Precautions

Drug information provided by: Merative, Micromedex®

It is very important that your doctor check your and your child's progress at regular visits to make sure this medicine is working properly. Blood tests may be needed to check for unwanted effects.

You should not take this medicine if you are also using alfuzosin (Uroxatral®), atazanavir (Reyataz®), cisapride (Propulsid®), clozapine (Clozaril®), dapsone, dasatinib (Sprycel®), haloperidol (Haldol®), lurasidone (Latuda®), oral midazolam (Versed®), pimozide (Orap®), quinine, rifampin (Rifadin®), sertindole, sildenafil (Revatio®), sunitinib (Sutent®), tacrolimus (Prograf®), trazodone (Desyrel®, Oleptro®), triazolam (Halcion®), ziprasidone (Geodon®), ergotamine medicines (eg, dihydroergotamine, ergonovine, ergotamine, methylergonovine, Cafergot®, Ergomar®, Wigraine®), medicine for heart rhythm problems (eg, amiodarone, bepridil, disopyramide, dofetilide, flecainide, lidocaine, propafenone, quinidine, Cordarone®, Tambocor®, Tikosyn®), medicine to lower cholesterol (eg, lovastatin, simvastatin, Advicor®, Altoprev®, Mevacor®, Simcor®, Vytorin®, Zocor®), medicine to treat an infection (eg, clarithromycin, erythromycin, halofantrine, pentamidine, Biaxin®, Nebupent®), or phenothiazine medicines (eg, chlorpromazine, thioridazine, Mellaril®, Thorazine®). Taking any of these together with this medicine may increase the chance for serious side effects.

Do not use this medicine together with rilpivirine (Edurant®). Do not switch rilpivirine to saquinavir/ritonavir without a washout period of at least 2 weeks.

This medicine may decrease the effects of some oral contraceptives (birth control pills). To keep from getting pregnant, use an additional form of birth control together with your pills, such as condoms, a diaphragm, contraceptive foam or jelly.

Contact your doctor right away if you have any changes to your heart rhythm. You might feel dizzy or faint, or you might have a fast, pounding, or uneven heartbeat. Make sure your doctor knows if you or anyone in your family has ever had a heart rhythm problem such as PR or QT prolongation.

This medicine may increase blood sugar levels. Diabetic patients should check with their doctor if they notice a change in blood or urine sugar tests.

Check with your doctor right away if you have pain or tenderness in the upper stomach, pale stools, dark urine, loss of appetite, nausea, unusual tiredness or weakness, or yellow eyes or skin. These could be symptoms of a serious liver problem.

Your immune system may get stronger when you start taking HIV medicines. Tell your doctor right away if you notice any changes in your health. Sometimes the immune system will start to fight infections that were hidden in your body, such as pneumonia, herpes, or tuberculosis. Autoimmune disorders, such as Graves' disease, polymyositis, and Guillain-Barré syndrome may also occur.

This medicine may cause you to have excess body fat. Tell your doctor if you notice changes in your body shape, such as an increased amount of fat in the upper back and neck, or around the chest and stomach area, or a loss of fat from the legs, arms, and face.

This medicine will not keep you from giving HIV to your partner during sex. Make sure you understand this and practice safe sex, even if your partner also has HIV, by using a latex condom or other barrier method. This medicine will also not keep you from giving HIV to other people if they are exposed to your blood. Do not re-use or share needles with anyone.

Do not take other medicines unless they have been discussed with your doctor. This includes prescription or nonprescription (over-the-counter [OTC]) medicines and herbal (eg, St. John's wort, garlic capsules) or vitamin supplements.