Gabapentina

About gabapentin

Gabapentin belongs to a group of medicines known as anti-epileptic medicines, although it is prescribed for the treatment of several different conditions. You may have been prescribed it for the treatment of partial seizures, which are a type of epilepsia. A seizure is a short episode of symptoms which is caused by a burst of abnormal electrical activity in the brain. With a partial seizure, the burst of electrical activity stays in one part of the brain. Therefore, you tend to have localised or 'focal' symptoms. Gabapentin is used to control the symptoms of seizures and works by reducing the abnormal electrical activity in the brain. Exactly how it does this is not fully understood.

Gabapentin is also prescribed to treat certain types of long-lasting pain caused by damage to nerves. This type of pain, called dor neuropática, can be caused by a number of different diseases. These include diabetes (where it is called diabetic neuropathy) and herpes zoster (where it is called neuralgia pós-herpética).

Although gabapentin is only licensed for use in epilepsy and neuropathic pain, it is also prescribed to help to prevent attacks of migraine. If you have been given it for this reason then you should speak with your doctor if you have any questions about your treatment.

Some medicines are not suitable for people with certain conditions, and sometimes a medicine may only be used if extra care is taken. For these reasons, before you start taking gabapentin it is important that your doctor knows:

• Se você está grávida, tentando ter um bebê ou amamentando.

• Se você tiver algum problema com o funcionamento dos seus rins.

• Se você tem níveis elevados de açúcar no sangue (diabetes mellitus).

• If you have a breathing problem such as asthma or COPD.

• If you have ever had a mental health problem known as psychosis.

• If you are taking any other medicines. This includes any medicines you are taking which are available to buy without a prescription, as well as herbal and complementary medicines. This is particularly important if you are taking an opioid painkilling medicine such as morphine.

• Se você já teve uma reação alérgica a um medicamento.

• Before starting this treatment, read the manufacturer's printed information leaflet from inside the pack. It will give you more information about gabapentin and will provide you with a full list of the side-effects which you may experience from taking it.

• Take gabapentin exactly as your doctor tells you to. There are several different strengths of gabapentin tablets and capsules available, and you could be prescribed more than one strength.

• You will be advised to take a low dose when you first start taking gabapentin, and then to increase the dose over a few days. This is to allow your body to get used to it. Most people take three doses a day once they are on a regular maintenance dose. Your doctor will explain all this to you, and the dosing directions will be printed on the label of the pack. If you are still unsure about how to take your doses, ask your pharmacist to advise you.

• You can take gabapentin before or after food. Swallow the tablets/capsules with a drink of water. If you have been supplied with oral liquid medicine, see the instructions below for using the oral dosing syringe.

• Once you are taking a regular amount of gabapentin, try to take your doses at the same times each day. This will help you avoid missing doses.

• If you do forget to take a dose, take one as soon as you remember. Try to take the correct number of doses each day, but do not take two doses at the same time.

• If you need to take an antacid or indigestion remedy, do not take it during the two hours before or the two hours after you take gabapentin. This is because antacids reduce the amount of gabapentin that your body absorbs.

Instructions for using the dosing syringe with Gabapentin Rosemont Oral Solution

1. Remove the bottle cap, and push the syringe adaptor into the top of the open bottle.

2. Insira a seringa no adaptador.

3. Vire o frasco (com a seringa conectada a ele) de cabeça para baixo.

4. Puxe suavemente o êmbolo da seringa para que a solução preencha a seringa até a marca que corresponde à sua dose.

5. Vire a garrafa para a posição correta novamente e remova a seringa da garrafa.

6. Put the tip of the syringe into your mouth, and gently push the plunger so that the liquid is released into your mouth.

7. Replace the bottle cap. Wash the syringe with water after each use.

• Tente manter suas consultas regulares com seu médico. Isso é para que seu médico possa verificar seu progresso.

• When you first start a new treatment for epilepsy there may be a change in the number or type of seizures you experience. Your doctor will advise you about this. If you are a woman and want to have a family, make sure that you discuss this with your doctor antes you become pregnant. This is so that you can be given advice about your treatment from a specialist.

• Pessoas com epilepsia devem parar de dirigir. Seu médico irá aconselhá-lo sobre quando poderá ser possível começar a dirigir novamente. Isso geralmente será após um ano sem convulsões.

• A small number of people have developed mood changes or thoughts about suicide whilst being treated with anti-epileptics. If this happens to you, you must tell your doctor about it straightaway.

• Se você comprar qualquer medicamento, sempre verifique com um farmacêutico se eles são adequados para tomar com seus outros medicamentos.

• You must take gabapentin regularly every day. Stopping treatment suddenly can cause problems. If it becomes necessary for the treatment to stop, your doctor will want you to reduce your dose over a few days.

Along with their useful effects, most medicines can cause unwanted side-effects although not everyone experiences them. The table below contains some of the most common ones associated with gabapentin. You will find a full list in the manufacturer's information leaflet supplied with your medicine. The unwanted effects often improve as your body adjusts to the new medicine, but speak with your doctor or pharmacist if any of the following continue or become troublesome.

Se você sentir quaisquer outros sintomas que acha que podem ser devido ao medicamento, fale com seu médico ou farmacêutico para mais conselhos.

• Mantenha todos os medicamentos fora do alcance e da vista das crianças.

• Armazene em local fresco e seco, longe de calor e luz diretos.

• Once a bottle of Gabapentin Rosemont Oral Solution has been opened it will keep for one month. Do not use it after this time, and make sure you have a fresh supply.