Usually what happens is we discuss how I am feeling and he offers his own reasoning why the side effects could be happening so we will come to a reasoning one way or another; it's a win-win situation for the both of us. =)
 
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