Make sure your doctor and pharmacist are aware of all the medications you are taking
What you should know:
•Certain medications result in deadly combinations
•One medication can reduce the effectiveness of another
•Make sure your doctor and pharmacist are aware of all the medications
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Transcript
Hi, I'm Greg Collins and I'm a CVS pharmacist. There are certain drug combinations you should be cautious of; here are the most common.
Aspirin should not be combined with blood thinners because, although it relieves pain, it also thins the blood, so the combination can lead to internal bleeding. Aspirin can also decrease the effectiveness of gout medications and increase the strength of some diabetes medications. When taking certain antibiotics you should know that antacids and other products containing calcium may decrease the effectiveness of your antibiotic. Also, some antibiotics can greatly decrease the effectiveness of birth control and blood thinners. If you're on antidepressants, don't mix newer antidepressants such as fluoxetine and paroxetine with older mood-lifters such as phenelzine, because it can increase blood pressure. Don't combine antidepressants with St. John's wort or migraine drugs because it can cause confusion, fever, high blood pressure, and tremors. Certain asthma medications, such as bronchodilators, should not be combined with antidepressant drugs or beta blockers, due to a risk of increased blood pressure and a loss of drug effectiveness. The effectiveness of diabetes medications such as glipizide and glyburide can be blocked by several drugs, including corticosteroids, hormones, diuretics, and antipsychotics. Other drugs that increase the effects of glipizide and glyburide, including blood thinners are: insulin, MAOIs, aspirin, and gout medicine. For heart medications, the common heart drug digoxin can lose effectiveness if combined with antacids. Their effects can be amplified by other drugs, including diazepam and antiarrhythmics. Nitrate heart drugs can trigger low blood pressure if taken with the erectile dysfunction drug Viagra, generally known as sildenafil. Also, the combination of the blood pressure medications, atenolol and reserpine can cause a slow heartbeat and lower than normal blood pressure.
Please make sure your doctor and pharmacist are aware of all the medications you are taking, both prescription and over-the-counter. If you have any questions about the potential harmful drug combinations I spoke about, talk to your CVS pharmacist. We're here to help.
Source: CVS Caremark Health Resources
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