What happens if you miss a dose of pradaxa

Tell your healthcare provider if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. Tell your healthcare provider if you are a female who is able to become pregnant.

Talk with your healthcare provider about your risk for severe bleeding from the uterus if you are treated with blood thinner medicines, including PRADAXA. Tell your healthcare provider if you are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. It is important to tell your healthcare provider about all medicines prescription and over-the-counter , vitamins, and supplements you take.

You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Clopidogrel Plavix is a medication that works by preventing the platelets in your blood from clotting. This is because it may increase your risk for bleeding.

NSAIDs are medications that are usually used to ease fever, swelling, and pain. The drug dronedarone Multaq can increase the level of Pradaxa in your body if you have kidney problems such as chronic kidney disease. This can be dangerous, because if you have more Pradaxa in your body, you may have more severe side effects and an increased risk for bleeding.

If you have kidney problems such as chronic kidney disease, you may need to avoid taking certain oral medications that treat fungal infections while using Pradaxa. Oral medications are drugs in pill, capsule, or liquid form that you swallow. Taking an antifungal medication with Pradaxa may increase the level of Pradaxa in your body if you have kidney problems. And this rise in the Pradaxa level may increase the risk of bleeding or side effects.

Examples of antifungal medications that people with kidney problems should avoid while taking Pradaxa include:. They may advise you to use an antifungal cream instead. Rifampin can decrease the level of Pradaxa in your body. The effects of Pradaxa and other anticoagulants will combine and may increase the risk for side effects and bleeding. However, you should still check with your doctor or pharmacist before using any of these products while taking Pradaxa.

Using more than the recommended dosage of Pradaxa can lead to serious side effects. Because this medication makes it harder for your blood to clot, taking too much can make you bleed and be very serious. This helps decrease your risk of having serious side effects from Pradaxa.

You can also call the American Association of Poison Control Centers at or use their online tool. But if your symptoms are severe, call or go to the nearest emergency room right away.

As with all medications, the cost of Pradaxa can vary. To find current prices for Pradaxa in your area, check out GoodRx. The cost you find on GoodRx. Your insurance plan may require you to get prior authorization before approving coverage for Pradaxa. This means that your doctor and insurance company will need to communicate about your prescription before the insurance company will cover the drug.

The insurance company will review the request and let you and your doctor know if your plan will cover Pradaxa. If you need financial support to pay for Pradaxa, help is available. Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc. You should take Pradaxa at the same time each day. No, you should swallow Pradaxa capsules whole. Never break, crush, chew, or open them. Your body will absorb the medication too quickly if you open or chew the capsules.

A-fib is a condition in which your heartbeat is irregular. People with A-fib may have heart palpitations feeling of skipped or extra heartbeats , a fast heart rate, or feel tired or short of breath.

Pradaxa can also be used to treat blood clots. Certain situations may increase your risk for a blood clot. These include:. Pradaxa can also be used to help prevent blood clots in people having a hip replacement or in people who have had a deep vein thrombosis DVT or pulmonary embolism PE in the past.

A DVT is a blood clot in a large vein in your body, usually in your lower legs, and a PE is a blood clot in the lungs. Pradaxa works by decreasing the risk of a blood clot forming.

The drug blocks an enzyme in your blood called thrombin. Thrombin is responsible for clotting in your blood. By blocking thrombin, Pradaxa helps prevent your body from forming blood clots.

Pradaxa starts working to help prevent or treat blood clots within hours after taking the medication. However, you need to take it once or twice a day, every day, to make sure that you always have enough medication in your body to help prevent or treat a blood clot. During labor, Pradaxa may increase the risk of blood clots in certain women.

The drug may also increase the risk of bleeding in the baby. Pradaxa may also make it less likely for a fertilized egg to be implanted in the uterus.

In an animal study , pregnant animals who were given Pradaxa had increased bleeding in their vagina and uterus. They were also less able to have a fertilized egg implanted in their uterus. The offspring had an increased risk of delayed or irregular bone formation and death.

They can help you determine the best treatment plan. In an animal study , the medication and its metabolites were found in breast milk. When Pradaxa breaks down in your body, it turns into substances called metabolites.

They can discuss your treatment options and the best way to feed your child. This drug has boxed warnings. It alerts doctors and patients about drug effects that may be dangerous. Before taking Pradaxa, talk with your doctor about your health history. Pradaxa may not be right for you if you have certain medical conditions or other factors affecting your health. When you get Pradaxa from the pharmacy, the pharmacist will add an expiration date to the label on the bottle or blister package.

This date is typically 1 year from the date they dispensed the medication. The expiration date helps guarantee that the medication is effective during this time. If you have unused medication that has gone past the expiration date, talk with your pharmacist about whether you might still be able to use it. How long a medication remains good can depend on many factors, including how and where you store the medication. Avoid storing this medication in areas where it could get damp or wet, such as in bathrooms.

These capsules must be kept dry and away from moisture for them to remain effective. Always keep your bottle tightly closed after taking your dose. This helps prevent others, including children and pets, from taking the drug by accident. It also helps keep the drug from harming the environment.

The FDA website provides several useful tips on medication disposal. You can also ask your pharmacist for information on how to dispose of your medication. Pradaxa is only good for 4 months after opening the bottle. Pradaxa belongs to the class of medications known as direct oral anticoagulants DOACs.

It works by directly blocking thrombin. The usual action of thrombin is to convert fibrinogen to fibrin during coagulation. By blocking thrombin, fibrin is not produced and a thrombus does not develop. The maximum concentration of Pradaxa occurs at about 1-hour post-dose in a fasted patient.

Taking Pradaxa along with a high-fat meal can delay the maximum concentration reached by about 2 hours post-dose.

However, a high-fat meal has no effect on the bioavailability of Pradaxa. Therefore, this medication can be taken with or without food.

It is converted from dabigatran etexilate to dabigatran by hydrolysis. It is not a substrate, inducer, or inhibitor of the cytochrome p enzymes. Dabigatran is then conjugated and forms four acyl glucuronides.

The half-life of dabigatran is 12 to 17 hours. It should always be stored in its original container. Disclaimer: Medical News Today has made every effort to make certain that all information is factually correct, comprehensive, and up-to-date.

However, this article should not be used as a substitute for the knowledge and expertise of a licensed healthcare professional. If you're taking warfarin, you will need regular blood tests to check how quickly your blood clots. This is measured using the international normalisation ratio INR. Your INR will be regularly tested at your GP surgery or anticoagulant clinic to make sure your blood doesn't clot too slowly or too quickly. Your warfarin dose will be adjusted until your INR is in the correct range.

Your INR may need to be tested every other day at first until you're on the right dose. Once your INR stabilises in the correct range, these tests will be needed less frequently. There are now home testing kits to monitor your INR. This kit may be useful for some people, but you'll need training to use it and you'll usually need to pay for one yourself. Speak to your doctor or nurse if you're considering using a home testing kit.

If you're taking apixaban, dabigatran, edoxaban or rivaroxaban, you won't need to have regular blood tests to monitor your INR. If you forget to take a dose of Pradaxa and only a few hours have passed, go ahead and take it. But if you're supposed to take the next dose within the next six hours, skip the dose you missed and take the next dose at the normal time. Never take two doses of Pradaxa at the same time. Continue Learning about Anticoagulant What is an anticoagulant?