Katherine, Alumni Mentor
@katemn
@katemn
Posts: 1501
Joined: Nov 21, 2011
(MAC/MAI) MYCOBACTERIUM AVIUM COMPLEX PULMONARY DISEASE/BRONCHIECTASIS
I am new to Mayo online .. I was hoping to find others with .. MYCOBACTERIUM AVIUM COMPLEX PULMONARY DISEASE (MAC/MAI) and/or BRONCHIECTASIS. I found only 1 thread on mycobacterium accidently under the catagory “Lungs”. I’m hoping by starting a subject matter directly related to MYCOBACTERIUM AVIUM COMPLEX PULMONARY DISEASE (MAC/MAI) I may find others out there!
I was diagnosed by a sputum culture August 2007 (but the culture result was accidentally misfiled until 2008!) with MYCOBACTERIUM AVIUM COMPLEX PULMONARY DISEASE (MAC/MAI) and BRONCHIECTASIS. I am now on 5 antibiotics. Working with Dr. Timothy Aksamit at Rochester Mayo Clinic .. he is a saint to have put up with me this long! I was terrified of the treatment . started the first antibiotic September 3, 2011 … am now on all 5 antibiotics for 18 mos to 2 years. Am delighted at the very bearable side effects!
I wrote on the 1 thread I found: If you google NON-TUBERCULOUS MYCOBACTERIUM AVIUM COMPLEX PULMONARY DISEASE (MAC/MAI) you will learn a LOT about the disease. But PLEASE do NOT get scared about all the things you read .. that is what I did and nearly refused to do the treatment until after a 2nd Micomacterium was discovered! Educate yourself for “due diligence” .. but take it all with a grain of salt .. you are NOT necessarily going to have all the terrible side effects of the antibiotics! Good luck to you!
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January 2017 Update
One of our great Connect Members .. @Paula_MAC2007 .. had a wonderfully helpful idea that I wanted to share! Her idea .. as you read through the pages to gather information on our shared disease of MAC you can develop a personal “file cabinet” for future reference without the necessity of reading all the pages again!
If you have the “MS Word” program on your computer:
- Document Title Example: Mayo Clinic Connect MAI/MAC Information
- Then develop different categories that make sense to you such as: Heath Aids .. Videos .. Healthy Living .. Positive Thinking .. Baseline Testing and Regular Testing .. Antibiotics ..
Tips for - As you read the pages .. copy/paste/save things of interest into that MS Word document under your preferred categories for future reference.
Then as you want to refer back to something in the future .. YEAH! You have now created your own personal “file cabinet” on MAC/MAI! Go to it!
KateMN
beatitnow
@beatitnow
@beatitnow
Posts: 50
Joined: Feb 25, 2017
@katemn and anyone else interested….Thank you again for your advice, encouragement, and general reminders!….I need that every so often. Okay, so today is my big day…I start my first med today in one hour…my doctor wanted me to start with clarithromycin. Then I will start the next two in the next two weeks as you and my doctor had mentioned. Any advice on the order of the second two drugs I will introduce…I will be taking rifampin and ethambutol in addition to the clarithromycin this week. I was wondering if anyone else has a preference as to which drug to introduce second.
I am going to take your advice, Kate, also and do Rifampin first thing in the morning at 6:00 am with a probiotic before that by 5:30am. I plan to take Clarithromycin and Ethambutol at 9:30 (I am going to try on an empty stomach like you mentioned), take vitamins about 3:30pm, and a probiotic or two before bed. If anyone has any comments or recommendations with my “first draft game plan” I am open to hear any of it! I realize this is my “wish list” but we will see how my body reacts, and I will adjust as needed. Thank you for any and all help or advice! Amy 🙂
Liked by Katherine, Alumni Mentor
chinasmom
@chinasmom
@chinasmom
Posts: 97
Joined: Sep 11, 2016
@pamelasc1 and @katemn and EVERYONE WELCOME FOR COMMENTS, Thank you for all the information. I have saved it…thank you, thank you. Just to clarify….you took ALL your pills in one sitting before you went to bed? I am taking pills 3 days a week, so for two drugs 2 pills a day, the other is actually 12 pills a day (my pharmacy did not carry the higher mg dosage for the ethambutol. When I talked to the Walgreens pharmicist, she suggested taking the rifampin on its own a minimum of 2 hours before or after other drugs and on an empty stomach. What do you think?
IF ANYONE would like to jump in and tell me how they successfully took their medicine please do. I will “try my best” to look back at previous reviews before tomorrow, but I am starting to get a little stressed because I was thinking about starting the drugs tomorrow, Monday….I have to see how comfortable I feel. (I had been planning on T, Th, Sa), but then I thought maybe I should just do M,W,F’s. Ughh….this is nerve wrecking! :/ Thank you for your help.
Before i started i had blood work and a very thorough eye exam. I needed new glasses so i purchased and waited for them to come in so i would be aware of any visual changes. I started on Fri night. So my schedule was never comfortable in my head . Fri, sun, tue, just doesn’t roll off the tongue. Make it as easy as possible for you to remember. Now Im on daily and take them all ethembutol, zithromisin, and rifampin at 7pm to avoid nausea. I have alot of other meds so i have them all competing for time slots. Get 2 seven day containers at any store by the parmacy area and keep only your antibiotics in them. They will help you to know when to reorder because you don’t want to run out. The pharmacy might have to order them so call ahead to make sure they have time to do so. Let the pharmasist know everything you take , vitamins and supplements, so they can watch for any drug interactions. Also get your hearing checked before you start your meds for a baseline. My doctor didn’t order this and I have been complaining at every visit for 3 months very loud ringing and now he is forced to do the right thing and sending me to a ear, nose, and throat specialist that is supposed to be familiar with ottotoxic drugs. Give a sputum afb, culture and sensitivity, blood tests for liver and kidney function, eyes and ears monthly. Also, get calendars one for your purse and a bigger one for the fridge for 2 years if possible it helps to keep track of all your appointments and test. I keep a notebook for any side effects or questions i need to ask the doctor. I hope this helps to make things easier for you.
Becky
Liked by Katherine, Alumni Mentor
beatitnow
@beatitnow
@beatitnow
Posts: 50
Joined: Feb 25, 2017
@pamelasc1 and @katemn and EVERYONE WELCOME FOR COMMENTS, Thank you for all the information. I have saved it…thank you, thank you. Just to clarify….you took ALL your pills in one sitting before you went to bed? I am taking pills 3 days a week, so for two drugs 2 pills a day, the other is actually 12 pills a day (my pharmacy did not carry the higher mg dosage for the ethambutol. When I talked to the Walgreens pharmicist, she suggested taking the rifampin on its own a minimum of 2 hours before or after other drugs and on an empty stomach. What do you think?
IF ANYONE would like to jump in and tell me how they successfully took their medicine please do. I will “try my best” to look back at previous reviews before tomorrow, but I am starting to get a little stressed because I was thinking about starting the drugs tomorrow, Monday….I have to see how comfortable I feel. (I had been planning on T, Th, Sa), but then I thought maybe I should just do M,W,F’s. Ughh….this is nerve wrecking! :/ Thank you for your help.
@chinasmom…Thank you. Yes, I have done all of the above, but my doctor did not order a hearing test. I will look into this. Do you know which drug causes this?
Liked by Katherine, Alumni Mentor
irene5
@irene5
@irene5
Posts: 395
Joined: Oct 03, 2016
@katemn and anyone else interested….Thank you again for your advice, encouragement, and general reminders!….I need that every so often. Okay, so today is my big day…I start my first med today in one hour…my doctor wanted me to start with clarithromycin. Then I will start the next two in the next two weeks as you and my doctor had mentioned. Any advice on the order of the second two drugs I will introduce…I will be taking rifampin and ethambutol in addition to the clarithromycin this week. I was wondering if anyone else has a preference as to which drug to introduce second.
I am going to take your advice, Kate, also and do Rifampin first thing in the morning at 6:00 am with a probiotic before that by 5:30am. I plan to take Clarithromycin and Ethambutol at 9:30 (I am going to try on an empty stomach like you mentioned), take vitamins about 3:30pm, and a probiotic or two before bed. If anyone has any comments or recommendations with my “first draft game plan” I am open to hear any of it! I realize this is my “wish list” but we will see how my body reacts, and I will adjust as needed. Thank you for any and all help or advice! Amy 🙂
I think Katherine’s game plan is the best Amy. The only difference for me was the Ethambutol I had to take two tablets in the a.m. and three before bed. The rifampin was also at night, but like Katherine said you know your body best. You will need to listen to it and it’s infinite wisdom. And call your doctor when you need to! Mine told me to call him any time day or night. Try not to worry. And I also know that is easier said than done. Some of us tend to have that as our middle names. Faith would be a better one! Irene
Liked by Katherine, Alumni Mentor
chinasmom
@chinasmom
@chinasmom
Posts: 97
Joined: Sep 11, 2016
@pamelasc1 and @katemn and EVERYONE WELCOME FOR COMMENTS, Thank you for all the information. I have saved it…thank you, thank you. Just to clarify….you took ALL your pills in one sitting before you went to bed? I am taking pills 3 days a week, so for two drugs 2 pills a day, the other is actually 12 pills a day (my pharmacy did not carry the higher mg dosage for the ethambutol. When I talked to the Walgreens pharmicist, she suggested taking the rifampin on its own a minimum of 2 hours before or after other drugs and on an empty stomach. What do you think?
IF ANYONE would like to jump in and tell me how they successfully took their medicine please do. I will “try my best” to look back at previous reviews before tomorrow, but I am starting to get a little stressed because I was thinking about starting the drugs tomorrow, Monday….I have to see how comfortable I feel. (I had been planning on T, Th, Sa), but then I thought maybe I should just do M,W,F’s. Ughh….this is nerve wrecking! :/ Thank you for your help.
Amy, I had check to see which antibiotics were affecting hearing azithromycin, clarithramycin, and other aminoglycosides. Everyones body is different so we have different side effects and sometimes we get lucky and have no side effects.
Here’s hopeing you have none!
Have a great day!
Becky
Liked by Katherine, Alumni Mentor
Katherine, Alumni Mentor
@katemn
@katemn
Posts: 1501
Joined: Nov 21, 2011
@pamelasc1 and @katemn and EVERYONE WELCOME FOR COMMENTS, Thank you for all the information. I have saved it…thank you, thank you. Just to clarify….you took ALL your pills in one sitting before you went to bed? I am taking pills 3 days a week, so for two drugs 2 pills a day, the other is actually 12 pills a day (my pharmacy did not carry the higher mg dosage for the ethambutol. When I talked to the Walgreens pharmicist, she suggested taking the rifampin on its own a minimum of 2 hours before or after other drugs and on an empty stomach. What do you think?
IF ANYONE would like to jump in and tell me how they successfully took their medicine please do. I will “try my best” to look back at previous reviews before tomorrow, but I am starting to get a little stressed because I was thinking about starting the drugs tomorrow, Monday….I have to see how comfortable I feel. (I had been planning on T, Th, Sa), but then I thought maybe I should just do M,W,F’s. Ughh….this is nerve wrecking! :/ Thank you for your help.
@beatitnow, Amy, and @chinasmom, Becky, thank you for jumping in .. really good advice! In terms of the testing needed .. from my File Cabinet
TESTING-baseline and periodic
1. Ethambutol – color vision and visual acuity: GET BASELINE PRIOR TO STARTING .. THEN QUARTERLY
2. Azithromycin – hearing and balance: GET BASELINE PRIOR TO STARTING .. THEN QUARTERLY
3. Rifampin – CBD (blood counts), liver and kidney function tests: GET BASELINE PRIOR TO STARTING .. THEN MONTHLY
OR TESTING:
BASELINE: HEARING AND VISION (Vision: Additional testing for eyes are use of the “eye chart” with letters read at 20 feet, and a red-green color book to distinguish changes in the ability to visualize colors.)
MONTHLY: BLOOD COUNTS, LIVER AND KIDNEY FUNCTION TESTS, SPUTUM CULTURES
QUARTERLY: HEARING and VISION
NOTE: Ethambutol – color vision and visual acuity – monthly ( Additional testing for eyes are use of the “eye chart” with letters read at 20 feet, and a red-green color book to distinguish changes in the ability to visualize colors.)
**** Lab tests:
CBC- Complete Blood Count (CBC)
ALT- Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT) LIVER
alk phosphatase- Alkaline Phosphatase – LIVER
serum creatinine-. Creatinine and Creatinine Clearance-SERUM CREATININE – KIDNEY
TESTING RECOMMENDED FOR VITAMIN LEVELS 1. Ask for your VD-3 level to be checked .. they can get too low. Speak to your Doctor first .. but I took: NATURE MADE brand 5,000 IU of Vitamin D-3 (NOT VD) *From our member @tdrell Terri, my Primary Dr at NJH doubled the VD I take to 4000 units a day… my lab test showed I was at 50 and she said she likes to see it at 100.
2. Ask for your B-12 level to be checked .. they can get too low
3. Personally I always purchase the brand Nature Made vitamins for it’s quality .. ‘ Nature Made is the first brand to earn the USP Verified Mark on one of its products, an independent certification for quality and purity.’
Good to print out the above and show to your Pulmonologist if necessary. You are your own best advocate! Hugs! Katherine
Katherine, Alumni Mentor
@katemn
@katemn
Posts: 1501
Joined: Nov 21, 2011
@katemn and anyone else interested….Thank you again for your advice, encouragement, and general reminders!….I need that every so often. Okay, so today is my big day…I start my first med today in one hour…my doctor wanted me to start with clarithromycin. Then I will start the next two in the next two weeks as you and my doctor had mentioned. Any advice on the order of the second two drugs I will introduce…I will be taking rifampin and ethambutol in addition to the clarithromycin this week. I was wondering if anyone else has a preference as to which drug to introduce second.
I am going to take your advice, Kate, also and do Rifampin first thing in the morning at 6:00 am with a probiotic before that by 5:30am. I plan to take Clarithromycin and Ethambutol at 9:30 (I am going to try on an empty stomach like you mentioned), take vitamins about 3:30pm, and a probiotic or two before bed. If anyone has any comments or recommendations with my “first draft game plan” I am open to hear any of it! I realize this is my “wish list” but we will see how my body reacts, and I will adjust as needed. Thank you for any and all help or advice! Amy 🙂
@beatitnow, Amy I do NOT want to put concerns in your head .. BUT for me Rifampin was the tougher one for me so I would start it last. My only side effect was sleep disturbance and kind of “restless leg” at night which ended when the med ended .. EVERYONE is different so do NOT think my experience will be YOUR experience .. but that is why I took Rifampin first thing in the morning. Anyone else jump in with their thoughts?? Please do! Hugs to all! Katherine
Katherine, Alumni Mentor
@katemn
@katemn
Posts: 1501
Joined: Nov 21, 2011
@katemn and anyone else interested….Thank you again for your advice, encouragement, and general reminders!….I need that every so often. Okay, so today is my big day…I start my first med today in one hour…my doctor wanted me to start with clarithromycin. Then I will start the next two in the next two weeks as you and my doctor had mentioned. Any advice on the order of the second two drugs I will introduce…I will be taking rifampin and ethambutol in addition to the clarithromycin this week. I was wondering if anyone else has a preference as to which drug to introduce second.
I am going to take your advice, Kate, also and do Rifampin first thing in the morning at 6:00 am with a probiotic before that by 5:30am. I plan to take Clarithromycin and Ethambutol at 9:30 (I am going to try on an empty stomach like you mentioned), take vitamins about 3:30pm, and a probiotic or two before bed. If anyone has any comments or recommendations with my “first draft game plan” I am open to hear any of it! I realize this is my “wish list” but we will see how my body reacts, and I will adjust as needed. Thank you for any and all help or advice! Amy 🙂
@irene5, Man alive Irene .. if you had a doctor who told you to “call him any time day or night” .. you are one blessed gal! WOW! I would go out on a limb and say you might be the ONLY one on the Forum who got THAT message! Lucky gal! So happy for you! I think the rest of us kind of have to slug it along .. AND I SO agree with your statement “you know your body best. You will need to listen to it and it’s infinite wisdom” Think I will add that to my File Cabinet .. love it! Good advice .. thank you for jumping in .. we are one great community .. that is why we are so strong .. love it! Hugs to all! Katherine
Liked by ilgrp4e
beatitnow
@beatitnow
@beatitnow
Posts: 50
Joined: Feb 25, 2017
@pamelasc1 and @katemn and EVERYONE WELCOME FOR COMMENTS, Thank you for all the information. I have saved it…thank you, thank you. Just to clarify….you took ALL your pills in one sitting before you went to bed? I am taking pills 3 days a week, so for two drugs 2 pills a day, the other is actually 12 pills a day (my pharmacy did not carry the higher mg dosage for the ethambutol. When I talked to the Walgreens pharmicist, she suggested taking the rifampin on its own a minimum of 2 hours before or after other drugs and on an empty stomach. What do you think?
IF ANYONE would like to jump in and tell me how they successfully took their medicine please do. I will “try my best” to look back at previous reviews before tomorrow, but I am starting to get a little stressed because I was thinking about starting the drugs tomorrow, Monday….I have to see how comfortable I feel. (I had been planning on T, Th, Sa), but then I thought maybe I should just do M,W,F’s. Ughh….this is nerve wrecking! :/ Thank you for your help.
@katemn….this is great! I love your “File Cabinet” information! 🙂 Thank you and everyone else for their support right now and to come! 🙂 Amy
Liked by Katherine, Alumni Mentor
ilgrp4e
@ilgrp4e
@ilgrp4e
Posts: 13
Joined: Mar 09, 2017
So my mom just got her bronchiactisis and myobacterium avium. But she also take many meds for her rheumatoid arthritis. She just started taking the antibiotics for the myobacterium but is getting fever up to 103, nausea, diarhea which is making her incontinent, uncontrollable chills, sweats, rapid heart beat and shortness of breath. All side effects since she started taking pills. Had to go to er and the doctors said nothing’s wrong w her. I’m sure this are from the meds. Waiting on her infectious disease doctor to call her back. Has anyone had to stop the antibiotics from having these side effects? Is there other kind to help treat? I’m freaking out for my poor mom. I need all the help or advice I can have. We are in Chicago so if anyone knows of anything please tell.
Thanks
Thx.. I am new here and just started to figure out to check on the notifications. 😉
Yes I stopped her meds and no more side effects. Going to Dr. In the am.
Liked by Katherine, Alumni Mentor
Katherine, Alumni Mentor
@katemn
@katemn
Posts: 1501
Joined: Nov 21, 2011
So my mom just got her bronchiactisis and myobacterium avium. But she also take many meds for her rheumatoid arthritis. She just started taking the antibiotics for the myobacterium but is getting fever up to 103, nausea, diarhea which is making her incontinent, uncontrollable chills, sweats, rapid heart beat and shortness of breath. All side effects since she started taking pills. Had to go to er and the doctors said nothing’s wrong w her. I’m sure this are from the meds. Waiting on her infectious disease doctor to call her back. Has anyone had to stop the antibiotics from having these side effects? Is there other kind to help treat? I’m freaking out for my poor mom. I need all the help or advice I can have. We are in Chicago so if anyone knows of anything please tell.
Thanks
@ilgrp4e .. Carmen, SO glad you stopped the meds and your Mom is better! Tomorrow be your Mom’s BEST ADVOCATE! Take what you have learned here and stand up for her! Print everything out so you have it in your hands! There is NO good reason he told you just to take her to the ER! YOU are in the driver’s seat! You tell HIM what/how you want the meds scheduled! Remember YOU are the EMPLOYER .. HE is the employee! You are taking good care of your Mom .. you just continue to do so! Good luck! Hugs to you both! Katherine
Katherine, Alumni Mentor
@katemn
@katemn
Posts: 1501
Joined: Nov 21, 2011
So my mom just got her bronchiactisis and myobacterium avium. But she also take many meds for her rheumatoid arthritis. She just started taking the antibiotics for the myobacterium but is getting fever up to 103, nausea, diarhea which is making her incontinent, uncontrollable chills, sweats, rapid heart beat and shortness of breath. All side effects since she started taking pills. Had to go to er and the doctors said nothing’s wrong w her. I’m sure this are from the meds. Waiting on her infectious disease doctor to call her back. Has anyone had to stop the antibiotics from having these side effects? Is there other kind to help treat? I’m freaking out for my poor mom. I need all the help or advice I can have. We are in Chicago so if anyone knows of anything please tell.
Thanks
@ilgrp4e .. Carmen .. when you get an email .. just go to the bottom and hit “View & Reply” .. it takes a few seconds to cycle .. but it will then take you to the proper post. Hugs! Katherine
21042
@21042
@21042
Posts: 16
Joined: Feb 13, 2017
Joined: Feb 13, 2017 Posted by @21042, 13 minutes ago
I talked to my pulmonologist on Tues. and i brought up probiotics to her. She said these three antibiotics do not attack the good bacteria in the gut, that they only work for nothing but mac. Did your doctor recommend them? Im so confused. She said they would do nothing. I have been so sick today. An hour after i took my meds last night i vomited it all up and have been sick since. The first day i took all the meds at 9:00 pm. and went to bed. I did fine. I ate at 6:00 pm. Ive never had anything make me so ill. Im so nauseated i cant eat, but i know i cant continue not eating. Also my dr. gave me Ondansetron 4mg. for nausea. Doesnt help a bit.
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@21042 .. Kathi I think you can already tell I am a pretty straight shooter .. I tell it like it is .. so here goes. Your doctor is NUTS .. AND poorly informed!! You can tell her that Dr. Timothy Aksamit at Mayo Clinic, Rochester MN .. a worldwide respected EXPERT on MAC told ME to start on probiotics the FIRST time he started me on antibiotics! Plus if you read through the pages of our Forum you will read how much probiotics are helping our other members. Kathi, do what feels right for you and your body .. BUT I just wonder how many MAC patients your Pulmonologists has treated in the past 12 months?? Sorry, but she just doesn’t seem up to speed enough to help you to your best self.
Please re read the above message from Posted by @pamelasc1, 3 days ago .. might that help you? I feel so bad for you .. BUT do NOT give up .. it is so tough in the beginning but it DOES get better .. just put one foot in front in front of the other. We will all be here for you. I am answering you an the Main MAC Forum .. I want you to get more support from more of our wonderful members! I am sending you a BIG Hug! Katherine
Hi, this is Kathi again. Just thought i would check in since i havent posted for a while. I am doing great on these meds. By following Pamala’s schedule of taking my meds between 9-10 at night-all at one time, i am no longer sick all the time. Im even back singing in the choir and my energy level is improving daily. I was losing weight (which i didnt need to do, but a 94 year old choir member told me to get Carnation Instant Breakfast and mix a scoop of ice cream in it daily. She said when she was in the hospital in St. Louis, she was told to do that. Its been good because i get more of my daily vitamins and minerals. I use skim milk, so i get my daily calcium. I go for a CT scan tomorrow to see how i’m doing. My doctor will be happy that i no longer am sick from the meds. With all the encouragement on this forum, i kept going and it DID get better. Thanks , (21042) Kathi
REPLY
chinasmom
@chinasmom
@chinasmom
Posts: 97
Joined: Sep 11, 2016
So my mom just got her bronchiactisis and myobacterium avium. But she also take many meds for her rheumatoid arthritis. She just started taking the antibiotics for the myobacterium but is getting fever up to 103, nausea, diarhea which is making her incontinent, uncontrollable chills, sweats, rapid heart beat and shortness of breath. All side effects since she started taking pills. Had to go to er and the doctors said nothing’s wrong w her. I’m sure this are from the meds. Waiting on her infectious disease doctor to call her back. Has anyone had to stop the antibiotics from having these side effects? Is there other kind to help treat? I’m freaking out for my poor mom. I need all the help or advice I can have. We are in Chicago so if anyone knows of anything please tell.
Thanks
Carmen, i was so scared for your mom and relieved this morning that she’s alright. Take good care of you and your mom. Becky
Liked by Katherine, Alumni Mentor
@katemn
@beatitnow, Hi Amy, TRUST ME! The absolute WORST thing you can do is begin to be stressed about this process .. just go with the flow .. “trust the process” .. put your energy into what you can control .. and let go of what you CANNOT control! You can control gathering the best information possible from all of us .. BUT knowing each of us have different bodies .. different body chemistries .. ways our bodies will react. YOU will just have to go with the flow .. see how YOUR body reacts .. TRUST your body .. ADJUST to how your body is reacting .. TRUST your body .. WORK with your body. Know that your body is your friend .. know that if you take care of your body .. your body can take care of you in the future! So for now .. do NOT try to control the outcome .. the outcome will take care of itself! Trust the process .. trust yourself .. trust us .. we have been through it and have come out on the out side .. you will also!
**Below is what worked for me .. but keep in mind .. Basically everyone experiments with what med schedule works best for them:
1. PROBIOTIC: take probiotic half hour before breakfast on an empty stomach (when on meds I also took a 2nd probiotic in the evening on an empty stomach)
2. RIFAMPIN: Take this medicine on an empty stomach .. OR either 1 hour before or 2 hours after food NOTE: take 4 hours after vitamins: as minerals and most other supplements weaken effect of meds! (Absorption of rifampin is reduced by about 30% when the drug is ingested with food. Be aware it can cause: Reddish discoloration of Stool or Urine etc.) FOR ME Rifampin caused sleep disturbance so I tried to take it FIRST THING in the morning!
3. ETHAMBUTOL AND AZITHROMYCIN: BEST with an empty stomach! .. BUT either 1 hour before, or two hours after meals! (taking BOTH at one time gives “greater punch!” (NOTE: take 4 hours after vitamins: as minerals and most other supplements weaken effect of meds!) * take with a LIGHT snack at most
Hope the above helps you .. this worked for me. Hugs! Katherine