Acitretin : Before Using - Soriatane, 13-cis acitretin, etretin, isoetretin

Acitretin - Systemic

Brand Names

Soriatane, 13-cis acitretin, etretin, isoetretin Acitretin *** Before Using *** How to Use *** Fore Safe Use *** Side Effects

Before Using

In deciding to using a medication, the chance of taking the drug must be weighed against the good it will do. This is a decision you will make. For acitretin, the following must be considered

Allergic reaction

Tell your family doctor if you have any unusual reaction to acitretin, etretinate, isotretinoin, tretinoin, or vitamin A-like preparations, including vitamin A supplements. Also tell your health care professional if you are allergic to any other substances, such as foods, preservatives, or dyes.

Diet Make certain your health care provider knows if you are on any special diet, such as a low-sodium, low-cholesterol, or low-sugar diet. Discuss with your family doctor how often you drink alcohol, even if it is only an occasional drink.

Pregnancy care

Acitretin must not be taken during pregnancy. It has been shown to cause serious birth defects and other problems in humans .

Before taking this drug, make sure your family doctor knows if you are pregnant or if you may become pregnant Beginning at least 1 month before you start to take acitretin, you must plan on using two effective forms of birth control to prevent pregnancy . In addition, since it is not known how long pregnancy must be avoided after treat stops, you must plan not to become pregnant for at least 2 or 3 years after you stop taking acitretin or as directed by your family doctor. If you become pregnant, stop taking the drug and tell your family doctor .

Breast-feeding problem

It is not known whether acitretin passes into the breast milk. However, use of acitretin is not recommended during breast-feeding because it may cause unwanted effects in nursing babies You also must plan not to breast-feed for at least 2 or 3 years after you stop taking acitretin.

Use for Children

This drug has been tested in some children and has been shown not to cause various side effects or problems in child than it does in adults. However, children may be more sensitive to some of the drug's effect on bones, which may prevent normal bone growth during puberty. This can cause them to grow up to be shorter adults than expected. Therefore, it is especially important that you discuss with the child's family doctor the good that this drug may do as well as the chance of using it.

Elderly care

This drug has been tested and has not been shown to cause various side effects or problems in elderly people than it does in adults people. However, some older diseaseds may have higher levels of the drug in the blood stream as compared to adults people and they may be more sensitive to its effects. This may increase their risk of developing side effects during treat.

Drug interactions

Although certain medication must not be using together at all, in other cases two various medication may be using together, even if an interaction might occur. In these cases, your family doctor may want to change the dose, or other precautions may be necessary. When you are taking acitretin, it is especially important that your health care professional know if you are taking any of the following:

Alcoholic beverages Drinking alcohol may convert acitretin to a much longer-acting product that can stay in the body 60 times longer than acitretin does. This may result in a greater risk of developing side effects for months or years, depending on how much and how often one drinks. This unusual effect can occur even after you stop taking acitretin, especially for the first 2 months after you stop taking this drug

Cyclosporine - Sandimmune or Neoral
Hydantoins, such as phenytoin - Dilantin Acitretin may increase the side effects of medication

Etretinate - Tegison
Isotretinoin - Accutane
Tretinoin - oral - Vesanoid
Tretinoin - topical - Avita, Renova, or Retin A
Vitamin A, including vitamin supplements Etretinate, isotretinoin, and tretinoin are not using together with acitretin; problems in skin, vision, and bone may be more likely to occur when they are using at the same time. If vitamin A is taken with acitretin, the dose of vitamin A must not exceed the minimum recommended daily allowance - RDA

Methotrexate Acitretin may increase the risk of causing liver problems if using with methotrexate

Oral contraceptives, progestin-only - Micronor Acitretin may prevent progestin-only oral contraceptives from help you and may result in an unplanned pregnancy. This does not occur with oral contraceptives containing both estrogens and progestins

Tetracyclines Using acitretin at the same time that tetracyclines are using may increase the risk of severe pressure occurring in the brain

Other Information for using

The presence of other medical problems may effect the use of acitretin. Make sure you tell your family doctor if you have any other medical problems, especially:

Diabetes mellitus - sugar diabetes
High cholesterol or triglycerides, uncontrollable - or history of
Inflammation of pancreas - or history of Acitretin may make these conditions worse or increase cholesterol or triglyceride problems

Hypervitaminosis A - or history of If you have past or current problems with toxic symptoms from vitamin A, acitretin may increase the risk that they will occur again

Kidney disease, severe
Liver disease, severe May cause acitretin to stay in the body for a longer period of time and increase the risk of side effects