Demerol (Meperidine Syrup and Oral Solution)

• Tell all of your health care providers that you take Demerol. This includes your doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and dentists.
• Avoid driving and doing other tasks or actions that call for you to be alert until you see how this medicine affects you.
• To lower the chance of feeling dizzy or passing out, rise slowly if you have been sitting or lying down. Be careful going up and down stairs.
• Do not take Demerol (meperidine syrup and oral solution) with other strong pain drugs or if you are using a pain patch without talking to your doctor first.
• Do not use more than what your doctor told you to use. Do not use more often or longer than what you were told. Doing any of these things may raise the chance of very bad side effects.
• If you have been taking this medicine for a long time or at high doses, it may not work as well and you may need higher doses to get the same effect. This is known as tolerance. Call your doctor if Demerol stops working well. Do not take more than ordered.
• If you have been taking this medicine on a regular basis and you stop it all of a sudden, you may have signs of withdrawal. Do not stop taking Demerol all of a sudden without calling your doctor. Tell your doctor if you have any bad effects.
• Long-term use of an opioid drug like this medicine may lead to lower sex hormone levels. This may lead to signs like change in sex ability in men, no menstrual period in women, lowered interest in sex, or fertility problems. Call your doctor if you have any of these signs.
• This medicine may raise the chance of seizures in some people, including people who have had seizures in the past. Talk to your doctor to see if you have a greater chance of seizures while taking Demerol.
• If you are 65 or older, use this medicine with care. You could have more side effects.
• This medicine may cause harm to the unborn baby if you take it while you are pregnant. If you are pregnant or you get pregnant while taking Demerol, call your doctor right away.
• Tell your doctor if you are breast-feeding or plan to breast-feed. This medicine passes into breast milk and may harm your baby.

All drugs may cause side effects. However, many people have no side effects or only have minor side effects. Call your doctor or get medical help if any of these side effects or any other side effects bother you or do not go away:

• Hard stools (constipation).
• Dizziness.
• Feeling sleepy.
• Flushing.
• Upset stomach or throwing up.
• Sweating a lot.
• Feeling tired or weak.
• Headache.
• Belly pain.
• Dry mouth.

These are not all of the side effects that may occur. If you have questions about side effects, call your doctor. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects.

You may report side effects to the FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088. You may also report side effects at http://www.fda.gov/medwatch.

If you think there has been an overdose, call your poison control center or get medical care right away. Be ready to tell or show what was taken, how much, and when it happened.

• Store at room temperature.
• Store in a dry place. Do not store in a bathroom.
• Protect from light.
• Keep all drugs in a safe place. Keep all drugs out of the reach of children and pets.
• Check with your pharmacist about how to throw out unused drugs.