I've had multiple stents placed in both my LAD and RCA, and have had three heart attacks, and have fought agressive Cardiac Artery Disease. It appears I'm winning that battle, I've lost a great deal of weight (my BMI is now 24.5) and my cholesterol level is perfect according to my doctor, and I'm no longer injecting or taking meds for diabetes. I exercise daily. However, I have had angina pains when exercising, and control the pain with nitro as well as simply backing off the exercise level. A recent trip to a very humid and hot climate outside the country put me in the hospital for tests, and it was determined that my angina is not caused by blockages but by my weakened heart muscle, it simply doesn't get the oxygen it needs. My doctor put me on the drug Ranexa. I was less than enthusiastic, I'm taking Coreg, Imdur, HCTZ, a statin, fish oil, and Plavix already. I didn't fill the prescription, but my wife did and tricked me to the pharmacy where I had to get it (she's got my number). The doc told me that this drug had trouble getting approved because it can screw up QTc interval but felt it was worth the risk as my symptoms of Angina were pretty severe. I already have a big ST depression, so I was nervous.
I'm shocked how much better I feel. My exercise capacity has increased, I have no angina symptoms at all, and for the first time in several years I'm not constantly out of breath when mowing the yard, working out at the gym, etc. I've been on the drug for a month and I swear I'm feeling better day by day. I've had a few side effects but one expects that, and nothing severe, the bottom line is I'm feeling better than I've felt for several years.
Has anyone else had experience with Ranexa?