Salazopyrin EN

Adults and the Elderly

• Severe Flare-Ups 2-4 tablets four times a day, with other medicines such as steroids. Do not leave more than 8 hours between the evening and following morning dose.
• Mild/Moderate Flare-Up 2-4 tablets four times a day, but not always with other medicines.
• Maintenance dose to control your flare ups - Once the flare-up is controlled the dose is slowly reduced to 4 tablets each day. Your doctor will tell you how to reduce your dose. This lower dose may be continued for some time to help stop other flare-ups.

Children 2 years of age and over

• Your doctor will tell you what dose your child will need to use. This will be based on your child’s weight.
• The tablets should start to work in a few days. Your doctor will advise you on how long you should take these tablets for.
• If they work well, you may be using them for some time because inflammatory bowel disease may be a life long condition.
• Don’t stop using the tablets just because you feel better without talking to your doctor.

For Rheumatoid arthritis

Adults and the Elderly

• Start on one tablet each day for the first week.
• Then, increase the dose by one tablet a day each week to a maximum of 6 tablets daily.
• 1st Week 2nd Week 3rd Week 4th Week
• Morning - 1 1 2
• Evening 1 1 2 2*
• *etc to a maximum of 6 tablets per day.
• Do not take more than 6 tablets a day.

Could it interact with other tablets?

Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you are taking the following medicines as they may interact with Salazopyrin EN-tabs:

• digoxin, used to treat heart failure
• folic acid or folate, sometimes taken during the first few weeks of pregnancy to reduce the risk of neural tube defects, e.g. Spina Bifida
• azathioprine and mercaptopurine, drugs used to help to suppress your bodies immune response in organ transplantation and certain chronic inflammations (e.g. rheumatoid arthritis)
• methotrexate, used to treat rheumatoid arthritis.

Please tell your doctor or pharmacist if you are taking or have recently taken any other medicines, including medicines obtained without a prescription.

Herbal products should also only be taken after talking with your doctor.

What are the possible risks or side-effects?

Like all medicines, Salazopyrin EN-tabs can cause side effects, although not everybody gets them.

Stop taking Salazopyrin EN-tabs and tell your doctor immediately if you experience any of the following symptoms after taking this medicine. Although they are very rare, these symptoms can be serious:

• An allergic reaction such as sudden wheeziness, difficulty in breathing, swelling of eyelids, face or lips, rash or itching (especially affecting the whole body).
• If you develop a severe skin rash that causes blistering, (this can affect the mouth and tongue). These may be signs of a condition known as Stevens Johnson Syndrome, or toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN). Your doctor will stop your treatment in these cases.
• If you have a serious skin condition with a rash (sometimes confined to the cheeks and bridge of the nose) peeling skin or blistering. It may be triggered or aggravated by sunlight. Should this occur, stop taking this medicine, avoid strong sunlight and contact your doctor promptly.
• If you are generally feeling unwell, have a fever, have pains in your joints, hives, swollen glands, rash and itching. These may be signs of a condition known as serum sickness. Your doctor will stop your treatment in these cases.

Tell your doctor immediately if you experience any of the following symptoms after taking this medicine as they will stop treatment in these cases:

• If you notice any unexplained bleeding.
• If you notice bruising, fever, rash, pallor (paleness), a severe sore throat or tiredness. These may be the first signs of an abnormality of the blood, including decreases in the number of red cells, white cells or platelets. Your doctor will take regular blood samples to test for these effects.

Tests on your blood, kidneys, liver and urine

• Your doctor will be taking blood tests to check your blood and your kidneys before you start treatment and regularly during treatment. They will also measure substances produced by your liver known as enzymes (liver function tests) at regular intervals. They may also test your urine for protein and blood.

Other side-effects that may occur are

Very common side-effects which may affect more than 1 person in 10 are listed below:

• Indigestion, heartburn
• feeling sick (nausea)

Common side-effects which may affect more than 1 person in 100 are listed below:

• dizziness
• headache
• changes in taste
• ringing in the ears
• cough
• itching of the skin
• joint pain
• protein in urine
• fever

Can I drink alcohol while taking it?

• There are no known interactions between alcohol and Salazopyrin
• Always ask you doctor or pharmacist however as other medications you are taking may have a bearing on this.

What if I’m pregnant/breastfeeding?

• You should only use this medicine during pregnancy if your doctor thinks that you need it this medicine may decrease fertility because it affects sperm count. After stopping the medicine the sperm count usually returns to normal after some time.
• Talk to your doctor before breast feeding while taking salazopyrin.

If you have any more questions please ask your Pharmacist.

Remember to keep all medicines out of reach of children
Please Note: We have made every effort to ensure that the content of this information sheet is correct at time of publish, but remember that information about drugs may change. This sheet does not list all the uses and side-effects associated with this drug. For full details please see the drug information leaflet which comes with your medicine. Your doctor will assess your medical circumstances and draw your attention to any information or side-effects which may be relevant in your particular case.

References:

http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/medicines/digestive-health/a7499/salazopyrin-en-tabs-sulfasalazine/

http://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/medicine/3344/SPC/Salazopyrin+Tablets/

http://www.medsafe.govt.nz/consumers/cmi/s/salazopyrin.pdf

http://www.nps.org.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0018/16272/pfcsalat.pdf

http://rheuminfo.com/medications/sulfasalazine/sulfasalazine-salazopyrin-detailed-information