IT HAS ALOT OF SIDE EFFECTS FOR MOST THAT TRY IT I HAVE BEEN ON RIBAVARIN SINCE JUNE OF THIS YEAR, I\'VE HAD GOOD DAYS AND I\'VE HAD WORST.BUT THE DR SAYS THAT IT IS WORKING MY VIRUS HAS DROPPED 11,0000 IN 3 MTHS. BUT HE RECENTLY TOOK ME OFF DUE TO THE FACT THAT MY BLOOD WORK HAD BOTTOMED OUT, MY IMMUNE SYSTEM, IRON LETS JUST SAY THE WHOLE 9 YARDS WAS DOWN.IVE LOST 98#\'S IN 5 MTHS. THE METALLIC TASTE IN YOUR MOUTH IS TERRIBLE,YOU WILL NOT HAVE A APPETITE.BUT YOU MUST MAKE YOURSELF DRINK INSURE OR EAT YOGURT OR ICE CREAM, JELLO, PUDDING.I TRY VERY HARD TO FORCE MYSELF TO EAT.IT ALSO MAKES YOU VERY TIRED, I HAVE LITTLE OR NO ENERGY. EVEN IF I WANTED TO COOK MYSELF SOMETHING TO EAT I CANT.BUT THE DR SAYS THE MORE SIDE EFFECTS THE BETTER,SO I JUST KEEP HOLDING ON AND PRAYING FOR GOD TO GIVE ME STRENGH.MY HAIR IS FALLING OUT ALSO,BUT IM STILL HOLDING ON.

the ribavirin pretty much sucked for me, the interferon was great, but the other made me sick sick sick, lost lots of weight,slept a lot, ice cream or almost anything with sugar in it was ok, didn\'t think about ensure! tried slim fast and the protein made me sick, some veggies etc. lost my hair, thought about shaving it but....i\'m female , had to shake my sheets every morning, shower was the worst, the drain was always stopped up.....I scratched my self raw and bleed from it too, benadryl helped alittle ! liked hot tea and coffee, and lots and lots and lots of water, the more water you drink the better you feel, the most i drank was 2 gallons in a day but was in the bathroom alnite so beware! Brain fog was another thing, I sometimes couldn\'t think of how to spell simple words, I had also alot of thrush, and had to do weekly blood work. well have to go to work stay positive ok!

GOSH YALL GOT THE SIDE EFFECTS DOWN PAT,ESPECIALLY DAPPLES ALL I CAN EAT IS ICE CREAM, JELLO, YOGURT, PUDDING. MY POOR MOUTH IS SO RAW THAT I DARE NOT PUT ANYTHING BUT THESE ITEMS IN IT.MY DR HAS BEEN FUSSING BECAUSE HE SAYS THAT I HAVE LOST 98#S IN 5 MTHS. ITS NOT THAT I DONT WANT TO EAT I JUST CANT, IF I SMELL IT COOKING I GET SICK.I LOVE TO COOK BUT I CANT DO IT ANYMORE.I HAVE NO ENERGY WHAT SO EVER,I CANT DO NOTHING BUT SLEEP.

GOSH YALL GOT THE SIDE EFFECTS DOWN PAT,ESPECIALLY DAPPLES ALL I CAN EAT IS ICE CREAM, JELLO, YOGURT, PUDDING. MY POOR MOUTH IS SO RAW THAT I DARE NOT PUT ANYTHING BUT THESE ITEMS IN IT.MY DR HAS BEEN FUSSING BECAUSE HE SAYS THAT I HAVE LOST 98#S IN 5 MTHS. ITS NOT THAT I DONT WANT TO EAT I JUST CANT, IF I SMELL IT COOKING I GET SICK.I LOVE TO COOK BUT I CANT DO IT ANYMORE.I HAVE NO ENERGY WHAT SO EVER,I CANT DO NOTHING BUT SLEEP.

Riba oh my, i got some stories, Riba rash i have had and still get it from time to time, metal taste , teeth taste yuck, far as the appetite my dr gave me some pills, I found that to quench my thirst to work was white grapes, i drink lots of juices, nothing with acid was told to stay away from acid, also caffine, and chocolate, when i started tx in july 2006 i weighed 132 , when i complted tx aug 2006 i weighed 99, now that i'm a non responder , i did gain a few lbs back, so when i started treatment of Infergen Nove 2006 i weighed about 114, now i go between 111 to 107 , bounces back and forth, not a fun thing but you gotta make the best out of it , and when you dont eat you get very very weak, i know when i have dropped a pund or 2, my tail bone hurts when i'm sitting , no cushion (LOL ) eat eat eat, eat when you aren't hungry eat small portions,,

I did a 48 week treatment regiment for HCV. I eradicated it by taking Pegasys (interferon) and Copegus (ribavarin). At 12 weeks of tx, my viral load was undetected per my PCR/RNA and still remains undetected. I would have to say this tx worked for me.

Specifically, the ribavarin worked as it is the drug that destroys the virus. It was not without side effects. I kept a skin disorder the whole time I took it. It started out a a mild rash that itched incessantly but with involuntary scratching, I managed to get some of the "bumps" infected and they ended up looking like boils. I went to a dermatologist at the referral of my hepatologist and was prescribed a steroid cream for it. The cream healed the lesions and a lotion that is put on in the shower seemed to prevent outbreaks of the rash. Hope this helps.

Very moving. I enjoyed it immensely. It made me smile and think. Thank you for sharing this.

It's kind of what came first the interferon or ribs that caused side effects . That's a hard question, the ribs worked on the old blood like a vampire lol, the sides I had were tolerated by me very well, I lived and learned every day

it's my pleasure to share them, I wrote the poems when I was going thru an intense time of my life ... I recently discovered how I can put music and visuals to them .... as a way of giving to myself I thought I'd put them all to videos .... if I can open a window of hope for others, maybe I can ultimate do it for myself ... peace, Liz

what are we looking at here Linda? -- the link is just the ottobock home page.

I have an Ottobock flex foot on my prosthetic right now, and it seems like the toes have good stability, but also aloow it to "break" when your are walking. Does that make sense? The new leg that I get this week has the twin toe system that a foot cover goes over. When I was walking in this it was very stiff in the toe area, and I think this will take some getting used to. One thing I did notice with the stiff toes, is that it made me walk with the same stride, and my heel strike felt better too.. I did like that. Not so loosey goosey. Again, did any of that make sense? Anyway, is this what you are refering too here?

SORRY FOR NOT SAYING WHAT THIS SITE IS. I THOUGHT THE SITE SHOWED REAL ADVANCE ON ANYTHING I HAD SEEN IN A PROSTHETIC. I AM NOT UP ON ANYTHING NEW, AND THOUGHT SOMEONE MAKING A DECISION MIGHT FIND THIS INTERESTING....SORRY FOR THE CONFUSION

Ill let ya know when I start tx!! good post

Hi! I wanted to bump this for the newbies! This is a really cool little video about what tests are done what they mean for hep c. The guy is a little monotone! Hope it helps!