Tag: what is fioricet

What You Have to Know Before You Take Fioricet ?

What is Fioricet and How to Use it ?

This combination medication is used to treat tension headaches. Acetaminophen helps to decrease the pain from the headache. Caffeine helps increase the effects of acetaminophen. Butalbital is a sedative that helps to decrease anxiety and cause sleepiness and relaxation.

How to Use Fioricet ?

Take this medication by mouth with or without food as directed by your doctor, usually every 4 hours as needed.

If you are using the liquid form of this medication, carefully measure the dose using a special measuring device/spoon. Do not use a household spoon because you may not get the correct dose.

The dosage is based on your medical condition, age, and response to treatment. This medication works best if it is used as the first signs of a headache occur. If you wait until the headache has worsened, the medication may not work as well.

If you suddenly stop using this medication, you may have withdrawal symptoms (such as nausea/vomiting, mental/mood changes, seizures). To help prevent withdrawal, your doctor may lower your dose slowly. Withdrawal is more likely if you have used this medication for a long time or in high doses. Tell your doctor or pharmacist right away if you have withdrawal.

Though it helps many people, this medication may sometimes cause addiction. This risk may be higher if you have a substance use disorder (such as overuse of or addiction to drugs/alcohol). Take this medication exactly as prescribed to lower the risk of addiction. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more details.

Tell your doctor if you notice increased use of this medication, a worsening of headaches, an increase in the number of headaches, the medication not working as well, or use of this medication for more than 2 headache episodes a week. Do not take more than recommended. Your doctor may need to change your medication and/or add a separate medication to prevent the headaches.

What You have to Know Before You Take Fioricet ?

If you have liver disease, kidney disease, heart disease, or you are drinking alcohol, please donot take fioricet. If you are taking other pain killer than contains acetaminophen, please donot take fioricet;

If you have porphyria, or if you have recently used alcohol, sedatives, tranquilizers, or other narcotic medications. Please donot take fioricet.

Do not take Fioricet if you have taken an MAO inhibitor in the past 14 days. A dangerous drug interaction could occur. MAO inhibitors include isocarboxazid, linezolid, phenelzine, rasagiline, selegiline, and tranylcypromine.

If you are pregnant, or you are breast feeding, please do not order fioricet online. Go to your street doctors and they may find the best solutions for your headache. If they prescribe you fioricet, you can order online.

Take Fioricet Generic exactly as directed by your doctor. If you do not understand these directions, ask your pharmacist, nurse, or doctor to explain them to you.

The max dosage is six tablets per day. Never exceed six tablets per day because fioricet contain tylenol (Acetaminophen ), overdose acetaminophen is the most dangerous thing in the world even worse than you addictive to alcohol. Because acetaminophen overdose will seriously damage your kidney and liver. This kind of damage cannot be recovered.

You can take fioricet with water or liquid milk. You can take fioricet with food if you have stomach problems. Never take fioricet with coffee or tea, never take fioricet with some flower drink.

Fioricet is the best pain reliever for tension headache if you take it as soon as the pain begins. If you get warning signs of a migraine, take this medicine as soon as you are sure that the migraine is coming. This may even stop the head pain from occurring. Lying down in a quiet, dark room for a while after taking the medicine also helps to relieve head pain.

What is Fioricet and What is the Benefits of Fioricet ?

Fioricet contains a combination of acetaminophen, butalbital, and caffeine. Acetaminophen is a pain reliever and fever reducer.

Butalbital is in a group of drugs called barbiturates. It relaxes muscle contractions involved in a tension headache.

Caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant. It relaxes muscle contractions in blood vessels to improve blood flow.

Fioricet is used to treat tension headaches that are caused by muscle contractions.

Fioricet® (Butalbital, Acetaminophen, and Caffeine Tablets USP) is supplied in tablet form for oral administration.

Each tablet contains the following active ingredients:
butalbital USP . . . . . . . . . . . .50 mg
acetaminophen USP . . . . . . 325 mg
caffeine USP . . . . . . . . . . . . .40 mg

Inactive Ingredients: crospovidone, FD&C Blue #1, magnesium stearate, microcrystalline cellulose, povidone, pregelatinized starch, and stearic acid.

Butalbital (5-allyl-5-isobutylbarbituric acid), is a short to intermediate-acting barbiturate. It has the following structural formula:

 

Butalbital structural formula illustration

 

C11H16N2O3          Mol. wt. 224.26

Acetaminophen (4´-hydroxyacetanilide), is a non-opiate, non-salicylateanalgesic and antipyretic. It has the following structural formula:

 

Acetaminophen structural formula illustration

 

C8H9NO2              Mol. wt. 151.17

Caffeine (1,3,7-trimethylxanthine), is a central nervous system stimulant. It has the following structural formula:

 

Caffeine structural formula illustration

 

C8H10N4O2          Mol. wt. 194.19

Fioricet can cause side effects that may impair your thinking or reactions. Be careful if you drive or do anything that requires you to be awake and alert.

Avoid drinking alcohol. It may increase your risk of liver damage while taking acetaminophen.

Ask a doctor or pharmacist before using any other cold, allergy, pain, or sleep medication. Acetaminophen (sometimes abbreviated as APAP) is contained in many combination medicines. Taking certain products together can cause you to get too much acetaminophen which can lead to a fatal overdose. Check the label to see if a medicine contains acetaminophen or APAP.

While you are taking Fioricet, avoid taking diet pills, caffeine pills, or other stimulants (such as ADHD medications) without your doctor’s advice.

Fioricet (butalbital, acetaminophen and caffeine) ® (Butalbital,Acetaminophen, and Caffeine Tablets USP) is indicated for the relief of the symptom complex of tension (or muscle contraction) headache.

Evidence supporting the efficacy and safety of this combination product in the treatment of multiple recurrent headaches is unavailable. Caution in this regard is required because butalbital is habit-forming and potentially abusable.

Why is Fioricet used to treat migraine?

Fioricet is an older medication that used to frequently be prescribed to treat migraine symptoms. However, there is not enough evidence that shows it’s effective for migraine attacks, especially when compared to safer products.

Although Fioricet has been used for many years for migraine, it’s not approved for this use, and there are greater risks  than benefits with this medication.

Fioricet may be an option if other migraine treatment options have not worked. Your doctor will just want to monitor you closely to avoid side effects.

It’s prescribed to help relieve immediate headache symptoms, but not to prevent migraine attacks.

How does Fioricet work?

The acetaminophen in Fioricet is a pain reliever, the caffeine works as a stimulant to increase the acetaminophen’s effectiveness, and the butalbital is a sedative that decreases anxiety while causing relaxation and sleepiness. These actions are believed to ease migraine symptoms, but there is limited evidence that barbituates ease migraine symptoms.

What are the possible side effects of Fioricet?

The most common side effects from Fioricet include:

  • Drowsiness
  • Upset stomach
  • Vomiting
  • Stomach pain
  • Depression
  • Lightheadedness
  • Confusion

The following side effects could be signs of allergy or more serious complications and should be reported to health provider immediately:

  • Skin rash
  • Itching
  • Difficulty breathing

This is not an exhaustive list of all potential side effects of Fioricet. For more information, consult your doctor or healthcare provider. Patients should talk to their doctor about what to expect with treatment with Fioricet. If you notice any new or worsening side effects, contact your doctor or healthcare provider immediately.

Things to note about Fioricet

Fioricet can be habit-forming, so you should use extreme caution if you decide to take it. Additionally, some people who take barbituates or opioids for extended periods can experience rebound headaches, which can increase in severity. These are also known as MOH, or medication overuse headaches.1

Barbituates can cause drowsiness, and their effect can be increased by alcohol use. It is important not to drive or use heavy machinery until you know how this drug affects you.2

Before taking Fioricet, tell your doctor if you:

  • Are allergic to any ingredients in the medication
  • Are taking blood thinners, antidepressants, antihistamines, or other sedatives like sleeping pills or tranquilizers.
  • Are taking pain medications. Many over-the-counter pain relievers contain acetaminophen, and too much of this drug can be harmful.
  • Have ever had liver disease, porphyria, or depression
  • Are pregnant, plan to become pregnant, or are breastfeeding2

You should begin no medication or supplement without first checking with your health care provider and should let them know of any other prescriptions, OTCs, and herbals you are taking to ensure there are no interactions.

What is the most important information I should know about Fioricet (Acetaminophen, Butalbital, And Caffeine)?

Do not use this medicine if you have taken an MAO inhibitor in the past 14 days. A dangerous drug interaction could occur. MAO inhibitors include isocarboxazid, linezolid, phenelzine, rasagiline, selegiline, and tranylcypromine.

You should not use acetaminophen, butalbital, and caffeine if you are allergic to it, if you have porphyria, or if you have recently used alcohol, sedatives, tranquilizers, or other narcotic medications.

To make sure acetaminophen, butalbital, and caffeine is safe for you, tell your doctor if you have:

  • liver disease, cirrhosis, a history of alcoholism or drug addiction, or if you drink more than 3 alcoholic beverages per day;
  • kidney disease;
  • asthma, sleep apnea, or other breathing disorder;
  • stomach ulcer or bleeding;
  • a history of skin rash caused by any medication;
  • a history of mental illness or suicidal thoughts; or
  • if you use medicine to prevent blood clots.

It is not known whether this medicine will harm an unborn baby. If you use butalbital while you are pregnant, your baby could become dependent on the drug. This can cause life-threatening withdrawal symptoms in the baby after it is born. Babies born dependent on habit-forming medicine may need medical treatment for several weeks. Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant.

This medicine can pass into breast milk and may harm a nursing baby. Tell your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby.