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Amiloride Consumer Information

AMILORIDE

Generic Name: amiloride (a MIH low ride)

Brand Names: Midamor

What is the most important information I should know about amiloride?

• To reduce nighttime urination, take amiloride early in the day unless otherwise directed by your doctor.
• Take amiloride with food or milk to lessen stomach upset.
• Do not use salt substitutes or low-sodium milk products that contain potassium while taking amiloride. These products could cause high levels of potassium in your blood. Ask your doctor or pharmacist about any salt substitutes you are taking.

What is amiloride?

• Amiloride is in a class of drugs called potassium-sparing diuretics (water pills). It is used to reduce the amount of fluid in the body without causing the loss of potassium.
• Amiloride is used to treat edema (swelling) and hypertension (high blood pressure).
• Amiloride may also be used for purposes other than those listed in this medication guide.

Who should not take amiloride?

• Before taking amiloride, tell your doctor if you
• have kidney disease;
• have liver disease;
• have diabetes mellitus;
• have high levels of potassium in your blood; or
• are taking a potassium supplement or an angiotensin-converting-enzyme inhibitor (ACE inhibitor) such as captopril (Capoten), benazepril (Lotensin), lisinopril (Prinivil, Zestril), enalapril (Vasotec), or others.
• You may not be able to take amiloride, or you may require a dosage adjustment or special monitoring during treatment if you have any of the conditions listed above.
• Amiloride is in the FDA pregnancy category B. This means that it is unlikely to harm an unborn baby. Do not take amiloride without first talking to your doctor if you are pregnant.
• It is not known whether amiloride passes into breast milk. Do not take amiloride without first talking to your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby.

How should I take amiloride?

• Take amiloride exactly as directed by your doctor. If you do not understand these directions, ask your pharmacist, nurse, or doctor to explain them to you.
• Take each dose with a full glass of water.
• Take amiloride with food or milk to lessen stomach upset.
• To reduce nighttime urination, take amiloride early in the day unless otherwise directed by your doctor.
• Do not stop taking amiloride suddenly even if you feel better. Stopping suddenly could make your condition worse.
• Store amiloride at room temperature away from moisture and heat.

What happens if I miss a dose?

• Take the missed dose as soon as you remember. If it is almost time for your next dose, skip the dose you missed and take only you next regularly scheduled dose as directed. Do not take a double dose of this medication.

What happens if I overdose?

• Seek emergency medical attention.
• Symptoms of an amiloride overdose include an irregular heartbeat, lethargy, fatigue, weakness, drowsiness, dizziness, confusion, shortness of breath, nausea, and vomiting.

What should I avoid while taking amiloride?

• Do not use salt substitutes or low-sodium milk products that contain potassium while taking amiloride. These products could cause high levels of potassium in your blood. Ask your doctor or pharmacist about any salt substitutes you are taking.

What are the possible side effects of amiloride?

• Stop taking amiloride and seek emergency medical attention if you experience any of the following serious side effects:
• an allergic reaction (difficulty breathing; closing of your throat; swelling of your lips, tongue, or face; or hives);
• an irregular heartbeat, shortness of breath, fatigue, confusion, weakness, numbness, or tingling (caused by high levels of potassium in your blood); or
• decreased urination.
• Other, less serious side effects may be more likely to occur. Continue to take amiloride and talk to your doctor if you experience
• headache or dizziness;
• nausea, diarrhea, a decrease in appetite, or bloating;
• dry mouth;
• muscle cramps; or
• lowering of the voice, excessive hair growth, or enlarged breasts.
• Side effects other than those listed here may also occur. Talk to your doctor about any side effect that seems unusual or that is especially bothersome.

What other drugs will affect amiloride?

• Before taking amiloride tell your doctor if you are taking any of the following medications:
• lithium (Lithobid, Eskalith, others);
• a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) such as ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil, Nuprin), naproxen (Naprosyn, Anaprox, Aleve), ketoprofen (Orudis, Orudis KT, Oruvail), indomethacin (Indocin), diclofenac (Cataflam, Voltaren), etodolac (Lodine), nabumetone (Relafen), oxaprozin (Daypro), piroxicam (Feldene), sulindac (Clinoril), tolmetin (Tolectin), fenoprofen (Nalfon), ketorolac (Toradol), or flurbiprofen (Ansaid); or
• a diabetes medication such as glipizide (Glucotrol), glyburide (Micronase, Glynase, Diabeta), chlorpropamide (Diabinese), tolazamide (Tolinase), tolbutamide (Orinase), and others.
• You may not be able to take amiloride, or you may require a dosage adjustment or special monitoring during treatment if you are taking any of the medications listed above.
• Also, before taking amiloride, tell your doctor if you are taking any other medicine to treat high blood pressure, water retention, heart problems, prostate problems, or another condition. Some medicines used to treat these conditions may interact with amiloride and the effects on your heart may be increased.
• Drugs other than those listed here may also interact with amiloride. Talk to your doctor and pharmacist before taking any prescription or over-the-counter medicines.

Where can I get more information?

• Your pharmacist has additional information about amiloride written for health professionals that you may read.
• Remember, keep this and all other medicines out of the reach of children. Never share your medicines with others and only use this medication for the condition prescribed.

Limitations of This Canadian Pharmacy Information

Efforts have been made to ensure that the information provided here is accurate, up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. Drug information contained herein may be time sensitive. This information does not endorse drugs, diagnose patients or recommend therapy. This is an educational resource only intended to supplement but not to replace the expertise, skill, knowledge and judgment of healthcare practitioners. The absence of a warning for a given drug or drug combination in no way should be construed to indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective or appropriate for any given patient. The information contained herein is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. If you have questions about the drugs you are taking, please check with your doctor, nurse or local pharmacist. This site does not assume any responsibility for any aspect of healthcare administered with the aid of information provided here.

Full public license and copyright information is available separately from Cerner Multum, Inc.

Version: 4.03. Revision date: 6/3/03.