Apriso

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Treatment & Uses
Side Effects
Treating Overdose
Safety Information
Before Using

Generic Name: mesalamine (oral) (me SAL a meen)
Brand Names: Apriso, Asacol, Lialda, Pentasa

What is Apriso?

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Apriso affects a substance in the body that causes inflammation, tissue damage, and diarrhea.

Apriso is used to treat ulcerative colitis, proctitis, and proctosigmoiditis. It is also used to prevent the symptoms of ulcerative colitis from recurring.

Apriso may also be used for other purposes not listed in this medication guide.

Important information about Apriso

Tell your doctor if you have any type of kidney or liver disease, or if you are allergic to aspirin. You may need a dose adjustment or special tests to safely take Apriso. Do not crush, break, or chew a Apriso capsule. Swallow the capsule whole. It is specially formulated to release the medicine after it has passed through your stomach into your intestines.

Stop using Apriso and call your doctor at once if you have severe stomach pain, cramping, fever, headache, and bloody diarrhea.

What should I discuss with my healthcare provider before taking Apriso?

You should not use Apriso if you are allergic to mesalamine or to aspirin or other salicylates (such as Disalcid, Doan's Pills, Dolobid, Salflex, Tricosal, and others).

Before using Apriso, tell your doctor if you are allergic to any drugs, or if you have:

a stomach condition called pyloric stenosis;
a history of allergy to sulfasalazine (Azulfidine);
a heart condition such as congestive heart failure;
kidney disease; or
liver disease.

If you have any of these conditions, you may need a dose adjustment or special tests to safely take Apriso.

FDA pregnancy category B. Apriso is not expected to be harmful to an unborn baby. Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant during treatment. Mesalamine can pass into breast milk and may harm a nursing baby. Do not use Apriso without telling your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby.

How should I take Apriso?

Take Apriso exactly as it was prescribed for you. Do not take the medication in larger amounts, or take it for longer than recommended by your doctor. Follow the directions on your prescription label.

Take Apriso with a full glass of water.

Apriso can usually be taken with or without food. Follow your doctor's instructions.

The extended-release capsule is specially formulated to release the medicine after it has passed through your stomach into your intestines. Breaking the capsule may cause the drug to be released too early in the digestive tract.

Store Apriso at room temperature away from moisture and heat.

What happens if I miss a dose?

Take the missed dose as soon as you remember. If it is almost time for your next dose, skip the missed dose and take the medicine at the next regularly scheduled time. Do not take extra medicine to make up the missed dose.

What happens if I overdose?

Seek emergency medical attention if you think you have used too much of this medicine.

Overdose symptoms may include ringing in your ears, dizziness, headache, confusion, drowsiness, sweating, shortness of breath, vomiting, and diarrhea.

What should I avoid while taking Apriso?

Follow your doctor's instructions about any restrictions on food, beverages, or activity while you are using Apriso.

Apriso side effects

Get emergency medical help if you have any of these signs of an allergic reaction: hives; difficulty breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat. Stop using Apriso and call your doctor at once if you have any of these serious side effects:

severe stomach pain, cramping, fever, headache, and bloody diarrhea.

Less serious Apriso side effects may include:

mild nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps, diarrhea, gas;
fever, sore throat, or other flu symptoms;
constipation;
headache or dizziness;
tired feeling; or
skin rash.

This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

What other drugs will affect Apriso?

Before taking Apriso, tell your doctor if you are using any of the following drugs:

azathioprine (Imuran) or mercaptopurine (Purinethol);
pentamidine (Nebupent, Pentam);
tacrolimus (Prograf);
amphotericin B (Fungizone, AmBisome, Amphotec, Abelcet);
antibiotics such as capreomycin (Capastat), rifampin (Rifadin, Rimactane, Rifater), vancomycin (Vancocin, Vancoled);
antiviral medicines such as acyclovir (Zovirax), adefovir (Hepsera), cidofovir (Vistide), or foscarnet (Foscavir);
cancer medicine such as aldesleukin (Proleukin), carmustine (BiCNU, Gliadel), cisplatin (Platinol), ifosfamide (Ifex), oxaliplatin (Eloxatin), plicamycin (Mithracin), streptozocin (Zanosar), or tretinoin (Vesanoid); or
aspirin or other NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) such as ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil), naproxen (Aleve, Naprosyn), diclofenac (Voltaren), diflunisal (Dolobid), etodolac (Lodine), flurbiprofen (Ansaid), indomethacin (Indocin), ketoprofen (Orudis), ketorolac (Toradol), mefenamic acid (Ponstel).

This list is not complete and there may be other drugs that can interact with Apriso. Tell your doctor about all the prescription and over-the-counter medications you use. This includes vitamins, minerals, herbal products, and drugs prescribed by other doctors. Do not start using a new medication without telling your doctor.

Where can I get more information?

Your pharmacist can provide more information about Apriso.

Remember, keep this and all other medicines out of the reach of children, never share your medicines with others, and use Apriso only for the indication prescribed.
Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided is accurate, up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. Drug information contained herein may be time sensitive. Multum's drug information is an informational resource designed to assist licensed healthcare practitioners in caring for their patients and/or to serve consumers viewing this service as a supplement to, and not a substitute for, the expertise, skill, knowledge and judgment of healthcare practitioners. The absence of a warning for a given drug or drug combination in no way should be construed to indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective or appropriate for any given patient. The information contained herein is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects.