Procardia?

MrsH42608

I've been given an Rx for Procardia to control the preterm contractions. I was hoping some of you ladies who have had experience with Procardia could share your experiences with me.

How long were you on it for? Did you still have BH?  How did it work out for you, etc?

TIA!

Temp6313048411121614

I was on it from 28w until 36w.  I still had a TON of BH's.  I'm sure it's just a coincidence, but I actually had fewer contractions when I quit taking it. 

keg

I was on it from about 29 weeks until I delivered at almost 36 weeks (I think).  I know we were debating if I should stop at 35 or 36 weeks and I think we decided on 36 weeks to get through the holidays (I wound up delivering for growth issues, not because I went into labor though).  I can't remember much about contractions though--I'm sure I still had something.  I don't think I had any problems with the procardia other than taking it every 6(?) hours.  However, it wasn't a huge deal because I always woke up every couple of hours overnight anyway. :-)  Good luck!

omalley

I was on it from 32 to 36 weeks.  It definitely helped slow down my contractions.  I took it every 6 hours and I knew when my six hours were up b/c the contractions would increase but then the Procardia would slow them down. 

I was also put on bed rest at 32 weeks when I started the meds so I am sure that helped slow them down too.

royalcrown1

I took procardia every 6 hours from 21 weeks until my scheduled C-section at 34 weeks.  At about 28 weeks, I started having contractions every 3-10 minutes (sometimes 2-3 minutes apart, other times 10 minutes apart).  They never changed my cervix but I usually felt them.  I contracted like that until my scheduled C-section.

Just keep thinking positive!

kaiteedidit

I started taking procardia every 6 hours at 29 weeks, after my first episode of PTL. I went into PTL again, even though I was still on the Procardia at 32 weeks, I was 4cm dilated. Luckily they were able to stop the contractions. I continued taking it until 36 weeks. I delivered my babies at 38 weeks when my water broke. 

It slowed my contractions down but did not completely eliminate them. I could definitely tell at the end of my 6 hours that it was time to take the next dose because I would start having a lot more contractions. The worst part about taking the Procardia was the awful headaches it gave me, but it was worth it to help keep the babies cooking.  

JosiePosy

I've been on it since Thanksgiving weekend, and overall it has worked pretty well. I still get contractions, but much fewer than before.

Now that I'm admitted again (for different reasons), they upped my dosage. It still seems to be doing the trick. I haven't had to go back on the mag yet. I don't really feel my contractions much if at all. Maybe only 2-3 a day that I really feel, but they're not painful so much as uncomfortable.

Good luck!

lea08

I've been on Procardia and bedrest since 27 weeks.  I was still having contractions after taking it every 4 hours but the drugs slowed them down.  Then I had to start taking Terbutaline around 32 weeks as needed.  Now I'm alternating Terbutaline and Procardia every two hours and still having some contractions.  I will be 36 weeks on Saturday so my doctor is taking me off the drugs and bedrest.  I also had headaches from the Procardia when I first started but as I continued taking it I got used to it and now I hardly even notice that I'm on it.  Hopefully, your headaches will go away too.  Good luck!!!

omgtwinsfeb11

Sadly, Procardia didn't work for me at all.  I've tried both 10 and 20 mg at various intervals, but no luck.  Someone else may have mentioned this, but I had some initial side effects.  The Procardia gave me headaches and made me really flushed, but all of that went away within a day or so.    

Trust me, I wish it worked for me because then I wouldn't have to be in this flipping hospital. 

ardilla

I went into PTL at 22w1d.  The doctors started out giving me terbutaline, but it wouldn't control the contractions.  They added Procardia, but it didn't do the trick either.  I wound up on magnesium sulfate for about 5 weeks, along with the Procardia, plus the occasional terb shot.  That controlled my PTL well enough that at about 27w they weaned me off the mag and added terb pills, plus the occasional terb shot.  So I was taking both terb and Procardia orally from that point on. 

At about 29w they released me from the hospital to full bedrest at home on the two oral meds.  I stayed on them until my doctor took me off at 36w0d.  I still had BH, and some contraction issues, but I was able to calm everything down each time by taking an extra terb dose (per doctor's orders).   I delivered the same day I came off the meds. 

I didn't really notice any side effects with Procardia other than some wonky blood pressures.  I had much worse side effects from the mag and terb.