Meperidine Tablets

• If you have an allergy to meperidine or any other part of this medicine (meperidine tablets).
• If you are allergic to any drugs like this one, any other drugs, foods, or other substances. Tell your doctor about the allergy and what signs you had, like rash; hives; itching; shortness of breath; wheezing; cough; swelling of face, lips, tongue, or throat; or any other signs.
• If you have any of these health problems: Lung or breathing problems like asthma, trouble breathing, or sleep apnea; high levels of carbon dioxide in the blood; or stomach or bowel block or narrowing.
• If you are taking any of these drugs: Buprenorphine, butorphanol, nalbuphine, or pentazocine.
• If you have taken certain drugs used for low mood (depression) like isocarboxazid, phenelzine, or tranylcypromine or drugs used for Parkinson's disease like selegiline or rasagiline in the last 14 days. Taking this medicine within 14 days of those drugs can cause very bad high blood pressure.
• If you are taking any of these drugs: Linezolid or methylene blue.

This is not a list of all drugs or health problems that interact with this medicine (meperidine tablets).

Tell your doctor and pharmacist about all of your drugs (prescription or OTC, natural products, vitamins) and health problems. You must check to make sure that it is safe for you to take this medicine with all of your drugs and health problems. Do not start, stop, or change the dose of any drug without checking with your doctor.

WARNING/CAUTION: Even though it may be rare, some people may have very bad and sometimes deadly side effects when taking a drug. Tell your doctor or get medical help right away if you have any of the following signs or symptoms that may be related to a very bad side effect:

• Signs of an allergic reaction, like rash; hives; itching; red, swollen, blistered, or peeling skin with or without fever; wheezing; tightness in the chest or throat; trouble breathing or talking; unusual hoarseness; or swelling of the mouth, face, lips, tongue, or throat.
• Very bad dizziness or passing out.
• Feeling confused.
• Feeling very sleepy.
• Very upset stomach or throwing up.
• Very hard stools (constipation).
• Feeling very tired or weak.
• Seizures.
• Chest pain or pressure or a fast heartbeat.
• Slow heartbeat.
• A heartbeat that does not feel normal.
• Trouble passing urine.
• Hallucinations (seeing or hearing things that are not there).
• Mood changes.
• Very bad belly pain.
• Trouble breathing, slow breathing, or shallow breathing.
• Noisy breathing.
• Very bad headache.
• Shakiness.
• Trouble controlling body movements.
• Change in eyesight.
• A very bad and sometimes deadly health problem called serotonin syndrome may happen if you take this medicine (meperidine tablets) with drugs for depression, migraines, or certain other drugs. Call your doctor right away if you have agitation; change in balance; confusion; hallucinations; fever; fast or abnormal heartbeat; flushing; muscle twitching or stiffness; seizures; shivering or shaking; sweating a lot; very bad diarrhea, upset stomach, or throwing up; or very bad headache.
• Taking an opioid drug like this medicine may lead to a rare but very bad adrenal gland problem. Call your doctor right away if you have very bad dizziness or passing out, very bad upset stomach or throwing up, or if you feel less hungry, very tired, or very weak.

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.

Meperidine hydrochloride tablets are indicated for the management of acute pain severe enough to require an opioid analgesic and for which alternative treatments are inadequate.

Limitations of Use

Because of the risks of addiction, abuse, and misuse with opioids, even at recommended doses [see 5.1)], reserve meperidine hydrochloride tablets for use in patients for whom alternative treatment options [e.g., non-opioid analgesics or opioid combination products]:

Meperidine hydrochloride tablets should not be used for treatment of chronic pain. Prolonged meperidine hydrochloride tablets use may increase the risk of toxicity (e.g. seizures) from the accumulation of the meperidine metabolite, normeperidine.

Controlled Substance

Meperidine hydrochloride tablets contain meperidine, a Schedule II controlled substance.

Abuse

Meperidine hydrochloride tablets contain meperidine, a substance with a high potential for abuse similar to other opioids including fentanyl, hydrocodone, hydromorphone, methadone, morphine, oxycodone, oxymorphone, and tapentadol. Meperidine hydrochloride tablets can be abused and is subject to misuse, addiction, and criminal diversion [see 5.1)].

All patients treated with opioids require careful monitoring for signs of abuse and addiction, since use of opioid analgesic products carries the risk of addiction even under appropriate medical use.

Prescription drug abuse is the intentional non-therapeutic use of a prescription drug, even once, for its rewarding psychological or physiological effects.

Drug addiction is a cluster of behavioral, cognitive, and physiological phenomena that develop after repeated substance use and includes: a strong desire to take the drug, difficulties in controlling its use, persisting in its use despite harmful consequences, a higher priority given to drug use than to other activities and obligations, increased tolerance, and sometimes a physical withdrawal.

“Drug seeking” behavior is very common in addicts and drug abusers. Drug-seeking tactics include emergency calls or visits near the end of office hours, refusal to undergo appropriate examination, testing, or referral, repeated “loss” of prescriptions, tampering with prescriptions, and reluctance to provide prior medical records or contact information for other treating healthcare provider(s). “Doctor shopping” (visiting multiple prescribers to obtain additional prescriptions) is common among drug abusers and people suffering from untreated addiction. Preoccupation with achieving adequate pain relief can be appropriate behavior in a patient with poor pain control.

Abuse and addiction are separate and distinct from physical dependence and tolerance. Healthcare providers should be aware that addiction may not be accompanied by concurrent tolerance and symptoms of physical dependence in all addicts. In addition, abuse of opioids can occur in the absence of true addiction.

Meperidine hydrochloride tablets, like other opioids, can be diverted for non-medical use into illicit channels of distribution. Careful record-keeping of prescribing information, including quantity, frequency, and renewal requests, as required by state and federal law, is strongly advised.

Proper assessment of the patient, proper prescribing practices, periodic re-evaluation of therapy, and proper dispensing and storage are appropriate measures that help to limit abuse of opioid drugs.

Meperidine hydrochloride tablets are for oral use only. Abuse of meperidine hydrochloride tablets poses a risk of overdose and death. Meperidine hydrochloride tablets have been reported as being abused by crushing, chewing, snorting, or injecting the dissolved product. The risk is increased with concurrent use of meperidine hydrochloride tablets with alcohol and other central nervous system depressants. In addition, parenteral drug abuse is commonly associated with transmission of infectious diseases such as hepatitis and HIV.

Dependence

Both tolerance and physical dependence can develop during chronic opioid therapy. Tolerance is the need for increasing doses of opioids to maintain a defined effect such as analgesia (in the absence of disease progression or other external factors). Tolerance may occur to both the desired and undesired effects of drugs, and may develop at different rates for different effects.

Physical dependence results in withdrawal symptoms after abrupt discontinuation or a significant dosage reduction of a drug. Withdrawal also may be precipitated through the administration of drugs with opioid antagonist activity (e.g., naloxone, nalmefene), mixed agonist/antagonist analgesics (e.g., pentazocine, butorphanol, nalbuphine), or partial agonists (e.g., buprenorphine). Physical dependence may not occur to a clinically significant degree until after several days to weeks of continued opioid usage.

Meperidine hydrochloride tablets should not be abruptly discontinued [see 2.5)]. If meperidine hydrochloride tablets are abruptly discontinued in a physically-dependent patient, a withdrawal syndrome may occur. Some or all of the following can characterize this syndrome: restlessness, lacrimation, rhinorrhea, yawning, perspiration, chills, myalgia and mydriasis. Other signs and symptoms also may develop, including irritability, anxiety, backache, joint pain, weakness, abdominal cramps, insomnia, nausea, anorexia, vomiting, diarrhea, or increased blood pressure, respiratory rate, or heart rate.

Infants born to mothers physically dependent on opioids will also be physically dependent and may exhibit respiratory difficulties and withdrawal signs [see 8.1)].

Meperidine Hydrochloride Tablets USP, 50 mg are white, round biconvex tablets, debossed “Є” above bisect and “50” below bisect on one side, plain on the other side, available in bottles of 100.

Meperidine Hydrochloride Tablets USP, 100 mg are white, round biconvex tablets, debossed “Є51” on one side and bisected on the other side, available in bottles of 100.

Dispense in a tight, light-resistant container as defined in the USP, with a child-resistant closure (as required).

Store at 20° to 25° C (68° to 77° F) [See USP Controlled Room Temperature].