PATIENT INFORMATION LEAFLET

Betaloc® Tablets 50 mg and 100 mg

metoprolol tartrate

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT BETALOC® TABLETS 50 mg AND 100 mg

(metoprolol tartrate)

Please read this carefully BEFORE you take your medicine.

If you have any questions or are unsure about anything to do with your medicine please ask your doctor or pharmacist (chemist).

Remember, this medicine is only for you. Only a doctor can prescribe it. Never give it to anyone else even if their symptoms are similar to yours.

WHAT'S IN YOUR MEDICINE?

Betaloc Tablets 50 mg are white, round, film-coated tablets marked "A/BB" on one side with a breakline on the other. Each tablet contains 50 mg of the active ingredient metoprolol tartrate.

Betaloc Tablets 100 mg are white, round, film-coated tablets marked "A/ME" on one side with a breakline on the other. Each tablet contains 100 mg of the active ingredient metoprolol tartrate.

Betaloc Tablets also contain microcrystalline cellulose, lactose, sodium starch glycolate, colloidal silica, polyvidone and magnesium stearate.

Your tablets come in packs of 100 tablets contained in blister strips of 10 tablets.

Metoprolol tartrate is a type of medicine called a beta-blocker. These are medicines which slow the heart rate and lower the blood pressure.

WHAT IS YOUR MEDICINE USED FOR?

Betaloc Tablets are used for treating high blood pressure (hypertension), tight chest pain due to insufficient oxygen for the heart (angina pectoris), and irregular or fast heartbeats (arrhythmias). Betaloc Tablets can also be used with other drugs in the treatment of an overactive thyroid gland (hyperthyroidism), in the early treatment of heart attacks and in the prevention of migraine.

BEFORE TAKING YOUR MEDICINE

Make sure you have told your doctor about any other medicines that you are taking including those bought without a prescription.

Please read the following questions carefully.

The questions below are being asked in order to check that it is suitable for you to take this medicine. If you can answer YES to any of these, talk to your doctor or pharmacist BEFORE taking this medicine.

• Do you suffer from heart failure?
• Do you suffer from a slow heartbeat and feeling faint?
• Have you recently suffered a heart attack complicated by shock?
• Do you have poor circulation in your fingers or toes?
• Are you suffering from an increase in blood acidity as a result of severe illness (metabolic acidosis)?
• Are you allergic to any of the ingredients in Betaloc Tablets?
• Are you pregnant, think you may be pregnant, or considering becoming pregnant?
• Are you breast feeding?
• Do you suffer from unstable angina (non exercise-induced sharp chest pain)?
• Do you have a history of, or currently suffer from psoriasis (severe skin peeling)?
• Do you have a history of allergy, wheezing, asthma or any other breathing difficulties? If your answer to this question is yes, you MUST make sure that your doctor knows about this BEFORE you take your medicine.
• Do you suffer from any thyroid problems?
• Do you have phaeochromocytoma (a rare growth near the kidney that causes high blood pressure)?
• Do you have any liver problems?
• Are you diabetic? If so, your treatment may need to be adjusted.
• Are you taking any of the following: other medicines for high blood pressure such as guanethidine, reserpine or diuretics, medicines for irregular heartbeats such as disopyramide, eye drops, antidepressants, calcium antagonists, phenothiazines, stimulants such as isoprenaline, noradrenaline or adrenaline or any medicines containing verapamil, digitalis, ergotamine, rifampicin, cimetidine, lidocaine (also known as lignocaine), alcohol, hydralazine or indomethacin?

Important: You should not take Betaloc if you have had problems in the past when taking medicines containing metoprolol tartrate or any other beta-blocker or if your doctor has diagnosed cardiogenic shock.

If you feel dizzy or tired after this medicine, you should not drive or operate machinery.

 

TAKING YOUR MEDICINE

It is important to take your medicine as your doctor has told you to. The instructions on the label should remind you of what the doctor has said. The tablets should be swallowed with a drink of water. The usual dosage for each use in adults is:

High blood pressure (Hypertension)

The usual dose is 100 mg to 400 mg a day. You may be asked to take your tablets once or twice daily. Your doctor may prescribe another medicine for high blood pressure in addition to your Betaloc Tablets.

Tight chest pain (Angina)

The usual dose is between 50 mg and 100 mg, twice or three times a day.

Irregular or fast heartbeat (Arrhythmia)

The usual dose is 50 mg twice or three times a day. This may be increased if necessary up to 300 mg a day in divided doses.

Overactive thyroid gland (Hyperthyroidism)

The usual dose is 50 mg four times a day. This may need to be decreased in time.

Following a heart attack

Treatment with Betaloc may start with injections. After that, you will usually be given tablets of 50 mg four times a day for two days, then your treatment dosage may be changed.

To help to prevent migraine

The usual dose is 100 mg to 200 mg a day in divided doses.

For elderly people or people with liver problems smaller doses may be given.

If you are going to have a general anaesthetic in hospital or at the dentist, or receive adrenaline, tell your doctor or dentist you are taking Betaloc Tablets.

Do not suddenly stop taking Betaloc Tablets without talking to your doctor. If you are also taking clonidine (for migraine, high blood pressure, tremor) talk to your doctor before stopping either medicine.

AFTER TAKING YOUR MEDICINE

Like all medicines, Betaloc Tablets may sometimes cause side-effects, as well as the effects that are needed.

The most common side-effects which are usually mild and infrequent are tiredness, feeling sick, stomach ache, diarrhoea or constipation, distrubed sleep or breathing problems especially when exercising

Occasionally: dizziness, headache, slow heartbeat, difficulty in breathing, feeling faint, or being sick.

Rarely: 'pins and needles', muscle cramps, feeling depressed or sleepy, palpitations, heart failure, irregular heartbeats, cold fingers and toes, swelling of the limbs, chest pain, skin rashes which may worsen in sunlight, worsening of psoriasis, abnormal blood tests, impotence.

In isolated cases: changes in personality such as memory loss, confusion, hallucinations, feeling nervous, feeling anxious. Gangrene in people with very poor circulation in their hands and feet, increase in the frequency of leg cramps, dry mouth, liver problems, increased sweating, hair loss, a runny, itchy or blocked nose, weight gain, unexpected bruising, blurred vision, conjunctivitis, tinnitus (ringing in the ears), dry or irritated eyes, taste disturbance, pain in the joints.

If you have very low blood pressure then Betaloc Tablets may make this worse.

If you suffer from any of these effects, or if you get any other unusual or unexpected symptoms, talk to your doctor or pharmacist (chemist).

STORING YOUR MEDICINE

• Do not take your tablets after the expiry date shown on the carton and blister strip.
• Keep your medicine in a safe place where children cannot reach it.
• Store this medicine below 25°C.
• Remember to return any unused medicine to your pharmacist (chemist).