hyoscine patches for drooling - how long before they start to work?

[hazeyjane]

We started ds with his this morning, and I just wondered how long it would take to start working?

Hey, are they taking effect yet? DS was showing an improvement in the first few hours. If they don't kick in soon have a word with the prescriber, sometimes you have to work out how much is needed by trial and error - quarter patch, half patch etc.

It has helped DS lots, although it does tend to wear off on the final day before it's replaced. Good luck!

Hi there my dd used them ages ago-although think we may be needing them again soon.They usually work quite quickly although as herecomestheninkynonk said sometimes you have to get prescriber to juggle the dose a bit.

Thankyou for your replies.

Ok, I thought that maybe it took some time for the chemical to build up in the system, but if they only took a few hours for them to work for your ds, ninkynonk, then I guess that isn't the case. Well he's had them on for 2 days now and I haven't noticed much of a difference, I maybe got through one less bib than is normal. He is only on 1/4 of a patch, but then he is only 14 months old.

Maybe there is a special way to cut them (I think madwomanintheattic said there was), or I am not putting them in the right spot (dr said to put them on the bone behind the ear)?

Hi,
Just a timely reminder that these patches can have the side effect of affecting a child's vision. They dilate the pupil and cause it to not react so well to bright light. This can be difficult for a child in the sunshine or moving between differing light levels. The Drs do not always mention this side effect to parents when they recommend them. If the child already has visual difficulties these patches can compound them.

Thanks, itseasyifunohow, the dr did mention the side effects, but because ds possibly had an episode of potentially choking on pooled saliva, he (and we) thought that until we know more, it would be best to try the patches.

Well I think they are starting to kick in a bit, ds a lot drier today.

Glad things are starting to improve. Just for reference, DS is 18 months and has half a patch every 72hrs. Even then he still wears a bib every day, but at least the cough he had whenever he lies down has gone now. I think they're an aid rather than a cure all!

Hi Hazey i don't think you can cut these patches when my dd had them we had to cover them with some sort of special dressing.

It is ok to cut them for smaller children. If hyoscine patches don't suit a child for any reason, an alternative is oral glycopyrolate which is given 3 or 4 times a day.

Thanks again. I double checked about the size and cutting, and the paed said that, yes it's ok to cut them, and they wouldn't stop the dribble completely, but we could adjust dosage at next meeting if not seeing much of an improvement.

My friend's DS has just started these and she finds that the 24 hours AFTER a change of patch are the worst - he dribbles LOADS more then - but during the 2 days before the next change he's much drier.