Quetiapin Ratiopharm
This medicine contains quetiapine, used to treat mental health conditions such as bipolar depression, mania, and schizophrenia.
Form
depottabletti
Strength
300 mg
Active Ingredient
Quetiapine fumarate
Manufacturer
Teva Pharma B.V.
How to Use
Dosage
Your doctor will decide your starting dose; the daily dose usually ranges between 150 mg and 800 mg, depending on your condition.
Method
Take your tablets once a day, whole with water, without food (at least 1 hour before a meal or at bedtime); do not split, chew, or crush them, and avoid grapefruit juice.
Important
The maximum daily dose is typically 800 mg, as prescribed by your doctor.
Possible Side Effects
COMMON
- •Dizziness (can lead to falls)
- •Headache
- •Dry mouth
- •Feeling sleepy (may go away with continued use), can lead to falls
- •Symptoms from stopping the medicine, such as trouble sleeping, feeling sick, headache, diarrhea, vomiting, dizziness, and irritability
- •Weight gain
- •Abnormal muscle movements, such as difficulty starting movements, shaking, restlessness, or muscle stiffness without pain
- •Low hemoglobin levels (hemoglobin is a protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen in the blood)
- •Changes in certain fat levels (triglycerides and total cholesterol)
- •Fast heartbeat
- •Palpitations, clearly felt heartbeats or missed beats
- •Constipation
- •Upset stomach
- •Weakness
- •Swelling of hands or feet
- •Low blood pressure, especially when standing up, which can cause dizziness or faintness (may lead to falls)
- •High blood sugar
- •Blurred vision
- •Abnormal dreams and nightmares
- •Increased appetite
- •Irritability
- •Speech and language problems
- •Shortness of breath
- •Vomiting (mainly in the elderly)
- •Fever
- •Changes in blood thyroid hormone levels
- •Changes in the number of certain types of blood cells
- •Increased liver enzyme levels in blood tests
- •Increased prolactin levels in the blood, which can rarely cause swollen breasts, unexpected milk flow, or irregular/missed periods
- •Suicidal thoughts and worsening depression
RARE
- •Unpleasant feeling in the legs (restless legs syndrome)
- •Difficulty swallowing
- •Sexual dysfunction
- •Diabetes (new onset or worsening)
- •Slower than normal heart rate, which can occur at the start of treatment and may be associated with low blood pressure and fainting
- •Difficulty urinating
- •Fainting (can lead to falls)
- •Stuffy nose
- •Decreased sodium levels in the blood
- •Worsening of diabetes
- •Confusion
- •Swollen breasts and unexpected milk flow (galactorrhea)
- •Menstrual problems
- •Sleepwalking, sleep talking, sleep eating, or other activities while asleep
- •Drop in body temperature (hypothermia)
- •Metabolic syndrome: a combination of increased belly fat, low 'good' cholesterol, high triglycerides (a type of fat), high blood pressure, and high blood sugar
- •Increased levels of creatine kinase (a substance from muscles) in the blood
- •Severe skin rash, blisters, or red spots on the skin
- •Severe allergic reaction (anaphylaxis), which can cause breathing problems or shock
- •Sudden swelling of the skin, usually around the eyes, lips, or throat (angioedema)
- •Severe blistering on the skin, in the mouth, eyes, or genital areas (Stevens-Johnson syndrome)
- •Muscle breakdown and muscle pain (rhabdomyolysis)
- •Abnormal secretion of a hormone that regulates urine volume
- •Rash with irregular red patches (erythema multiforme)
- •Rapidly appearing red skin areas filled with small pus-filled blisters (acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis (AGEP))
- •Severe, sudden allergic reaction with symptoms like fever, skin blisters, and peeling skin (toxic epidermal necrolysis)
- •DRESS syndrome: flu-like symptoms, rash, fever, swollen lymph nodes, and abnormal blood test results (including increased white blood cells and liver enzymes)
- •Heart muscle disease (cardiomyopathy)
- •Inflammation of the heart muscle (myocarditis)
- •Stroke
- •Uncontrolled movements, mainly in the face or tongue (tardive dyskinesia)
- •Pounding heart or palpitations with dizziness or fainting (signs of heart rhythm problems, may be fatal)
- •Severe pain and/or swelling and redness in one leg, sudden severe chest pain radiating to the left arm, or sudden difficulty breathing (signs of a blood clot)
- •Severe upper abdominal pain, often radiating to the back, sometimes with nausea and vomiting (signs of pancreatitis)
- •Constipation with persistent abdominal pain, or constipation that doesn't respond to treatment (can lead to severe bowel obstruction)
- •Yellow skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice), dark urine – especially with unusual tiredness or fever (signs of hepatitis/liver inflammation)
- •Prolonged, painful erection (priapism)
- •Fever, sweating, muscle stiffness, extreme drowsiness or unconsciousness (neuroleptic malignant syndrome)
Important Warnings
- Do not use if you are allergic to quetiapine or any other ingredient in this medicine.
- Do not use if you are taking certain medicines for HIV, some antifungal medicines, erythromycin or clarithromycin (antibiotics), or nefazodone (an antidepressant).
- Tell your doctor if you or your family have heart problems, like an irregular heartbeat, or if you take medicines that affect your heart rhythm.
- Tell your doctor if you have low blood pressure.
- Tell your doctor if you have had a stroke, especially if you are elderly.
Show 18 more warnings
- Tell your doctor if you have liver disease.
- Tell your doctor if you have ever had seizures (epilepsy).
- Tell your doctor if you have diabetes or are at risk of getting diabetes; your doctor may check your blood sugar.
- Tell your doctor if you have had low white blood cell counts in the past.
- If you are an elderly person with dementia, this medicine should not be taken, as it can increase the risk of stroke or death.
- Tell your doctor if you are elderly and have Parkinson's disease.
- Tell your doctor if you or your family have had blood clots, as similar medicines have been linked to blood clot formation.
- Tell your doctor if you have or have had sleep apnea and take medicines that slow down your brain function.
- Tell your doctor if you have problems emptying your bladder, an enlarged prostate, a bowel blockage, or high pressure in your eye.
- Tell your doctor if you have a history of alcohol or drug abuse.
- Get urgent medical help if you have a fever, severe muscle stiffness, sweating, or feel very sleepy or confused.
- Get urgent medical help if you have fast and irregular heartbeats even when resting, palpitations, breathing problems, chest pain, or unexplained tiredness.
- Get urgent medical help if you have uncontrolled movements, especially in your face or tongue.
- Get urgent medical help if you feel dizzy or very sleepy, which can increase the risk of falls, especially in elderly patients.
- Get urgent medical help if you have seizures.
- Get urgent medical help if you have a prolonged, painful erection.
- Tell your doctor as soon as possible if you get a fever, flu-like symptoms, a sore throat, or any other infection, as this may be due to a very low white blood cell count.
- Tell your doctor as soon as possible if you have constipation with persistent stomach pain or constipation that does not improve with treatment, as this can lead to a serious bowel blockage.
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)