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procainamide

Generic Name: procainamide (proe CANE a mide)
Brand names: Procan SR, Procanbid, Pronestyl, Pronestyl-SR

What is procainamide?

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Oral forms of procainamide (tablets and capsules) are no longer marketed in the U.S.

Procainamide affects the way your heart beats.

Procainamide is used to treat seriously irregular heartbeat patterns.

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

What is the most important information I should know about procainamide?

Oral forms of procainamide (tablets and capsules) are no longer marketed in the U.S.

Call your doctor immediately if you experience wheezing, chest pain, chest discomfort, worsening irregular heartbeats, a fever, a sore throat or an infection, a sore mouth, unusual bruising or bleeding, dark urine, hallucinations, severe dizziness, or fainting.

Take procainamide exactly as directed. Do not skip doses or change your dosing schedule without talking to your doctor.

Procainamide 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 or decrease the effects of procainamide.

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

Before taking procainamide, tell your doctor if you are allergic to any drugs, or if you have:

• any other type of heart disease or heart problems,

• systemic lupus erythematosus,

• liver disease,

• kidney disease,

• blood problems, or

• myasthenia gravis.

If you have any of these conditions, you may not be able to take procainamide, or you may need a dose adjustment or special tests during treatment.

FDA pregnancy category C. This medication may be harmful to an unborn baby. Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant during treatment. Procainamide can pass into breast milk and may harm a nursing baby. Do not use this medication without telling your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby.

How should I take procainamide?

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

Take each dose with a full glass of water. Do not crush, chew, or open any formulation of this medication. Do not change your dosage or your dosing schedule without first talking to your doctor. Changes of this sort could make your condition much worse.

Store procainamide 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, wait until then to take the medicine and skip the missed dose. Do not take extra medicine to make up the missed dose.

Try not to miss any of your procainamide doses. Missing doses could be very dangerous.

What happens if I overdose?

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

Overdose symptoms may include tiredness, dizziness, fainting, confusion, tremor, difficulty breathing, and an irregular heartbeat.

What should I avoid while taking procainamide?

Procainamide 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 or decrease the effects of procainamide.

Procainamide 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. Call your doctor at once if you have a serious side effect such as:

• a new or a worsening irregular heartbeat pattern;

• fever, sore throat, a sore mouth, or an infection;

• wheezing, chest pain or chest discomfort;

• unusual bruising or bleeding;

• dark urine;

• hallucinations; or

• severe dizziness or fainting.

Less serious side effects may include:

• mild dizziness or tiredness;

• bitter taste;

• upset stomach, vomiting, decreased appetite, or diarrhea;

• headache;

• blurred vision;

• giddiness; or

• depression.

This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur. Tell your doctor about any unusual or bothersome side effect.

What other drugs will affect procainamide?

The following drugs can interact with procainamide. Tell your doctor if you are using any of these:

• cimetidine (Tagamet, Tagamet HB), ranitidine (Zantac, Zantac 75), nizatidine (Axid, Axid AR), and famotidine (Pepcid, Pepcid AC);

• quinidine (Quinora, Quinidex, Cardioquin, others), amiodarone (Cordarone), disopyramide (Norpace), and other medicines used to treat irregular heartbeats;

• beta-blockers such as propranolol (Inderal), metoprolol (Lopressor), and acebutolol (Sectral);
• other commonly used beta-blockers, including atenolol (Tenormin), betaxolol (Kerlone), carteolol (Cartrol), labetalol (Normodyne, Trandate), nadolol (Corgard), and pindolol (Visken); or
• trimethoprim(Proloprim, Trimpex, Bactrim, Septra).

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

Where can I get more information?

• Your pharmacist can provide more information about procainamide.

• Remember, keep this and all other medicines out of the reach of children, never share your medicines with others, and use this medication only for the indication prescribed.
• Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided by Cerner Multum, Inc. ('Multum') is accurate, up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. Drug information contained herein may be time sensitive. Multum information has been compiled for use by healthcare practitioners and consumers in the United States and therefore Multum does not warrant that uses outside of the United States are appropriate, unless specifically indicated otherwise. Multum's drug information does not endorse drugs, diagnose patients or recommend therapy. 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. Multum does not assume any responsibility for any aspect of healthcare administered with the aid of information Multum provides. The information contained herein is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. If you have questions about the drugs you are taking, check with your doctor, nurse or pharmacist.

Copyright 1996-2006 Cerner Multum, Inc. Version: 2.07. Revision Date: 01/11/2008 10:44:54 AM.

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