Sytobex

Cyanocobalamin is a prescription medication used to treat and prevent a lack of vitamin B12 that may be caused by any of the following:

• pernicious anemia (lack of a natural substance needed to absorb vitamin B12 from the intestine)
• folic acid deficiency
• certain diseases
• infections
• malignancy of pancreas or bowel
• medications that decrease the amount of vitamin B12 absorbed from food
• a vegan diet (strict vegetarian diet that does not allow any animal products, including dairy products and eggs)

This medication may be prescribed for other uses. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information.

Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take, including prescription and non-prescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. Especially tell your doctor if you take:

• antibiotics such as chloramphenicol (Chloromycetin, Mychel-S)
• colchicine (Colcrys)
• folic acid
• methotrexate (Rheumatrex, Trexall)
• para-aminosalicylic acid (Paser)
• pyrimethamine (Daraprim)

Your doctor may need to change the doses of your medications or monitor you carefully for side effects.

This is not a complete list of cyanocobalamin drug interactions. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information.

Medications can interact with certain foods. In some cases, this may be harmful and your doctor may advise you to avoid certain foods. In the case of cyanocobalamin, there are no specific foods that you must exclude from your diet when receiving this medication.

Before taking cyanocobalamin, tell your doctor about all of your medical conditions. Especially tell your doctor if you:

• are allergic to cyanocobalamin or to any of its ingredients
• are allergic to hydroxocobalamin; multi-vitamins; any other medications or vitamins; or cobalt.
• drink or have ever drunk large amounts of alcohol
• have or have ever had Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (slow, painless loss of vision, first in one eye and then in the other)
• have kidney disease
• are pregnant, plan to become pregnant, or are breast-feeding. If you become pregnant while using cyanocobalamin injection, call your doctor. Talk to your doctor about the amount of vitamin B12 you should get every day when you are pregnant or breast-feeding.

Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take including prescription and non-prescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements.

Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant.

The FDA categorizes medications based on safety for use during pregnancy. Five categories - A, B, C, D, and X, are used to classify the possible risks to an unborn baby when a medication is taken during pregnancy.

Cyanocobalamin falls into category C.There are no well-controlled studies that have been done in pregnant women. Cyanocobalamin should be used during pregnancy only if the possible benefit outweighs the possible risk to the unborn baby.

However, vitamin B12 is an essential vitamin and requirements are increased during pregnancy. Amounts of vitamin B12 that are recommended by the Food and Nutrition Board, National Academy of Science-National Research Council for pregnant women (4 mcg daily) should be consumed during pregnancy.

Take Cyanocobalamin exactly as prescribed.

This medication is available in an injectable form to be given directly into the muscle (IM) or under the skin by a healthcare professional.

Patients with pernicious anemia will require monthly injections of vitamin B12 for the remainder of their lives.

If you miss a dose, take the missed dose as soon as you remember. If it is almost time for the next dose, skip the missed dose and take your next dose at the regular time. Do not take two doses of cyanocobalamin at the same time.