Warning Labels Added to HIV Prescriptions Medication
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Warning labels must now appear on the HIV prescriptions medication Invirase to warn patients of a potentially deadly combination when taken with Norvir, another HIV drug. Both drugs are classified as protease inhibitors by the FDA and prevent the HIV viral infection from multiplying. Both medications are frequently prescribed together to prevent the HIV virus from attacking and weakening the patient’s immune system.
Physicians often combine pharmaceutical drugs to improve success rates for patients. However, the warning comes after documented cases of heart problems (which regularly occur in immune-deficient HIV patients) were examined. The FDA’s decision comes after a preliminary review of Invirase in February. The report associated abnormal heart rhythms, torsade de pointes, and fainting and heart blocks – side effects that can be life threatening if taking the two drugs together.
The FDA has deemed that the risks of the Invirase/Norvir combination far outweigh the potential risks. Physicians are also urged to prescribe alternative treatments to HIV patients with preexisting heart conditions.
Prescriptions Medication and Deadly Combinations
Many prescription drugs can produce a lethal combination when mixed with other medications, even those of the same class. Even innocuous OTC medications can bring about dangerous side effects and interferences when combined with the properties of certain drugs. Patients should consult the medication’s leaflet or an online prescriptions drugs database that lists safety information for individual drugs.
It is absolutely essential for patients to always disclose what prescriptions medication you are currently taking when consulting with your physician.
