Muscle Weakness and Eliquis - How to diagnose/test for cause?

Statins are also known to make people have sore muscles. Are you also on a statin?

The only way to see if apixaban is the culprit is to stop it. Except that it's risky if you have a CHA2DS2-VASc score higher than about 2.0. That's for a cardiac arrhythmia like atrial fibrillation. If you have other comorbidities that increase your stroke risk, then you need another metric, but your doctor has you on apixaban because he/she has figured it out and you are too high a risk. Still, you're in the driver's seat and can stop apixaban on your own if you feel you can incur the risk personally for a few days to see if stopping the apixaban also stops the pain. You doctor would ask you to at least substitute it with aspirin to help manage the pesky risk. Maybe consult your physician?

@gloaming To stop and see what happens is the logical reaction, but for me the side effects off were even worse, truly a 10 in pain, but little my little are bettering. Evidently not every body has the same reaction. I have a feeling age, dose and loose muscles are part of it. For me there were other factors that were most likely the cause of the clots, so after six months the medication was stopped with the advice that if I had a very swollen, painful leg to go to the ER. Knowledge that for some these side effects is helpful, even more so that little by little one's body works through them. For those for whom it would be dangerous to simply stop, perhaps switching to another blood thinner that did not have the basic formula of Eliquis. Great to have a place to ponder and perhaps help create solutions.

anyone have leg pains while on eliquis?

Right on it does cause muscle weekness

@gloaming thanks for your response. I do not take any statins. I have been a dancer and yoga teacher for most of my life and feeling like my muscles aren’t there for me is unnerving and painful, many joints going out of alignment with any quick movements, or bending forward without holding on to something. Something’s wrong….

Same. Report of muscle weakness in lower extremities Met with blank stare of cardiologist.

@devotion
I think I may be in same group. Could conversation.
Thanks

I had a very serious drug reaction to Eliquest. To start with my joints were aching but it was ignored by my Doctor's nurse even when I complained. In fact, she told me that joint pain was not on her list of side effects, so I continued that drug. I only took Eliquest for 2 months and it really wreaked havoc on my body. After my ablation, I became very nauseous, with no appetite, constipation & diarrhea plus the joint pain got so bad I could hardly get out of bed. I lost 13 lbs in the second month that I took it. I asked for help from 2 ERs & 2 Urgent Cares. Shands Hospital kept me over night and found that I had a serious problems with inflammation. My enzymes were way off in my heart, liver and kidney. They treated me with IV fluids and antibiotics. I QUIT the Eliquest and immediately improved. My problem remains that my joints all over are better but still aching! I blame Eliquest and I am wondering if they ever will return to normal? I am now taking physical therapy for my very painful right knee but the joint pain is also in my neck, shoulder, hip, both knees. Any suggestions?

I am the person who started this post discussion. Today I saw a physical medicine doctor/orthopedist, and was describing both muscle weakness and neuropathy as potential side effects of Eliquis that I am experiencing and concerned about, and her immediate reaction was dismissive. She said, "oh those side effects are very rare.", implying that I did not have that happening in my body. Thanks to all of you on this chat, I immediately responded, "well, I am on a chat group through the Mayo Clinic and there are other people who also have these symptoms. " She didn't say anything else. I am more angry now than I was then - just looking for relief and frustrated that there is no way to test if Eliquis is causing these effects other than stopping it.... but my cardiologist then wants me to take a different blood thinner, either Xarelto or Warfarin. From my research, Xarelto has many of the same side effects, so taking it wouldn't necessarily show that Eliquis was the cause. My potential problems with Warfarin are that many of the foods that one is recommended to not eat or eat in regulated portions are central to my diet- leafy greens, garlic, ginger, chamomile tea. I'd rather "eat my way" to thinner blood ,, but there has been little or no testing of using foods and herbs to thin the blood: turmeric, garlic, ginger, vitamin E., - so the doctors say they can't recommend a dosage. I guess I am just venting here, because I feel uncertain how I will proceed. Thanks for being here.

Sorry to hear of your reaction but so glad I read this. I have been taking Eliquis for 4 months and it’s causing real fatigue but I’ve also had sudden joint pain all over for 2 months especially in the morning. Hands and feet are so painful. It improves with movement. Elbows, knees, ankles to a lesser extent. I was wondering if it was related to taking Eliquis because nothing else has changed in my life. Funny, they still have trouble getting blood out of me at the lab. No change in bleeding if I get a cut. Hope it all clears up for you.