Phenagran, also known as promethazine, comes from a class of drugs known as phenothiazines. However, unlike the other medications drug class, it is not used as an anti-psychotic medication. Instead, it is used as an antihistamine, an anti-nausea medication or as a sedative. The drug treats some of the most common symptoms of allergies such as hives and other skin rashes, postnasal drip, sneezing, and watering eyes. It effectively blocks excess histamine build-up in the body in order to negate those typical allergy symptoms. The medication also blocks acetylcholine, which makes it an effective choice for treating nausea and vomiting. Its sedation properties make it useful in helping post-surgery patients rest more comfortably. The Food and Drug Administration approved the use of Phenagren in 1951.
Instructions
1. Study the drug's liabilities. Phenagran is not recommended for small children, especially those under the age of two. In adults, it can cause breathing problems that resemble bronchitis or pneumonia. In children, the symptoms related to those diseases can be more pronounced, even life threatening. The drug is contraindicated for people who already have breathing problems such as asthma, COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) or emphysema.
2. Study the drug's liabilities. Promethazine is rarely advised for individuals with a history of digestive disorders (like an ulcer) or those suffering from heart disease, glaucoma, kidney or liver disease, or those who suffer from seizures or sleep apnea. The medication could heighten the symptoms of those conditions or create other health-related problems associated with them.
Women who are pregnant or women who are nursing babies should not take the Phenagran. Insufficient studies have been done to determine the danger of the drug to a fetus or nursing child.
3. Note the drug's interaction issues. Phenagran is not recommended for people already taking drugs within the promethazine family. Doubling up in this drug class can be dangerous and could possibly result in death. Medicines for allergy, anxiety, colds and flu, depression, muscle relaxation, pain, seizures, and sleeping pills could also contraindicate the taking of this medication since it may amplify the other drugs' abilities. One must also avoid drinking alcohol with for the same reason
Other drugs for high or low blood pressure, blood thinning, bladder control, or ulcers may negate the possibility of using this medication. People taking MAO inhibitors or drugs for the treatment of Parkinson's disease should also avoid promethazine.
4. Make a doctor's appointment to ascertain if Phenagran could be the answer for your medical issue, particularly if the condition from which you suffer is one of those listed above for which the drug might be prescribed. Choose a physician who is familiar with your medical history or take your medical records with you when you meet with the physician. The more information he has on hand, the better he will be able to serve you.
5. Get the prescription filled by a local pharmacist. Ask him for any additional information he may have about its side effects, liabilities, and drug interactions. Study those while at the pharmacy so that you can ask questions if any arise.
6. Study the drug's typical side effects like constipation, dizziness, drowsiness, dry mouth, watering eyes, mild weight gain, a sensation of ringing in the ears, slight swelling in the limbs, or a stuffy nose. These should be expected and are of no serious concern unless they persist or start to worsen.
7. Look for other less typical side effects like anxiety, blurred vision, flu-like symptoms, hives, inability to urinate or urinating less frequently, impotence, jitters, sexual dysfunction, skin rash, sore throat or vomiting. If any of these symptoms occur, consult your physician right away.
8. Report to an emergency room right away if you have any of the more serious side effects of the medication. These include abdominal pain, black outs, chest pain, confusion, convulsions, difficulty breathing, fever, hallucinations, irregular heartbeat, jaundice, joint pain, muscle aches or stiffness, night blindness, seizures, sweating, swelling, tremors or twitches, trouble breathing, tunnel vision, unexplained bleeding or bruising, weakening of the pulse.
Also report to an ER if you have allergic reactions such as closed airway passages or long-term loss of consciousness.
9. Take the dosage amount prescribed for you. Phenagran most often comes in 25 and 50 mg tablets, suppositories, and injections. Smaller amounts -- as low as 6.25 mg -- may come in syrup form.
For treatment of allergies, the medication is generally given in syrup form and can be prescribed up to three times a day.
For nausea and vomiting, the medication can be administered every four to six hours; generally in 25 mg tablets or suppositories.
For motion sickness, the drug can be prescribed about one hour before the motion-related trip and can be repeated every eight to 12 hours, as needed.
For sedation, the drug is taken in 25 to 50 mg tablets or suppositories about one hour before bedtime.
Injected promethazine is done only at the clinic or hospital and is usually saved for extreme cases of vomiting. Pills can be taken with or without food or milk.
Should a dose be missed, it can be taken within two hours of the dosage time. Otherwise, the missed dose should be skipped.
10. Store the medication as follows. Suppositories must be stored in a refrigerator. If they are removed from the cool environment for some reason and become too soft, place them back into the refrigerator for up to 30 minutes until they become hard enough to insert into the rectum. Pills and syrup should be stored at room temperatures no warmer than 80 degree Fahrenheit.
11. Contact one of the following if an overdose is suspected. Begin with your local poison control center. If that doesn't work, try the national poison hotline at 1-800-222-1222.
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