Namenda Side Effects

From Pharmacy Drug Guide

Namenda is the brand name for memantine hydrochloride, which is prescribed to patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. Namenda is used to treat moderate to severe symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease such as confusion, loss of short term memory recall, and shortened attention span. Namenda does not cure or slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, however it may improve a patient’s ability to perform activities of daily living. Namenda is sometimes used together with Aricept as a combination therapy. Studies have shown that combination therapy using these two medications slowed the progression of symptoms in moderate to severe Alzheimer’s patients.^[1]

Namenda, which was first approved by the FDA in 2003, is manufactured by Forest Laboratories, Inc.^[2] Like many medications, there are potential side effects associated with taking Namenda. Some of the common Namenda side effects include headache, dizziness, constipation, and confusion.^[3]

Contents 1 Common Namenda Side Effects 2 About Drug Side Effects 3 Namenda Allergic Reactions 4 Namenda Precautions and Warnings 5 References

Common Namenda Side Effects

Common Namenda side effects include dizziness, confusion, constipation, and headache. In clinical trials, at least two percent of patients experienced the following side effects while taking Namenda: hypertension, excessive fatigue, vomiting, back pain, coughing, hallucination, agitation, all over body pain, abnormal gait, and muscle fatigue. These statistics were rated higher than patients taking a placebo.^[5]

About Drug Side Effects

Namenda Allergic Reactions

The use of Namenda is contraindicated for patients with a known hypersensitivity or allergy to memantine hydrochloride or to any of Namenda’s inactive ingredients.^[5] The medication is typically administered in tablet or liquid solution, with the inactive ingredients varying depending on the preparation.^[6]

Allergic reactions to medications like Namenda have the potential to be severe, and some may require medical attention. Signs that a patient is experiencing an allergic reaction to Namenda might include hives, difficulty breathing, and swelling of the face, lips, tongue, or throat.^[7]

Namenda Precautions and Warnings

• The main ingredient in Namenda may cause drowsiness in some individuals, impairing their ability to operate a vehicle or other machinery.^[8]
• The effectiveness of Namenda may decrease in patients who smoke cigarettes or use other tobacco products.^[8]
• Although patients with a seizure disorder have not been studied, in clinical trials of Namenda, seizures occurred in 0.3 percent of patients treated with Namenda and 0.6 percent of patients treated with placebo. ^[2]
• Patients with a history of severe kidney or liver disease may require a reduced dose of Namenda XR as such impairments may cause an increase level of Namenda in the body.^[7]
• Namenda is classified as FDA pregnancy category B, which means that animal reproduction studies have not demonstrated fetal risk, and there are no adequate human studies. It is not known if Namenda passes through breast milk in nursing mothers.

Also See: Drug Side Effects, Namenda Coupons, Aricept Side Effects, Mirapex Coupons, Exelon Patch

References

1. ↑ http://www.namenda.com/Whats-Is-Combination-Therapy/Benefits.aspx
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} http://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/lookup.cfm?setid=710f523f-0158-4639-8ce7-57598247d48c
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2} http://www.namenda.com/Taking-Namenda/Common-Side-Effects.aspx
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2} http://www.namenda.com/
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} http://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/lookup.cfm?setid=b9f27baf-aa2a-443a-9ef5-e002d23407ba
6. ↑ http://www.namenda.com/Taking-Namenda/How-Its-Taken.aspx
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1} http://www.emedicinehealth.com/drug-memantine/article_em.htm
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1} http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0000250/