patient information leaflet hygroton

Information for Patients

What you need to know about Hygroton Tablets

Please read this leaflet carefully before you start to take your medicine. It contains important information.

What's in your medicine?

The active ingredient in this medicine is chlortalidone. This is the new name for chlorthalidone. The ingredient itself has not changed.

Each Hygroton Tablet contains 50mg chlortalidone PhEur. They contain the following inactive ingredients:

Microcrystalline cellulose, silicon dioxide, maize starch, magnesium stearate, sodium carboxymethylcellulose and yellow iron oxide (E172).

Hygroton comes in packs of 28 tablets.

Chlortalidone is one of a group of medicines called diuretics (water tablets): It is used to reduce the water levels in your body.

What's this medicine used for?

Hygroton is a diuretic, which helps to reduce the amount of water in the body. It is used to treat high blood pressure and heart failure, and to help reduce the fluid retention that occurs with some kidney or liver diseases. It is also used to treat diabetes insipidus.

Before taking your medicine

If the answer to any of these questions is YES, tell your doctor.

Have you ever had a rash or other possible allergic reaction whilst taking diuretics or sulphonamides, or to any of the ingredients in Hygroton (listed in "What's in your medicine")?
Are you taking any other medicines (either bought or prescribed)? Some medicines can interfere with your treatment, so please check with your doctor or pharmacist before taking any medicines, especially:
- Any other medicines for high blood pressure or heart problems (such as digoxin);
- Any medicines to relax your muscles during anaesthesia;
- Medicines for diabetes;
- Steroids;
- Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs used to treat painful conditions, for example, indometacin;
- Amphotericin (for infections);
- Lithium tablets (for mental illness);
- Carbenoxolone (for ulcers);
- Vitamin D or calcium salts (as replacement therapy);
- Medicines to treat cancer (for example, cyclophosphamide or methotrexate);
- Anticholinergics, e.g. atropine (for stomach and gut problems);
- Amantadine (for Parkinson's disease or viral infections);
- Colestyramine (for high lipid levels in your blood);
- Cyclosporin (for transplants, rheumatic disease or skin problems);
- Allopurinol (for gout);
- Salbutamol or terbutaline (for asthma or premature labour) or ritodrine.
Are you pregnant, planning to become pregnant, or breast feeding?
Do you suffer from severe kidney or liver problems?
Do you suffer from gout?
Do you suffer from Addison's disease?
Have you been told you have low levels of potassium or sodium in your blood?
Do you suffer from any serious blood vessel disorders?
Do you suffer from diabetes mellitus (sugar diabetes)?
Are you being treated for high cholesterol levels?
Have you been told that you have high blood levels of calcium?

Other special warnings

If you feel dizzy when you start taking these tablets, do not drive or work with machinery until these effects have worn off.
Whilst you are taking Hygroton, your doctor may want to carry out a number of tests from time to time. This is quite usual and nothing to worry about.
As these tablets may reduce the amount of salt in the body, you should avoid very strict low-salt diets.

Taking your medicine

It is important to take your tablets at the right time. You must take them as instructed by your doctor. Read the label on your tablets carefully, it will tell you when to take them. Your doctor will choose a suitable starting dose for your particular condition and monitor your progress. If necessary, this dose can be increased or reduced. It is best to take Hygroton in the morning with food. Swallow your tablets whole with a drink of water.

The usual dosages are as follows:

High blood pressure: 25 to 50mg a day.
Heart failure: 25 to 200mg a day.
Fluid retention associated with kidney or liver disease: up to 50mg a day.
Diabetes insipidus: 100mg twice a day. This dose may be reduced to 50mg a day.

Children: Your doctor will choose a suitable dose based on your child's age and weight.

Elderly patients or those with kidney problems may be given lower doses.

If you are not sure how many tablets to take, ask your doctor or pharmacist. Do not stop taking your tablets suddenly. Ask your doctor first.

What to do if an overdose is taken

If you accidentally take too many tablets, or someone else takes any of your medicine, you should tell your doctor at once or contact your nearest casualty department. Show any left-over medicines or the empty packet to the doctor.

What to do if you miss a dose

If you forget to take a dose, take it as soon as possible, unless it is almost time to take the next dose. DO NOT take a double dose. Then go on as before.

After taking your medicine

Like all medicines, Hygroton can sometimes cause unwanted effects in some people.

Effects which may occur include: Dizziness, headache, upset stomach or stomach pains, impotence in men, feeling faint when you stand up, loss of appetite, feeling or being sick, diarrhoea or constipation, tingling in your fingers or toes (pins and needles).

If these effects are severe or last for more than a few days, tell your doctor.

If you get any of the following tell your doctor:

Breathlessness or difficulty in breathing.
Skin rash or itching or unexplained bruising.
Muscle weakness.
Irregular heart beat.
Muscle pains or cramps.
Yellowing of your skin or the whites of your eyes.
Persistent sore throat or high temperature.
Attacks of gout.
Increased sensitivity of the skin to sunlight.
Worsening of your diabetes mellitus.
Severe or sudden pains in your abdomen or lower back.

If your tablets upset you in any other way, tell your doctor.

Storing your medicine

The expiry date for these tablets is printed on the packaging. Do not take the tablets after this date.

Keep all medicines in a safe place where children cannot reach them. If your doctor decides to stop your treatment, return any unused medicine to the pharmacist. Only keep it if your doctor tells you to.

REMEMBER: This medicine is only for you. Only a doctor can prescribe it for you. Never give it to someone else. It may harm them even if they have the same symptoms as you.

Medicine: hygroton