Please wait...
Don’t see your pharmacy listed? Most pharmacies accept our discounts, so have your pharmacist enter this coupon to see if you will save money:
Allopurinol reduces the production of uric acid in your body. Uric acid buildup can lead to gout or kidney stones.
Allopurinol is used to treat gout or kidney stones, and to decrease levels of uric acid in people who are receiving cancer treatment.
Allopurinol may also be used for purposes not listed in this medication guide.
You should not use allopurinol if you have ever had a serious allergic reaction to it. Stop taking the medicine and call your doctor at once if you have any signs of skin rash, no matter how mild.
Allopurinol can lower blood cells that help your body fight infections. This can make it easier for you to bleed from an injury or get sick from being around others who are ill. Your blood may need to be tested often. Visit your doctor regularly.
Avoid drinking alcohol. It can make your condition worse. Allopurinol may impair your thinking or reactions. Be careful if you drive or do anything that requires you to be alert.
You should not take allopurinol if you are allergic to it.
To make sure allopurinol is safe for you, tell your doctor if you have ever had:
kidney disease;
liver disease;
diabetes;
congestive heart failure;
high blood pressure; or
if you are receiving chemotherapy.
It is not known whether this medicine will harm an unborn baby. Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant.
It may not be safe to breast-feed while using this medicine. Ask your doctor about any risk.
Take allopurinol exactly as prescribed by your doctor. Follow all directions on your prescription label and read all medication guides or instruction sheets. Your doctor may occasionally change your dose.
Take each dose with a full glass of water. To reduce your risk of kidney stones forming, drink 8 to 10 full glasses of fluid every day, unless your doctor tells you otherwise.
Take with food if allopurinol upsets your stomach.
You may have gout attacks more often when you first start taking allopurinol. Your doctor may recommend other gout medication to take at this time. Keep using your medication as directed and tell your doctor if your symptoms do not improve after 6 weeks of treatment.
You may need to follow a special diet while using allopurinol. Follow all instructions of your doctor or dietitian. Learn about the foods to eat or avoid to help control your condition.
Store at room temperature away from moisture and heat.
Take the medicine as soon as you can, but skip the missed dose if it is almost time for your next dose. Do not take two doses at one time.
Seek emergency medical attention or call the Poison Help line at 1-800-222-1222.
Avoid driving or hazardous activity until you know how allopurinol will affect you. Your reactions could be impaired.
Avoid drinking alcohol. It may worsen your condition.
Stop using this medicine and call your doctor at once if you have:
the first sign of any skin rash, no matter how mild;
flu symptoms, joint pain, easy bruising, unusual bleeding;
painful urination, blood in the urine;
little or no urination;
numbness, tingling, burning pain;
worsening gout symptoms; or
liver problems - loss of appetite, weight loss, stomach pain (upper right side), itching, dark urine, clay-colored stools, jaundice (yellowing of the skin or eyes).
Common allopurinol side effects may include:
drowsiness;
rash;
abnormal liver function tests;
nausea, vomiting, diarrhea;
headache; or
changes in your sense of taste.
This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.
Tell your doctor about all your other medicines, especially:
azathioprine or mercaptopurine;
chlorpropamide;
cyclosporine;
an antibiotic such as ampicillin or amoxicillin;
a blood thinner such as warfarin, Coumadin, Jantoven; or
a diuretic or "water pill".
This list is not complete. Other drugs may interact with allopurinol, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal products. Not all possible drug interactions are listed here.
Remember, keep this and all other medicines out of the reach of children, never share your medicines with others, and use allopurinol only for the indication prescribed.
Always consult your healthcare provider to ensure the information displayed on this page applies to your personal circumstances.
Medically reviewed by USARx EDITORIAL TEAM Last updated on 1/1/2020.
Source: Drugs.com Allopurinol (www.drugs.com/allopurinol.html).
More frequently reported side effects include: acute gout attack. See below for a comprehensive list of adverse effects.
Applies to allopurinol: oral tablet
Other dosage forms:
Along with its needed effects, allopurinol may cause some unwanted effects. Although not all of these side effects may occur, if they do occur they may need medical attention.
Check with your doctor immediately if any of the following side effects occur while taking allopurinol:
More common
Rare
Some side effects of allopurinol may occur that usually do not need medical attention. These side effects may go away during treatment as your body adjusts to the medicine. Also, your health care professional may be able to tell you about ways to prevent or reduce some of these side effects. Check with your health care professional if any of the following side effects continue or are bothersome or if you have any questions about them:
Rare
Applies to allopurinol: intravenous powder for injection, oral tablet
The most commonly reported adverse reactions include skin rash, diarrhea, nausea, alkaline phosphatase, and transaminase elevation.
Skin rash is one of the most common adverse reactions and may occur at any time during treatment. Some skin reactions can be severe and sometimes fatal. In patients with the most severe reactions, systemic symptoms such as fever, chills, arthralgia, cholestatic jaundice, eosinophilia and mild leukocytosis, or leukopenia accompany the rash. Among 55 patients with gout who received this drug for an average of 1 year (3 to 34 months), 3% developed pruritic maculopapular skin eruptions, sometimes scaly or exfoliative. The incidence of skin rash appears to be greater in patients with renal insufficiency.
Angioedema has been reported with and without signs and symptoms of a more generalized hypersensitivity reaction. Skin reactions associated with exfoliation, fever, lymphadenopathy, arthralgia, and/or eosinophilia resembling Stevens-Johnson and/or Lyell syndromes have occurred rarely. Associated vasculitis and tissue responses may manifest as hepatitis, interstitial nephritis, and very rarely epilepsy.
DRESS also known as drug hypersensitivity syndrome has been reported. The syndrome is potentially life-threatening and fatal. It has been reported that symptoms may develop in approximately 1 week from initiating allopurinol therapy, but longer latency periods have also been reported.
Common (1% to 10%): Rash, maculopapular rash
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Ecchymosis
Rare (less than 0.1%): Steven-Johnson syndrome, Lyell syndrome
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Alopecia, discolored hair, angioedema, fixed drug eruption
Frequency not reported: DRESS (Drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms), sweating
Rare (less than 0.1%): Generalized hypersensitivity
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Anaphylaxis, angioedema
Frequency not reported: Hypersensitivity reaction
Generalized hypersensitivity including skin reactions associated with exfoliation, fever, lymphadenopathy, arthralgia, and/or eosinophilia resembling Stevens-Johnson and/or Lyell syndromes have occurred rarely. Associated vasculitis and tissue responses may manifest as hepatitis, interstitial nephritis, and very rarely epilepsy. When generalized hypersensitivity reactions have occurred, renal and or/hepatic disorders have often been present, particularly when the outcome has been fatal.
Angioedema has been reported with and without signs and symptoms of a more generalized hypersensitivity reaction.
Common (1% to 10%): Increases in alkaline phosphatase and serum transaminases
Rare (less than 0.1%): Hepatic dysfunction including hepatitis (hepatic necrosis and granulomatous hepatitis), hepatomegaly, cholestatic jaundice,
Frequency not reported: Clinical hepatotoxicity, liver failure
Liver failure was reported in less than 1% of patients.
Common (1% to 10%): Diarrhea, nausea, vomiting
Rare (less than 0.1%): Intermittent abdominal pain, gastritis, dyspepsia
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Steatorrhea, recurrent hematemesis, stomatitis, changed bowel habit
Frequency not reported: Hemorrhagic pancreatitis, gastrointestinal bleeding, salivary gland swelling, tongue edema, anorexia, flatulence
Hemorrhagic pancreatitis, gastrointestinal bleeding, salivary gland swelling, tongue edema, flatulence, and anorexia were reported in less than 1% of patients.
Eosinophilic fibrohistiocytic lesion of bone marrow, pancytopenia, anemia, hemolytic anemia, reticulocytosis, lymphadenopathy, disseminated intravascular coagulation, and lymphocytosis were reported in less than 1% of patients.
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Leukocytosis, leukopenia, eosinophilia, thrombocytopenia, granulocytopenia, agranulocytosis, aplastic anemia
Frequency not reported: Bone marrow depression, eosinophilic fibrohistiocytic lesion of bone marrow, pancytopenia, anemia, hemolytic anemia, reticulocytosis, lymphadenopathy, lymphocytosis, disseminated intravascular coagulation
Common (1% to 10%): Renal failure/insufficiency
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Xanthine crystalluria, azotemia
Xanthine crystalluria has been reported in 3 patients; 2 patients with Lesch-Nyhan syndrome and 1 patient with lymphosarcoma who produced an extremely large amount of uric acid during chemotherapy.
Increased serum creatinine and kidney function abnormality has been reported in less than 1% of patients.
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Headache
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Ataxia, somnolence, coma, paralysis, paresthesia, neuropathy, taste perversion, neuritis
Frequency not reported: Drowsiness, confusion, foot drop, seizure, status epilepticus, myoclonus, twitching, cerebral infarction, stroke, tremor
Confusion, foot drop, seizure, status epilepticus, myoclonus, twitching, cerebral infarction, stroke, and tremor were reported in less than 1% of patients.
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Visual disorder, cataract, macular changes
Frequency not reported: Optic neuritis
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Furunculosis, angioimmunoblastic lymphadenopathy
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Increase in acute gout attacks
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia
Frequency not reported: Hypercalcemia, hypocalcemia, hyperphosphatemia, hypokalemia, hyperuricemia, electrolyte abnormality, hyperglycemia, hypernatremia, metabolic acidosis, glycosuria, hyperkalemia, lactic acidosis, water intoxication, hypomagnesemia
Early clinical experience with this drug found acute gouty attacks on therapy initiation to be one of the more commonly observed adverse reactions; however, current use analyses suggests this incidence is now less than 1%. The reason for this change has not been determined, but it may be due to patients initiating therapy more gradually.
Hypercalcemia, hypocalcemia, hyperphosphatemia, hypokalemia, hyperuricemia, electrolyte abnormality, hyperglycemia, hypernatremia, metabolic acidosis, glycosuria, hyperkalemia, lactic acidosis, water intoxication, and hypomagnesemia have been reported in less than 1% of patients.
Rare (less than 0.1%): Myopathy, arthralgias
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Necrotizing angiitis, vasculitis, edema
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Angina, bradycardia, hypertension
Frequency not reported: Pericarditis, peripheral vascular disease thrombophlebitis, vasodilation, heart failure, cardiorespiratory arrest, decreased venous pressure, flushing, cardiovascular disorder, ECG abnormality, hemorrhage, ventricular fibrillation
Pericarditis, peripheral vascular disease thrombophlebitis, vasodilation, heart failure, cardiorespiratory arrest, decreased venous pressure, flushing, cardiovascular disorder, ECG abnormality, hemorrhage, and ventricular fibrillation were reported in less than 1% of patients.
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Gynecomastia
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Infertility, impotence, nocturnal emission
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Uremia, hematuria, male infertility, impotence, erectile dysfunction
Frequency not reported: Urinary tract infection
Injection site reactions have been reported with the parenteral product in less than 1% of patients.
Frequency not reported: Injection site reactions
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Fever, general malaise, asthenia
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Vertigo
Frequency not reported: Tinnitus
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Depression
Frequency not reported: Amnesia, insomnia, agitation
Amnesia, agitation, and insomnia were reported in less than 1% of patients.
Rare (less than 0.1%): Epistaxis
Frequency not reported: Bronchospasm, asthma, pharyngitis, rhinitis, respiratory failure/insufficiency, ARDS, increased respiration rate, apnea
Bronchospasm, asthma, pharyngitis, respiratory failure/insufficiency, ARDS, increased respiration rate, apnea, and rhinitis were reported in less than 1% of patients.
Medically reviewed by USARx EDITORIAL TEAM Last updated on 1/1/2020.
Source: Drugs.com Allopurinol (www.drugs.com/allopurinol.html).
March 27, 2020
March 27, 2020
March 28, 2020
March 27, 2020
March 24, 2020
March 26, 2020
