Antabuse

Antabuse is used to help people suffering from alcohol addiction. It works in a very simple way: by making the patient feel ill when drinking. As the result of this «aversion therapy» the patient is able to fight the desire to drink and deal with the addiction. Do not combine Antabuse with any other drugs without your doctor’s recommendation. The medicines you need to be especially careful with include isoniazid, monoamine oxidase inhibitors, tricyclic antidepressant, warfarin, benzodiazepine, phenytoin, metronidazole, theophylline, and lithium.

Antabuse can pass into breast milk in very small quantities, and it is not known exactly whether it is able to affect the health of an unborn baby. Unpleasant reaction occurs only when the patient drinks some alcohol or consumes products containing small quantities of it – such as vinegar, mouth washes, sauces and many others. The symptoms you are likely to experience when Antabuse interacts with alcohol include fast heartbeat, vertigo, high blood pressure, nausea, feeling of thirst, flushing and chest pain. Some of the side effects you may experience when taking Antabuse include acne or mild skin rash, headache, impotence, sore tongue or metallic taste in the mouth.