Phenobarbital Injection

• Tell all of your health care providers that you take this medicine. This includes your doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and dentists.
• This medicine may be habit-forming with long-term use.
• Do not stop taking phenobarbital injection all of a sudden without calling your doctor. You may have a greater risk of signs of withdrawal. If you need to stop this medicine, you will want to slowly stop it as ordered by your doctor.
• Have blood work checked as you have been told by the doctor. Talk with the doctor.
• Avoid driving and doing other tasks or actions that call for you to be alert or have clear eyesight until you see how phenobarbital injection affects you.
• Avoid drinking alcohol while taking this medicine.
• Talk with your doctor before you use other drugs and natural products that slow your actions.
• If you are 65 or older, use phenobarbital injection with care. You could have more side effects.
• Do not give this medicine to a newborn. It has benzyl alcohol.
• Birth control pills and other hormone-based birth control may not work as well to prevent pregnancy. Use 2 kinds of birth control while taking phenobarbital injection.
• 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 this medicine, call your doctor right away.
• Tell your doctor if you are breast-feeding. You will need to talk about any risks to your baby.

Use phenobarbital injection as ordered by your doctor. Read all information given to you. Follow all instructions closely.

• It is given as a shot into a muscle or vein.

What do I do if I miss a dose?

• Call your doctor to find out what to do.

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.
• Shortness of breath.
• Trouble breathing, slow breathing, or shallow breathing.
• Very bad dizziness or passing out.
• Slow heartbeat.
• Change in balance.
• Feeling confused.
• Very nervous and excitable.
• Feeling very tired or weak.
• Bone pain.
• Not able to sleep.
• If seizures are worse or not the same after starting this medicine.
• A very bad skin reaction (Stevens-Johnson syndrome/toxic epidermal necrolysis) may happen. It can cause very bad health problems that may not go away, and sometimes death. Get medical help right away if you have signs like red, swollen, blistered, or peeling skin (with or without fever); red or irritated eyes; or sores in your mouth, throat, nose, or eyes.

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:

• Feeling sleepy.
• Dizziness.
• Headache.
• Upset stomach or throwing up.
• Feeling tired or weak.
• Irritation where the shot is given.

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.