Pimozide Tablets USP 1mg
Pimozide Tablets USP 2mg
Pimozide Tablets USP 4mg
Read all of this leaflet carefully before you start using this medicine because it contains
important information for you.
– Keep this leaflet. You may need to read it again.
– If you have any further questions, ask your doctor, pharmacist or nurse.
– This medicine has been prescribed for you only. Do not pass it on to others. It may harm them,
even if their signs of illness are the same as yours.
– If you get any side effects, talk to your doctor, pharmacist or nurse. This includes any possible
side effects not listed in this leaflet. See section 4.
What is in this leaflet
1. What Pimozide is and what it is used for
2. What you need to know before you take Pimozide
3. How to take Pimozide
4. Possible side effects
5. How to store Pimozide
6. Contents of the pack and other information
1. What Pimozide is and what it is used for
The name of your medicine is Pimozide 4 mg tablets. They are called ?Pimozide tablets? or just ?Pimozide? in this leaflet.
Pimozide tablets contain a medicine called pimozide. This belongs to a group of medicines called ?neuroleptics?.
Pimozide tablets are used for illnesses affecting the way you think, feel or behave. These illnesses may make you:
? Feel confused
? See, hear or feel things that are not there (hallucinations)
? Believe things that are not true (delusions)
? Feel unusually suspicious (paranoia)
Important – it may take some time before you feel the full effect of the medicine but it is important
that you carry on taking it for as long as your doctor has told you.
2. What you need to know before you take Pimozide
Do not take Pimozide:
– if you are allergic to pimozide or any of the other ingredients of this medicine (listed in section 6).
– You are allergic to similar medicines
– You have ever had an irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia) or unusually slow heartbeat
(bradycardia)
– You have recently had a heart attack or have heart failure
– You suffer from a heart problem known as ?QT-prolongation?. This problem sometimes runs in
families and can only be confirmed by an electrocardiogram (ECG). An ECG measures the
the electrical activity of your heart
– You have lower than normal levels of minerals (electrolytes) in your blood. Your doctor will advise you
– You have Parkinson?s disease
– You are suffering from depression
– You are less aware of things around you or your reactions become slower
Do not take this medicine if any of the above applies to you. If you are not sure, talk to your doctor or
pharmacist before using Pimozide tablets.
Warnings and precautions
Talk to your doctor or pharmacist before using Pimozide
– if you have a heart problem or anyone in your close family has died suddenly of heart problems
– if you have liver or kidney problems
– if you have epilepsy or any other problem that can cause fits (convulsions)
– if you have problems with your thyroid gland
– if you have a non-cancerous tumour of the adrenal gland (phaeochromocytoma)
– if you have a history of blood clots or someone else in your family has (as medicines like this
have been associated with the formation of blood clots)
– if you exercise hard, are going somewhere very hot or don?t drink enough
You may need to be more closely monitored, and the amount of Pimozide tablets you take may have to be altered.
Medical check-ups
Your doctor may want to take an electrocardiogram (ECG) before or during your treatment with Pimozide
tablets. The ECG measures the electrical activity of your heart.
Blood tests
Your doctor may want to check the levels of minerals (electrolytes) in your blood.
Other medicines and Pimozide
Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you are taking, have recently taken or might take any other
medicines.
In particular, do not take this medicine and tell your doctor if you are taking any of the following
medicines:
– for fungal infections such as ketoconazole, itraconazole, miconazole, fluconazole
– certain antibiotics such as erythromycin, clarithromycin, azithromycin, troleandomycin
– antiviral protease inhibitors such as indinavir, ritonavir, saquinavir
– for the heart such as quinidine, disopyramide, procainamide, amiodarone, sotalol, bretylium
– for allergies such as terfenadine
– for some digestive problems such as cisapride
– for treating or preventing malaria such as mefloquine, quinine
– for depression such as nefazodone, amitriptyline, maprotiline, sertraline, paroxetine, citalopram,
escitalopram
– for mental illness such as chlorpromazine, thioridazine, sertindole
– for weight control such as sibutramine
Do not start taking Pimozide tablets and tell your doctor if you are taking any of the above.
Tell your doctor before taking any of the following medicines.
– Anxiety or help you to sleep (tranquillisers)
– Severe pain (strong painkillers)
– Parkinson’s disease
– Epilepsy or fits (convulsions)
– Sickness such as metoclopramide
– High blood pressure such as calcium channel blockers and diuretics
Tell your doctor before taking any of the above. They may need to alter the dose of Pimozide tablets or
your other medicine.
Pimozide with food, drink and alcohol
Do not drink grapefruit juice while taking Pimozide tablets.
Drinking alcohol while you are taking Pimozide tablets might make you feel drowsy and less alert. This
means you should be careful how much alcohol you drink.
Pregnancy, breast-feeding and fertility
If you are pregnant or breast-feeding, think you may be pregnant or are planning to have a baby, ask
your doctor or pharmacist for advice before taking this medicine.
The following symptoms may occur in newborn babies of mothers that have used Pimozide in the last
trimester (last three months of their pregnancy): shaking, muscle stiffness and/or weakness, sleepiness,
agitation, breathing problems and difficulty in feeding. If your baby develops any of these symptoms
you may need to contact your doctor.
You may still be able to take Pimozide tablets if your doctor thinks you need to.
Do not take this medicine if you are breast-feeding. This is because small amounts may pass into the mother?s milk.
Ask your doctor or pharmacist for advice before taking any medicine if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.
Driving and using machines
This medicine may affect you being able to drive. Do not drive or use any tools or machines without
discussing this with your doctor first.
3. How to take Pimozide
Always take this medicine exactly as your doctor has told you. Check with your doctor or pharmacist
if you are not sure.
You can take Pimozide tablets with or without food. Swallow the tablets with some water.
How much should you take
Your doctor will tell you how many Pimozide tablets to take and for how long. Your doctor will adjust the
dose to suit you. It is very important you take the correct amount.
Your dose will depend on:
– Your age
– How serious your symptoms are
– How you have reacted to similar medicines in the past
Use in adults and children over 12 years old
– Your starting dose will normally be between 2 mg and 4 mg. You will take this once a day
– Your doctor may want to gradually increase this dose to find the dose which suits you best. The
the maximum amount that you should take in one day is 20 mg
– Your doctor may reduce the dose of Pimozide tablets when your symptoms begin to improve
Use in children under 12 years old
Not recommended.
Use in elderly people
– Elderly people are normally started on a lower dose
– The amount of Pimozide tablets you take will then be adjusted until the doctor finds the dose that
suits you best
The tablet can be divided into equal doses.
If you stop taking Pimozide tablets
Take the medicine for as long as your doctor has told you. It may be some time before you feel the full
effect of the medicine.
Unless your doctor tells you otherwise, you should stop taking Pimozide tablets gradually. Stopping
treatment suddenly may cause effects such as:
? Feeling sick (nausea) or being sick (vomiting)
? Difficulty sleeping
? Sweating
Always follow your doctor?s instructions carefully.
If you take more Pimozide than you should
If you take more Pimozide tablets than you were told to or if someone else has taken any Pimozide tablets, talk
to a doctor or go to the nearest hospital casualty department straight away.
If you forget to take Pimozide
– If you forget to take a dose, take your next dose as usual. Then keep taking your medicine as
your doctor has told you
– Do not take a double dose to make up for a forgotten dose
If you have any further questions on the use of this medicine, ask your doctor or pharmacist.
4. Possible side effects
Like all medicines, this medicine can cause side effects, although not everybody gets them.
Stop using Pimozide tablets and tell your doctor straight away if you notice or suspect any of the
following. You may need urgent medical treatment.
– Rash, hives (also known as nettle rash or urticaria), severe irritation of your skin. These may be
signs of a severe allergic reaction. This only happens in a small number of people
– A serious problem called ?neuroleptic malignant syndrome?. The signs may include:
? Fast heartbeat, changing blood pressure and sweating followed by fever
? Faster breathing, muscle stiffness, reduced consciousness and coma
? Raised levels of a protein in your blood (an enzyme called creatine phosphokinase)
– Your heart:
? Beats abnormally (arrhythmia)
? Flutters (fibrillates)
? Beats unusually fast (tachycardia)
An arrhythmia can cause your heart to stop beating (cardiac arrest). Unexplained deaths have
occurred rarely in patients taking this type of medicine
– Jerky movements and problems such as slowness, muscle stiffness or spasm, shaking, trembling
or tremors, feeling restless and stiff neck. More saliva than normal, twitching or unusual
movements of the tongue, face, mouth, jaw or throat, difficulty speaking or rolling of the eyes.
If you get any of these effects, you may be given an additional medicine
– Low sodium levels in the blood which can cause tiredness and confusion, muscle twitching, fits or coma.
Tell your doctor or pharmacist straight away if you notice or suspect any of the following side effects:
Very common side effects (affects more than 1 in 10 patients)
? Sweating more than usual
? Urinating (passing water) at night
? Feeling dizzy
? Feeling sleepy
Common side effects (affects up to 1 in 10 patients)
? Feeling agitated or restless
? Feeling low or depressed
? Difficulty sleeping
? Feeling tired or lacking in energy
? Loss of appetite
? Dry mouth
? Being sick
? Constipation
? Headache
? Blurred vision
? Very oily skin
? Need to pass water (urine) more often than usual
? In men, erection problems
? Weight gain
Uncommon side effects (affects up to 1 in 100 patients)
? In women, no monthly period
? Swollen face
Not known (cannot be estimated from the available data)
? Fits or seizures (convulsions)
? Hormone changes which may lead to:
? Some women unexpectedly producing breast milk
? Some men experiencing swelling of their breast
? Some people losing interest in sex
? Body temperature changes
Test results:
? Sugar in the urine
? High blood sugar levels (if you already have diabetes)
? Abnormal heart traces (electrocardiogram, ?ECG?) or brain traces (electroencephalogram ?EEG?)
Medicines similar to Pimozide may cause blood clots in the veins especially in the legs (symptoms include swelling, pain and redness in the leg), which may travel through blood vessels to the lungs causing
chest pain and difficulty in breathing. If you notice any of these symptoms seek medical advice immediately
Medicines similar to Pimozide used by mothers in the last trimester (last three months of pregnancy) have been associated with the following symptoms in newborn babies: shaking, muscle stiffness and/or weakness, sleepiness, agitation, breathing problems and difficulty in feeding. If your baby develops any of these symptoms you may need to contact your doctor.
In elderly people with dementia, a small increase in the number of deaths has been reported for patients taking neuroleptics compared with those not receiving neuroleptics.
5. How to store Pimozide
Keep this medicine out of the sight and reach of children.
Do not store above 30 ?C.
Do not use this medicine after the expiry date which is stated on the label after EXP. The expiry date refers to the last day of that month.
Do not throw away any medicines via wastewater or household waste.
Ask your pharmacist how to throw away medicines you no longer use. These measures will help protect the environment.
6. Contents of the pack and other information
What Pimozide contains
– The active substance is pimozide. The tablets contain 4 mg of pimozide.
– The other ingredients are calcium hydrogen phosphate dihydrate, maize starch, microcrystalline cellulose, polyvidone, talc, cottonseed oil- hydrogenated, ferric oxide and indigotindisulphonate sodium.
7. Manufactured in India by:
TAJ LIFE SCIENCES PVT. LTD.
Unit No. 214, Old Bake House,
Bake House Lane, Fort,
Mumbai-400001
at: Ahmedabad- Gujarat, INDIA.
Ho.NO.+91 8448 444 095
Toll Free Phone: (1800-222-434 / 1800-222-825)