Potassium levels

[bobbisue]

  I have been warned that when on spiro you must be careful about your potassium levels I am on cyproterone acetate [androcour] would this be an issue on this medication as well

   bobbisue

[rorgg]

Problem going which way?  Ihave chronically low K, but it wavers between "take one of these horse pills every day" and "eat  banana now and then,"so it's not horrible....

[Sarah.VanDistel]

  I have been warned that when on spiro you must be careful about your potassium levels I am on cyproterone acetate [androcour] would this be an issue on this medication as well

   bobbisue

Hi bobissue!

No, not at all. The way Androcur works is entirely different from Aldactone. Aldactone is a potassium-sparing diuretic (which coincidentally also has antiandrogenic properties) and that's why it's important to keep potassium levels in check. Androcur, on the other hand, is primarily an antiandrogen and progestagen and has no known clinically significant influence on potassium. It has, however, its own set of possible adverse effects, namely liver dysfuntion, so liver tests (among others) must be done regularly.

Peace & Hugs, Sarah

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk

[bobbisue]

      Thank you Sarah I was having a bit of a problem finding information as most of our information here seems to come out of the states and androcur is not available there  I'm sure my doctor will monitor my liver function though this will most likely not be an extremely long term issue as the further I go along this road to transition the more it seems inevitable i will be going the route of full transition including SRS at my next appointment I will be asking for a referral to the first psychiatrist I need to see to get a referal for surgery you have to jump a lot of hoops here but it is wort the effort

   bobbisue

[laurenb]

I wouldn't let the potassium sparing side effect of Spiro put you off too much. Speaking as a vegetarian whose potassium levels were on the high side (around 5) before starting Spiro, I was concerned about it. Turns out that Spiro had little or no impact on my serum K levels and it's been 7 months. Kidney markers all mid-range. Your doctor will monitor it. In my case it's all about keeping water and sodium intake up. Spiro also has had the beneficial side effect of making my pre-hypertensive blood pressure levels nonexistent. I don't want to be on it forever but as a drug it's been benign.

[KayXo]

Androcur, on the other hand, is primarily an antiandrogen and progestagen and has no known clinically significant influence on potassium. It has, however, its own set of possible adverse effects, namely liver dysfuntion, so liver tests (among others) must be done regularly.

Also, risk of meningioma/prolactinoma (although very rarely reported, 9 cases of the former in TS women, 5 with latter), risk of depression/extreme fatigue, risk of blood clots (although very rare), risk of weight gain at the waist (due to glucocorticoid effects) and excess weight gain in general (due to progestogenic action). Some studies have shown it can adversely impact cardiovascular health (reduce HDL, reduce estradiol's vasodilatory effects in arteries) and that in certain populations, it may negatively impact adrenal function. Cyproterone acetate tends to increase prolactin levels and can sometimes lead to hyperprolactinemia.

Usually, the higher the dose and the longer it's taken, the greater the chance of most of these things occurring. A recent study showed that in transsexual women , a lower dose can be just as effective. Being under the supervision of a doctor helps.