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Cautions
Before having any kind of surgery (including dental surgery) or emergency treatment, tell the medical doctor or dentist in charge that you are taking this medicine. Serious side effects can occur if y
our medical doctor or dentist gives you certain medicines without knowing that you have taken butalbital.
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What special precautions should I follow?
Make sure you tell your doctor if you have any other medical problems, especially:
- Alcohol abuse or
- Drug abuse or dependence¡XDependence on butalbital may develop; also, acetaminophen ma
cause liver damage in people who abuse alcohol
- Asthma, emphysema, or other chronic lung disease or
- Hepatitis or other liver disease or
- Hyperactivity (in children) or
- Kidne
y disease¡XThe chance of serious side effects may be increased
- Diabetes mellitus (sugar diabetes) or
- Mental depression or
- Overactive thyroid or
- Porphyria¡XButalbital can ma
these conditions worse
- Heart disease (severe)¡XThe caffeine in some butalbital and acetaminophen combinations can make some kinds of heart disease worse
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What is this Drug
Esgic contains Acetaminophen / butalbital / caffeine. Acetaminophen is a pain reliever and fever reducer. Butalbital is in a class of drugs called barbiturates that slow down your central nervous syst
em (brain and nerve impulses) causing relaxation. Caffeine is believed to constrict dilated blood vessels that may contribute to tension headaches. Together, acetaminophen, butalbital, and caffeine ar
e used to relieve complex tension (muscle contraction) headaches although precisely how it works is unknown.
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Proper Use of This Medicine
People who get a lot of headaches may need to take a different medicine to help prevent headaches. It is important that you follow your doctor's directions about taking the other medicine, even if you
r headaches continue to occur. Headache-preventing medicines may take several weeks to start working. Even after they do start working, your headaches may not go away completely. However, your headach
es should occur less often, and they should be less severe and easier to relieve than before. This will reduce the amount of headache relievers that you need. If you do not notice any improvement afte
r several weeks of headache-preventing treatment, check with your doctor.
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Symptoms of overdose may include:
Anxiety, confusion, excitement, irritability, nervousness, restlessness, or trouble in sleeping (severe, especially with products containing caffeine) ; convulsions (seizures) (for products containin
g caffeine); diarrhea, especially if occurring together with increased sweating, loss of appetite, and stomach cramps or pain; dizziness, lightheadedness, drowsiness, or weakness, (severe) ; freque
nt urination (for products containing caffeine) ; hallucinations (seeing, hearing, or feeling things that are not there); increased sensitivity to touch or pain (for products containing caffeine);
muscle trembling or twitching (for products containing caffeine); nausea or vomiting, sometimes with blood;
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Drug Interactions
When you are taking a butalbital and acetaminophen combination, it is especially important that your health care professional know if you are taking any of the following:
- Anticoagulants (b
lood thinners), or
- Carbamazepine (e.g., Tegretol) or
- Contraceptives, oral (birth control pills) containing estrogen, or
- Corticosteroids (cortisone-like medicines) or
- Cortic
otropin (e.g., ACTH)¡XButalbital may make these medicines less effective
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