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How should you take this medication?
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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Precautions Before Using This Medicine
Older adults¡X
- For butalbital: Certain side effects, such as confusion, excitement, or mental depression, may be especially likely to occur in elderly patients, who are usually more sensit
ve than younger adults to the effects of the butalbital in this combination medicine.
- For acetaminophen: Acetaminophen has been tested and has not been shown to cause different side effects or
problems in older people than it does in younger adults.
- For caffeine: There is no specific information comparing use of caffeine in the elderly with use in other age groups
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Other Medicines
It is especially important that your health care professional know if you are taking any of the following:
- Antidepressants, tricyclic (amitriptyline [e.g., Elavil], amoxapine [e.g., Asendi
n], clomipramine [e.g., Anafranil], desipramine [e.g., Pertofrane], doxepin [e.g., Sinequan], imipramine [e.g., Tofranil], nortriptyline [e.g., Aventyl], protriptyline [e.g., Vivactil], trimipramine [
e.g., Surmontil]) or
- Central nervous system (CNS) depressants (medicines that often cause drowsiness)¡XThese medicines may add to the effects of butalbital and increase the chance of drowsiness
or other side effects
- Divalproex (e.g., Depakote) or
- Valproic acid (e.g., Depakene)¡XThe chance of side effects may be increased
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Special warnings about this medication
If you think you or anyone else may have taken an overdose of this medicine, get emergency help at once. Taking an overdose of this medicine or taking alcohol or CNS depressants with this medicine may
lead to unconsciousness or possibly death. Signs of butalbital overdose include severe drowsiness, confusion, severe weakness, shortness of breath or unusually slow or troubled breathing, slurred spe
ech, staggering, and unusually slow heartbeat. Signs of severe acetaminophen poisoning may not occur until 2 to 4 days after the overdose is taken, but treatment to prevent liver damage or death must
be started within 24 hours or less after the overdose is taken.
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Why is this drug prescribed?
Fioricet is a barbiturate sedative (butalbital) mixed with a non-aspirin pain medication (acetaminophen) and caffeine. This non-narcotic pain Fioricet and relaxant is often prescribed for tension head
aches caused by contractions of the muscles in the neck and shoulder area, and migraines. . Acetaminophen is a pain reliever and fever reducer. Butalbital is in a class of drugs called barbiturates th
at slow down your central nervous system (brain and nerve impulses) causing relaxation. Conversely, caffeine is believed to constrict dilated blood vessels that may contribute to tension headaches. To
gether, Fioricet / Acetaminophen, butalbital, and caffeine are used to relieve complex tension (muscle contraction) headaches although precisely how it works is unknown.
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