Seroquel Prolong
Seroquel Prolong is a medicine called an antipsychotic, used to treat mental health conditions like bipolar depression, mania, and schizophrenia.
Form
depottabletti
Strength
50 mg
Active Ingredient
Quetiapine fumarate
Manufacturer
Cheplapharm Arzneimittel GmbH
How to Use
Dosage
Your doctor will decide your dose, which is usually between 150 mg and 800 mg per day.
Method
Take the tablets once a day, whole with water. Do not break, chew, or crush them. Take them without food, at least 1 hour before a meal or at bedtime, as advised by your doctor. Do not drink grapefruit juice.
Important
The maximum daily dose is usually 800 mg, as determined by your doctor.
Possible Side Effects
COMMON
- •Dizziness (can lead to falls), headache, dry mouth
- •Sleepiness (this may go away with continued use of the tablets) (can lead to falls)
- •Withdrawal symptoms when stopping the medicine, such as trouble sleeping, nausea, headache, diarrhea, vomiting, dizziness, and irritability.
- •Weight gain
- •Abnormal muscle movements, such as difficulty starting movements, shaking, restlessness, or muscle stiffness without pain.
- •Changes in certain fat levels (triglycerides and total cholesterol) in the blood.
- •Fast heartbeat
- •Palpitations, pounding, or skipped heartbeats
- •Constipation, digestive problems
- •Weakness
- •Swelling of hands or feet
- •Low blood pressure, especially when standing up. This can cause dizziness or weakness (can lead to falls).
- •High blood sugar
- •Blurred vision
- •Abnormal dreams and nightmares
- •Increased appetite
- •Irritability
- •Speech and language problems
- •Suicidal thoughts and worsening depression
- •Shortness of breath
- •Vomiting (mainly in older people)
- •Fever
- •Changes in thyroid hormone levels in the blood
- •Decrease in certain types of blood cells
- •Increase in liver enzyme levels measured in blood tests
- •Increased levels of the hormone prolactin in the blood. This can rarely cause breast swelling and unexpected milk production in men and women, and missed or irregular periods in women.
- •High blood pressure
- •Stuffy nose
RARE
- •Seizures (fits)
- •Allergic reactions, such as hives and swelling around the skin and mouth
- •Unpleasant sensation in the legs (restless legs syndrome)
- •Difficulty swallowing
- •Uncontrolled movements, especially of the face or tongue
- •Sexual dysfunction
- •Diabetes
- •Changes in the electrical activity of the heart (seen on an ECG, QT prolongation)
- •Slower heartbeat than normal, especially at the start of treatment, possibly with low blood pressure and fainting
- •Difficulty urinating
- •Fainting (can lead to falls)
- •Decrease in red blood cells
- •Decrease in sodium levels in the blood
- •Worsening of diabetes
- •Confusion
- •A combination of high fever, sweating, muscle stiffness, significant sleepiness, or weakness (neuroleptic malignant syndrome)
- •Yellowing of the skin and eyes (jaundice)
- •Liver inflammation (hepatitis)
- •Prolonged and painful erection (priapism)
- •Breast swelling and unexpected milk discharge (galactorrhea)
- •Menstrual disorders
- •Blood clots in veins, especially in the legs (symptoms include swelling, pain, and redness in the legs), which can travel to the lungs, causing chest pain and breathing difficulties. Seek medical help immediately if you notice these symptoms.
- •Sleepwalking, sleep-talking, sleep-eating, or other sleep-related behaviors
- •Decrease in body temperature (hypothermia)
- •Pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas)
- •Metabolic syndrome, a condition where you might have at least three of the following: increased belly fat, decreased 'good' cholesterol (HDL), increased triglycerides (a type of fat) in your blood, high blood pressure, and high blood sugar levels.
- •A combination of fever, flu-like symptoms, sore throat, or other infection, along with a very low number of white blood cells (a condition called agranulocytosis)
- •Bowel blockage
- •Increased levels of creatine phosphokinase (a substance from muscles) in the blood.
- •Severe rash, blisters, or red patches on the skin
- •Severe allergic reaction (anaphylactic shock) that can cause breathing difficulties or shock
- •Rapid 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 a hormone that regulates urine volume
- •Muscle fiber breakdown and muscle pain (rhabdomyolysis)
- •Rash with irregular red patches (erythema multiforme)
- •Rapidly appearing red skin areas full of 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 (Drug Reaction with Eosinophilia and Systemic Symptoms), with flu-like symptoms, rash, fever, swollen lymph nodes, and abnormal blood test results (including increased white blood cells and liver enzymes)
- •Withdrawal symptoms in newborns if the mother used Seroquel during pregnancy
- •Stroke
- •Heart muscle disease (cardiomyopathy)
- •Inflammation of the heart muscle (myocarditis)
- •Inflammation of blood vessels (vasculitis), often with a red or purple spotted rash
Important Warnings
- If you have fever, severe muscle stiffness, sweating, or feel very sleepy (a serious condition called neuroleptic malignant syndrome), get medical help right away.
- If you have uncontrolled movements, especially of your face or tongue.
- If you feel dizzy or very sleepy, which can increase the risk of falls, especially for older people.
- If you have seizures (epilepsy attacks).
- If you have a long-lasting, painful erection (priapism).
Show 5 more warnings
- If you have a fast or irregular heartbeat, even at rest, palpitations, breathing difficulties, chest pain, or unexplained tiredness. Your doctor needs to check your heart.
- If you have a fever, flu-like symptoms, sore throat, or other infection, as this could mean you have very few white blood cells.
- If you have constipation and long-lasting stomach pain, or constipation that does not improve with treatment, as this could lead to a serious bowel blockage.
- If you have thoughts of harming yourself or suicide, or if your depression gets worse, especially if you are young.
- If you notice serious skin reactions like widespread rash with blisters and peeling skin (Stevens-Johnson syndrome, toxic epidermal necrolysis), flu-like symptoms with rash and fever (DRESS), or small pus-filled blisters (AGEP). Stop taking the medicine and seek medical help immediately.
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)