Biquetan
Biquetan contains quetiapine, an antipsychotic medicine used to treat several mental health conditions like bipolar depression, mania, and schizophrenia.
Form
depottabletti
Strength
400 mg
Active Ingredient
Quetiapine fumarate
Manufacturer
STADA Arzneimittel AG
How to Use
Dosage
The usual daily dose is between 150 mg and 800 mg. Your doctor will decide your specific dose.
Method
Take tablets once a day. Swallow whole with water; do not break, chew, or crush. Take without food (at least 1 hour before a meal or at bedtime). Do not drink grapefruit juice.
Important
The usual daily dose can range up to 800 mg, as prescribed by your doctor.
Possible Side Effects
COMMON
- •Dizziness (can lead to falls), headache, dry mouth
- •Drowsiness (can lead to falls) (may go away with continued use)
- •Symptoms when stopping Biquetan: trouble sleeping, nausea, headache, diarrhea, vomiting, dizziness, and feeling irritable.
- •Weight gain
- •Abnormal muscle movements, such as difficulty starting movements, shaking, restlessness, or muscle stiffness without pain
- •Changes in certain fat levels in the blood (triglycerides and total cholesterol)
- •Fast heartbeat
- •Pounding or racing heart
- •Constipation, indigestion
- •Weakness
- •Swelling of hands or feet
- •Low blood pressure, especially when standing up (can cause dizziness or faintness, leading to falls)
- •High blood sugar
- •Blurred vision
- •Abnormal dreams and nightmares
- •Increased appetite
- •Irritability
- •Speech and language problems
- •Thoughts of self-harm or worsening depression
- •Shortness of breath
- •Vomiting (mainly in elderly)
- •Fever
- •Changes in thyroid hormone levels in the blood
- •Decrease in certain types of white blood cells
- •Increase in liver enzyme levels in the blood
- •Increased prolactin hormone levels in the blood, which can rarely cause breast swelling or unexpected milk production in men and women, or missed/irregular periods in women
RARE
- •Seizures
- •Allergic reactions like hives or swelling around the face and mouth
- •Unpleasant feeling in legs (restless legs syndrome)
- •Difficulty swallowing
- •Uncontrolled movements, especially in the face or tongue
- •Sexual dysfunction
- •Worsening of diabetes
- •Changes in the heart's electrical activity (QT prolongation on ECG)
- •Slower heart rate (can cause low blood pressure and fainting)
- •Difficulty urinating
- •Fainting (can lead to falls)
- •Blocked nose
- •Decrease in red blood cells
- •Decrease in sodium in the blood
- •High fever, sweating, severe muscle stiffness, significant drowsiness or weakness (neuroleptic malignant syndrome)
- •Yellow skin and eyes (jaundice)
- •Liver inflammation (hepatitis)
- •Long-lasting and painful erection (priapism)
- •Breast swelling and unexpected milk discharge (galactorrhea)
- •Menstrual disorders
- •Blood clots in veins, especially in the legs (swelling, pain, redness), which can travel to the lungs (chest pain, breathing difficulties)
- •Sleepwalking, sleep-talking, sleep-eating, or other activities during sleep
- •Low body temperature (hypothermia)
- •Pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas)
- •Metabolic syndrome: central obesity, low 'good' cholesterol, high triglycerides, high blood pressure, and high blood sugar
- •Fever, flu-like symptoms, sore throat or other infection with very low white blood cells (agranulocytosis)
- •Bowel obstruction
- •Increased levels of creatine phosphokinase (a muscle enzyme) in the blood
- •Severe rash, blisters or red patches on the skin
- •Severe allergic reaction (anaphylactic shock), which may cause breathing difficulties or shock
- •Rapidly developing swelling of the skin, usually around the eyes, lips or throat (angioedema)
- •Severe blistering of the skin, mouth, eyes or genital area (Stevens-Johnson syndrome)
- •Abnormal secretion of hormone regulating urine volume
- •Muscle fiber damage and muscle pain (rhabdomyolysis)
- •Rash with irregular red patches (erythema multiforme)
- •Severe, sudden allergic reaction with symptoms like fever and skin blisters, and skin peeling (toxic epidermal necrolysis)
- •Withdrawal symptoms in newborns if mother used quetiapine during pregnancy
- •Stroke
- •Heart muscle disease (cardiomyopathy)
- •Heart muscle inflammation (myocarditis)
- •Blood vessel inflammation (vasculitis), often associated with a red or purple spotted rash
Important Warnings
- Do not take Biquetan if you are allergic to quetiapine or any other ingredients.
- Tell your doctor if you have heart problems (e.g., irregular heartbeat, heart inflammation) or take medicines that affect your heart rate.
- Inform your doctor if you have low blood pressure, liver disease, or a history of seizures or stroke (especially if elderly).
- Report to your doctor if you have diabetes or a high risk of getting it, or if you have low white blood cell counts.
- If you are elderly with dementia, Biquetan should not be taken due to increased risks of stroke or death.
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- Tell your doctor if you or your family have a history of blood clots, or if you have sleep apnea.
- Inform your doctor if you have trouble emptying your bladder, an enlarged prostate, bowel blockage, or high eye pressure.
- Avoid alcohol and grapefruit juice while taking Biquetan, as they can affect how the medicine works or cause drowsiness.
- If you experience high fever, severe muscle stiffness, sweating, and confusion (neuroleptic malignant syndrome), contact a doctor immediately.
- Seek immediate medical help if you have uncontrolled movements, dizziness, severe drowsiness (fall risk), seizures, or a long-lasting, painful erection.
- Contact your doctor if you have a fast or irregular heartbeat, chest pain, breathing difficulties, or unexplained tiredness, as these could be signs of heart problems.
- Tell your doctor if you have fever, flu-like symptoms, or a sore throat, as these might indicate very low white blood cells.
- If you experience constipation with severe stomach pain that doesn't improve, contact your doctor as it could be a sign of a serious bowel blockage.
- If you have thoughts of harming yourself or suicide, contact your doctor or nearest hospital immediately.
- Watch your weight regularly, as some patients gain weight while taking Biquetan.
- Biquetan is not for use in children and adolescents under 18 years of age.
Use in Elderly Patients
Category D
Avoid use in older adults. Anticholinergic. Sedative. For treatment of psychosis only. Inappropriate as a hypnotic. Increases the risk of cardiovascular events, QT prolongation and orthostatic hypotension. Increases risk of falls, extrapyramidal symptoms and cognitive impairment. Reduces the effectiveness of drugs for Alzheimer’s disease. Avoid grapefruit. (updated 15.1.2024)