ARROW - GABAPENTIN
Gabapentin
What is in this leaflet
This leaflet answers some common questions about ARROW - GABAPENTIN.
It does not contain all the available information. It does not take the
place of talking to your doctor or pharmacist.
All medicines have risks and benefits. Your doctor has weighed the risks of
you taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN against the benefits they expect it will have
for you.
If you have any concerns about taking this medicine, ask your doctor or
pharmacist.
Keep this leaflet with the medicine. You may need to read it again.
What ARROW - GABAPENTIN is used for
ARROW - GABAPENTIN is used to control epilepsy. Epilepsy is a condition
where you have repeated seizures (fits). There are many different types of
seizures, ranging from mild to severe.
ARROW - GABAPENTIN is also used to treat neuropathic pain.
ARROW - GABAPENTIN belongs to a group of medicines called anticonvulsants.
These drugs are thought to work by controlling brain chemicals which send
signals to nerves so that seizures do not happen.
ARROW - GABAPENTIN also has analgesic effects.
Your doctor may prescribe ARROW - GABAPENTIN in addition to your current
therapy when your current treatment is no longer working as well.
Your doctor may have prescribed ARROW - GABAPENTIN for another reason. Ask
your doctor if you have any questions about why ARROW - GABAPENTIN has been
prescribed for you.
There is no evidence that ARROW - GABAPENTIN is addictive.
This medicine is available only with a doctor's prescription.
ARROW - GABAPENTIN is not recommended for use in children under the age of
3 years to control epilepsy, as its safety and effectiveness in that age group
have not been established. Also, the safety and effectiveness of ARROW -
GABAPENTIN for the treatment of neuropathic pain in children under the age of
18 years have not been established.
Before you take ARROW - GABAPENTIN
When you must not take it
Do not take ARROW - GABAPENTIN if you have an allergy to:
- gabapentin, the active ingredient in ARROW - GABAPENTIN or any of the
ingredients listed at the end of this leaflet.
Symptoms of an allergic reaction to ARROW - GABAPENTIN may include:
- shortness of breath, wheezing or difficulty breathing
swelling of the face, lips, tongue or other parts of the body
rash, itching or hives on the skin.
Do not take ARROW - GABAPENTIN after the expiry date (EXP)
printed on the pack.
Do not take ARROW - GABAPENTIN if the packaging is torn or shows signs
of tampering.
If it has expired or is damaged, return it to your pharmacist for
disposal.
If you are not sure whether you should start taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN,
talk to your doctor or pharmacist.
Before you start to take it
Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you have allergies to:
- any other medicines, especially barbiturates or any other anticonvulsant
medicines - any other substances, such as foods, preservatives or dyes.
Tell your doctor if you have or have had any medical conditions, especially
the following:
- kidney problems
- mixed seizure disorders.
Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or intend to become pregnant.
ARROW - GABAPENTIN may affect your developing baby if you take it during
pregnancy. However, it is very important to control your fits while you are
pregnant. If it is necessary for you to take ARROW - GABAPENTIN, your doctor
can help you decide whether or not to take it during pregnancy.
Tell your doctor if you are breast-feeding or plan to breastfeed.
Your doctor will discuss the possible risks and benefits of using ARROW -
GABAPENTIN during breastfeeding.
If you do breastfeed, watch your baby carefully.
If your baby develops a skin rash, becomes sleepy or has unusual symptoms,
don't breastfeed again until you speak to your doctor.
If you have not told your doctor or pharmacist about any of the above,
tell them before you start taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN.
Taking other medicines
Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you are taking any other medicines,
including any that you buy without a prescription from your pharmacy,
supermarket or health food shop.
Some medicines and ARROW - GABAPENTIN may interfere with each other. These
include:
- some medicines used to treat stomach or duodenal ulcers, such as
cimetidine - antacids, medicines used to treat heartburn or reflux
- morphine, a medicine used to treat severe pain.
These medicines may be affected by ARROW - GABAPENTIN, or may affect how
well it works. You may need different amounts of your medicine, or you may
need to take different medicines. Your doctor or pharmacist will advise you.
Your doctor and pharmacist may have more information on medicines to be
careful with or avoid while taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN.
How to take ARROW - GABAPENTIN
How much to take
Your doctor will tell you how many capsules you will need to take each day.
This may depend on your age, your condition and whether or not you are taking
any other medicines.
Your doctor may recommend that you start with a low dose of ARROW -
GABAPENTIN and slowly increase the dose to the lowest amount needed to control
your epilepsy/convulsions or neuropathic pain.
Follow all directions given to you by your doctor carefully.
They may differ from the information contained in this leaflet.
If you do not understand the instructions on the box, ask your doctor or
pharmacist for help.
How to take it
Swallow ARROW - GABAPENTIN whole with a full glass of water.
When to take it
Take ARROW - GABAPENTIN at about the same time each day.
Taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN at the same time each day will have the best effect.
It will also help you remember when to take the capsules.
It does not matter if you take ARROW - GABAPENTIN before or after food.
If you forget to take it
If it is almost time for your next dose (within 4 hours), skip the dose
you missed and take your next dose when you are meant to.
Otherwise, take it as soon as you remember, and then go back to taking
your medicine as you would normally.
Do not take a double dose to make up for the dose that you missed.
This may increase the chance of you getting an unwanted side effect.
If you are not sure what to do, ask your doctor or pharmacist.
If you have trouble remembering to take your medicine, ask your
pharmacist for some hints.
How long to take it
Continue taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN for as long as your doctor tells you
to.
ARROW - GABAPENTIN helps control your condition, but does not cure it.
Therefore you must take your medicine every day, even if you feel well.
Do not stop taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN, or lower the dosage, without
checking with your doctor. Do not let yourself run out of medicine over the
weekend or on holidays.
Stopping ARROW - GABAPENTIN suddenly may cause unwanted effects or make your
condition worse. Your doctor will slowly reduce your dose before you can stop
taking it completely.
If you take too much (overdose)
Immediately telephone your doctor or the New Zealand Poisons Information
Centre (telephone 0800 POISON or 0800 764 766), or go to Accident and
Emergency at your nearest hospital, if you think that you or anyone else may
have taken too much ARROW - GABAPENTIN. Do this even if there are no signs of
discomfort or poisoning.
You may need urgent medical attention.
If you take too much ARROW - GABAPENTIN, you may feel drowsy, weak,
unsteady when walking, have double vision, slurred speech or diarrhoea.
While you are taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN
Things you must do
Tell any other doctors, dentists, and pharmacists who are treating you
that you are taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN.
If you are about to be started on any new medicine, tell your doctor,
dentist or pharmacist that you are taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN.
Before you have any surgery or emergency treatment, tell your doctor or
dentist that you are taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN.
Tell your doctor if you feel ARROW - GABAPENTIN is not helping your
condition.
Your doctor may need to change your medicine.
Tell your doctor if, for any reason, you have not taken ARROW -
GABAPENTIN exactly as prescribed.
Otherwise, your doctor may change your treatment unnecessarily.
If you become pregnant while taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN, tell your
doctor.
If you need to have any medical tests while you are taking ARROW -
GABAPENTIN, tell your doctor.
ARROW - GABAPENTIN may affect the results of some tests.
Be sure to keep all of your doctor's appointments so that your progress
can be checked.
Your doctor will check your progress and may want to take some tests from time
to time. This helps to prevent unwanted side effects.
Things you must not do
Do not give ARROW - GABAPENTIN to anyone else, even if their symptoms
seem similar to yours or they have the same condition as you.
Do not take ARROW - GABAPENTIN to treat any other complaints unless your
doctor tells you to.
Do not stop taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN unless your doctor tells you to.
Things to be careful of
Be careful driving or operating machinery until you know how ARROW -
GABAPENTIN affects you.
As with other anticonvulsant medicines, ARROW - GABAPENTIN may cause
dizziness, light-headedness, tiredness, drowsiness in some people. Make sure
you know how you react to ARROW - GABAPENTIN before you drive a car, operate
machinery, or do anything else that could be dangerous if you are dizzy or
light-headed. If this occurs do not drive. If you drink alcohol, dizziness or
light-headedness may be worse.
Children should not ride a bike, climb trees or do anything else that
could be dangerous if they are feeling drowsy or sleepy.
ARROW - GABAPENTIN may cause drowsiness, dizziness or sleepiness in some
people and affect alertness.
Be careful when drinking alcohol while taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN.
Combining ARROW - GABAPENTIN and alcohol can make you more sleepy, dizzy or
lightheaded. Your doctor may suggest you avoid alcohol while you are being
treated with ARROW - GABAPENTIN.
Side effects
Tell your doctor or pharmacist as soon as possible if you do not feel
well while you are taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN.
ARROW - GABAPENTIN helps most people with epilepsy or neuropathic pain, but
it may have unwanted side effects in a few people. All medicines can have side
effects. Sometimes they are serious, most of the time they are not. You may
need medical treatment if you get some of the side effects. If you are over 65
years of age you may have an increased chance of getting side effects.
Ask your doctor or pharmacist to answer any questions you may have.
If you get any side effects, do not stop taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN
without first talking to your doctor or pharmacist.
Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you notice any of the following and
they worry you:
- dizziness* or light-headedness
- feeling tired or drowsy*
- weakness, unsteadiness when walking, reduced co-ordination or slowed
reactions - mood changes8 such as restlessness, agitation, nervousness, irritability
or excitement - unfriendliness*
- unusually overactive*
- forgetfulness, loss of concentration or confusion
- difficulty speaking
- changes in your weight*
- constipation, diarrhoea
- nausea, vomiting*
- dry mouth
- muscle pain or cramps
- swelling of the hands, ankles and feet
- blurred or double vision, uncontrollable jerky eye movements, difficulty
seeing - runny or blocked nose
- back pain
- tremor
- fever*
- bronchitis*
- sore throat and discomfort when swallowing
- lung infection*
- viral infection*.
These are the more common side effects of ARROW - GABAPENTIN. Mostly these
are mild and short-lived.
The side effects in the above list marked * have been specifically reported
in children taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN.
Tell your doctor immediately or go to Accident and Emergency at your
nearest hospital if you notice any of the following:
- more frequent or more severe seizures (fits)
- sudden signs of allergy such as rash, itching or hives, swelling of the
face, lips, tongue or other parts of the body, shortness of breath, wheezing
or difficulty breathing.
These are very serious side effects. You may need urgent medical attention
or hospitalisation.
All of these side effects are very rare.
Tell your doctor if you notice anything else that is making you feel
unwell.
Other side effects not listed above may happen in some people. Some of these
side effects (for example, changes in thyroid function, structure of bones,
high cholesterol or blood pressure) can only be found when your doctor does
blood tests from time to time to check your progress.
Do not be alarmed by this list of possible side effects.
You may not experience any of them.
After using ARROW - GABAPENTIN
Storage
Keep your capsules in the pack until it is time to take them.
If you take the capsules out of the pack they will not keep well.
Keep your capsules in a cool dry place where the temperature stays below
25°C.
Do not store ARROW - GABAPENTIN or any other medicine in the bathroom or
near a sink.
Do not leave it on a window sill or in the car on hot days.
Heat and dampness can destroy some medicines.
Keep it where children cannot reach it.
A locked cupboard at least one-and-a-half metres above the ground is a good
place to store medicines.
Disposal
If your doctor or pharmacist tells you to stop taking ARROW - GABAPENTIN or
the capsules have passed their expiry date, ask your pharmacist what to do
with any that are left over.
Product description
What it looks like
ARROW - GABAPENTIN comes in 3 strengths of capsules:
- ARROW - GABAPENTIN 100 - white capsule marked with "GA 100" and the
Arrow logo - ARROW - GABAPENTIN 300 - yellow capsule marked with "GA 300" and the
Arrow logo - ARROW - GABAPENTIN 400 - orange capsule marked with "GA 400" and the
Arrow logo.
Each pack contains 100 capsules.
Ingredients
The active ingredient in ARROW - GABAPENTIN is gabapentin.
- each ARROW - GABAPENTIN 100 capsule contains 100 mg of gabapentin
- each ARROW - GABAPENTIN 300 capsule contains 300 mg of gabapentin
- each ARROW - GABAPENTIN 400 capsule contains 400 mg of gabapentin.
The capsules also contain:
- lactose
- purified talc
- maize starch
- gelatin
- titanium dioxide
- iron oxide yellow (300 mg/ 400 mg)
- iron oxide red (400 mg)
- Opacode A-5-15061FD blue printing ink.