Acamprosate Tablets Uses, Dosage, Side Effects, Precautions & Warnings

Acamprosate tablets >> Acamprosate Calcium Tablets >> Generic drug of Aotal

Therapeutic class: Toxicology

active ingredients: Acamprosate

what are acamprosate tablets?

• Acamprosate reduces the need for alcohol.
• Aid for detoxification treatment to get rid of the alcohol.
• After 4 weeks you know whether this medicine works for you. If it works, you usually have to use it for a year.
• Continue with the use of acamprosate, even if you drink alcohol once.
• Side effects: gastrointestinal complaints such as diarrhea, abdominal pain and nausea.
• Take the drug with some food. Then you have less problems with gastrointestinal complaints.

what is Acamprosate tablets used for and indication?

Acamprosate is indicated in the “maintenance of abstinence in alcohol-dependent patients”.

It must be associated with psychological care.

Acamprosate tablets dosage

• The dosage is 2 tablets morning, noon and night, for a subject weighing more than 60 kg.
• It is 2 tablets in the morning, one at noon and one in the evening, for a subject weighing less than 60 kg.
• It is preferable to administer the tablet at a distance from meals if the digestive tolerance is good (see section Pharmacokinetic properties ).
• Treatment with acamprosate should be started as soon as possible after stopping alcohol consumption. Episodic reallabulization does not contraindicate the maintenance of treatment.
• Administration of acamprosate during the course of the meal decreases the bioavailability of the drug.
• The recommended duration of treatment is one year.

Contraindications

Acamprosate is contraindicated:

• In patients with known hypersensitivity to acamprosate or to any of the excipients;
• In case of renal failure (creatinine> 120 umol / l);
• In nursing women (see section Pregnancy and lactation ).

how acamprosate works?

Pharmacotherapeutic group: DRUGS USED IN ALCOHOLIC DEPENDENCE, ATC code: N07BB03 .

Acamprosate (calcium acetylhomotaurinate) has a structure similar to that of neurotransmitter amino acids such as taurine or gamma-amino-butyric acid (GABA).

It has acetylation allowing it to pass through the blood-brain barrier.

Acamprosate has been shown to stimulate GABAergic inhibitory neuromediation and antagonize the action of excitatory amino acids, particularly glutamate.

Animal studies have established that acamprosate has a specific effect on alcohol dependence since it decreases the voluntary alcohol intake in alcohol-dependent rats.

acamprosate side effects

In addition to the desired effect, this can cause drug side effects.

The main side effects are the following.

Sometimes (from 10 to 30 people in 100)

• Gastrointestinal complaints such as diarrhea. Rarely abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting. If you take this medicine while eating or with some food, you will suffer less from it.

Rarely (from 1 to 10 in 100 people)

• Skin rash with itching. Very rarely, this indicates hypersensitivity (see Very rare ).
• Sexual disorders, such as impotence, less sense in lovemaking or, very rarely, more sense in lovemaking.

Very rare (affects less than 1 in 100 people)

• Hypersensitivity to this medication. You may notice a rash, itching, hives, chest tightness, dizziness or fainting. You may also experience swelling of the face, lips, mouth, tongue or throat. You can be very stuffy. In these cases, you should immediately seek out a doctor or go to the First Aid Service. If you are hypersensitive to this medicine, you should not use it. Tell the pharmacist that you are hypersensitive to acamprosate. The pharmacy team can then ensure that you will not receive it in the future.

If you have epilepsy and are about to stop taking alcohol.

First consult your doctor. You can have epileptic seizures in the first 2 days after stopping. Your doctor will check you extra.

Consult your doctor if you suffer too much from one of the above mentioned side effects or if you experience other side effects that you are worried about.

acamprosate drug interactions

• No change in the frequency of clinical and / or laboratory adverse reactions was observed when concomitant administration of disulfiram, oxazepam, tetrabamate or meprobamate was used.
• In clinical studies, acamprosate has been administered with several classes of drugs (antidepressants, anxiolytics, hypnotics and sedatives, non-opioid analgesics, etc.) with no tolerance problems.
• Concomitant use of alcohol with acamprosate does not affect the pharmacokinetics of acamprosate or alcohol.
• Acamprosate does not affect the pharmacokinetic parameters of diazepam or imipramine.

The impact of acamprosate treatment on the pharmacokinetics of disulfiram is not kno

Acamprosate Warnings and Precautions

• Acamprosate is not a treatment for the acute symptoms of alcohol withdrawal.
• In the absence of efficacy and safety data, acamprosate is not recommended in patients under 18 years of age and in subjects over 65 years of age.
• In the absence of efficacy and safety data, acamprosate is not recommended in patients with severe hepatic impairment (Group C of the Child-Plugh classification).
• Since alcohol, depression and suicide are closely related, any change in mood or behavior should be monitored in acamprosate withdrawal patients.

Abuse and dependence

• Non-clinical studies suggest that acamprosate has little or no potential for abuse.
•  No evidence of acamprosate dependence was found in clinical studies, thus demonstrating the lack of significant potential for acamprosate dependence.

Drive and use machines

Acamprosate has no effect on the ability to drive and use machines.

Acamprosate and PREGNANCY / BREAST FEEDING / FERTILITY

Pregnancy

• There is no adequate data on the use of acamprosate in pregnant women. Studies in animals have not shown fetotoxic or teratogenic effects.
• Acamprosate can therefore be administered during pregnancy only after carefully evaluating the risk / benefit ratio when the patient can not abstain from alcohol without being treated with acamprosate and, therefore, there is a risk of fetotoxicity or teratogenesis due to alcohol.

feeding

• Acamprosate is excreted in breast milk in animals. The excretion of acamprosate in the woman’s breast milk is not known. There is no adequate data on the use of acamprosate in infants. Therefore, acamprosate should not be given to women who are breastfeeding.
• If a woman who is breastfeeding can not abstain from alcohol without being treated with acamprosate, it will be necessary to decide whether to stop breastfeeding or discontinue treatment, taking into account the importance of treatment for the mother.

Fertility

• Studies in animals have not shown deleterious effects on fertility.
• The effect of acamprosate on fertility in men and women is not known.

What should I do if I miss a dose?

You use this medication 3 times a day .

Have you forgotten a dose and it takes more than 2 hours before you should take the next dose? 

Then take the tablet.

Does it take less than 2 hours before you should take the next dose? 

In that case, skip the forgotten dose.

What happens if I overdose from Acamprosate ?

• Acamprosate acute overdosage is usually mild.
•  In the cases reported, the only symptom that can be reasonably related to overdose is diarrhea.
• During these overdoses, no case of hypercalcemia has been described. In case of overdose, the treatment is symptomatic.

NOT’s

Edrug-online contains comprehensive and detailed information about drugs available in the medical field, and is divided into four sections:

general information:

• Includes a general description of the drug, its use, brand names, FAQs, and relevant news and articles

Additional information:

• General explanation about dealing with the medicine: how to take the medicine, the doses and times of it, the start and duration of its effectiveness, the recommended diet during the period of taking the medicine, the method of storage and storage, recommendations in cases for forgetting the dose and instructions to stop taking the drug and take additional doses.

Special warnings:

• For pregnant and breastfeeding women, the elderly, boys and drivers, and use before surgery.

Side effects:

• It treats possible side effects and drug interactions that require attention and its effect on continuous use.
• The information contained in this medicine is based on medical literature, but it is not a substitute for consulting a doctor.