Phenytoin-injection

• If you have an allergy to phenytoin or any other part of this medicine.
• 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 are taking delavirdine.
• If you have heart problems.
• If you have had liver problems in the past while taking phenytoin injection.
• If you are breast-feeding or plan to breast-feed.

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

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 phenytoin injection with all of your drugs and health problems. Do not start, stop, or change the dose of any drug without checking with your doctor.

• Avoid driving and doing other tasks or actions that call for you to be alert until you see how this medicine affects you.
• Very bad and sometimes deadly skin reactions (Stevens-Johnson syndrome/toxic epidermal necrolysis) have happened with phenytoin injection. People of Asian descent are most likely to get these. 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.
• Patients who take this medicine may be at a greater risk of having thoughts or actions of suicide. The risk may be greater in people who have had these thoughts or actions in the past. Call the doctor right away if signs like low mood (depression), nervousness, restlessness, grouchiness, panic attacks, or changes in mood or actions are new or worse. Call the doctor right away if any thoughts or actions of suicide occur.
• Lymph node problems like cancer have happened in people taking phenytoin injection. It is not known if this medicine may be the cause. Talk with your doctor if you have swollen glands.
• Have the level of phenytoin in your blood checked as you have been told by your doctor. If the level is too high, some side effects may happen. This includes a type of brain problem that may not go back to normal. Talk with your doctor.
• This medicine may cause weak bones. This may happen more often if used for a long time. This may raise the chance of broken bones. Call your doctor right away if you have bone pain.
• If you have high blood sugar (diabetes), you will need to watch your blood sugar closely. Tell your doctor if you get signs of high blood sugar like confusion, feeling sleepy, more thirst, more hungry, passing urine more often, flushing, fast breathing, or breath that smells like fruit.
• This medicine may cause tissue damage if the drug leaks from the vein. Tell your nurse if you have any redness, burning, pain, swelling, blisters, skin sores, or leaking of fluid where the drug is going into your body.
• If you are 65 or older, use phenytoin injection with care. You could have more side effects.
• Birth control pills and other hormone-based birth control may not work as well to prevent pregnancy. Use some other kind of birth control also like a condom when taking this medicine.
• 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 phenytoin injection, call your doctor right away.
• A bleeding problem that can be life-threatening may happen in newborns if you took this medicine during pregnancy. Talk 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.
• Change in balance.
• Trouble walking.
• Feeling confused.
• Slurred speech.
• Swollen or sore gums.
• Very bad muscle pain.
• Trouble controlling body movements.
• If seizures are worse or not the same after starting this medicine.
• A burning, numbness, or tingling feeling that is not normal.
• Not able to control eye movements.
• Shakiness.
• Fast or slow heartbeat.
• Very bad dizziness or passing out.
• Change in skin color to black or purple.
• A very bad and sometimes deadly effect has happened in people taking drugs for seizures like phenytoin injection. Call your doctor right away if you have swollen glands; fever; rash; chest pain; unable to pass urine or change in the amount of urine passed; or signs of liver problems like dark urine, feeling tired, not hungry, upset stomach or stomach pain, light-colored stools, throwing up, or yellow skin or eyes.
• Rarely, certain blood problems have happened with this medicine. This can lead to bleeding problems or infections. Sometimes, these have been deadly. Tell your doctor right away if you have signs of infection like fever, chills, very bad sore throat, ear or sinus pain, cough, more sputum or change in color of sputum, pain with passing urine, mouth sores, or a wound that will not heal. Tell your doctor right away if you have any unexplained bruising or bleeding, or if you feel very tired or weak.
• This medicine may cause very bad and sometimes deadly heartbeats that are not normal. Call your doctor right away if you have a heartbeat that does not feel normal.

• If your symptoms or health problems do not get better or if they become worse, call your doctor.
• Do not share your drugs with others and do not take anyone else's drugs.
• Keep a list of all your drugs (prescription, natural products, vitamins, OTC) with you. Give this list to your doctor.
• Talk with the doctor before starting any new drug, including prescription or OTC, natural products, or vitamins.
• 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.
• Some drugs may have another patient information leaflet. Check with your pharmacist. If you have any questions about this medicine, please talk with your doctor, nurse, pharmacist, or other health care provider.
• 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.

This information should not be used to decide whether or not to take phenytoin injection or any other medicine. Only the healthcare provider has the knowledge and training to decide which medicines are right for a specific patient. This information does not endorse any medicine as safe, effective, or approved for treating any patient or health condition. This is only a brief summary of general information about this medicine. It does NOT include all information about the possible uses, directions, warnings, precautions, interactions, adverse effects, or risks that may apply to phenytoin injection. This information is not specific medical advice and does not replace information you receive from the healthcare provider. You must talk with the healthcare provider for complete information about the risks and benefits of using this medicine.

Review Date: October 4, 2017