Conivaptan, Injection koh-NY-vap-tan

What are other names for this medicine?

Type of medicine: arginine vasopressin (AVP) antagonist

Generic and brand names: conivaptan, injection; Vaprisol

What is this medicine used for?

This medicine is given by IV to treat certain kinds of hyponatremia (too little sodium in the blood).

What should my healthcare provider know before I take this medicine?

Before taking this medicine, tell your healthcare provider if you have ever had:

• an allergic reaction to any medicine or to corn products
• heart failure
• kidney or liver disease
• problems with alcohol abuse
• trouble urinating

Females of childbearing age: Tell your healthcare provider if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. It is not known whether this medicine will harm an unborn baby. Do not breast-feed while taking this medicine without your healthcare provider's approval.

How do I use it?

A healthcare provider will give you this medicine in the hospital.

Tell your healthcare provider right away if you have any pain or redness at the site of the infusion.

What should I watch out for?

You will be monitored very closely while you are receiving this medicine. You will have blood tests to see how this medicine affects you. This medicine may make the salt (sodium) level in your blood rise too fast. This can be life-threatening. Tell your provider immediately if you have symptoms such as:

• confusion
• drowsiness
• mood changes
• seizures or trouble controlling body movement
• weakness in your arms and legs
• trouble swallowing
• trouble talking

You may feel dizzy or faint when you get up quickly after sitting or lying down. Getting up slowly may help.

If you need emergency care, surgery, or dental work, tell the healthcare provider or dentist you have received this medicine.

What are the possible side effects?

Along with its needed effects, your medicine may cause some unwanted side effects. Some side effects may be very serious. Some side effects may go away as your body adjusts to the medicine. Tell your healthcare provider if you have any side effects that continue or get worse.

Life-threatening (Report these to your healthcare provider right away). If you cannot reach your healthcare provider right away, get emergency medical care or call 911 for help): Allergic reaction (hives; itching; rash; trouble breathing; chest pain or tightness in your chest; swelling of your lips, tongue, and throat).

Serious (report these to your healthcare provider right away): Chest pain; irregular or pounding heartbeat; swelling in hands, feet, or ankles; severe headache; trouble speaking or swallowing; severe drowsiness; confusion; mood changes; trouble controlling body movements; unusual weakness; seizures.

Other: Swelling, itching, redness, and pain at site of injection; mild fever; headache; diarrhea; constipation; nausea; vomiting; increased thirst; dry mouth; increased urination; dizziness, trouble sleeping.

What products might interact with this medicine?

When you take this medicine with other medicines, it can change the way this or any of the other medicines work. Nonprescription medicines, vitamins, natural remedies, and certain foods may also interact. Using these products together might cause harmful side effects. Talk to your healthcare provider if you are taking:

• alpha blockers such as alfuzosin (Uroxatral), silodosin (Rapaflo), and tamsulosin (Flomax)
• antiarrhythmics (medicines to treat irregular heartbeat) such as amiodarone (Cordarone, Pacerone), dronedarone (Multaq), disopyramide (Norpace), and quinidine
• antibiotics such as clarithromycin (Biaxin), erythromycin (Ery-Tabs, E.E.S.), isoniazid, metronidazole (Flagyl), norfloxacin (Noroxin), rifampin (Rifadin, Rimactane), and telithromycin (Ketek)
• antidepressants such as amitriptyline, bupropion (Wellbutrin), desipramine (Norpramin), doxepin, escitalopram (Lexapro), fluoxetine (Prozac, Sarafem), mirtazapine (Remeron), nefazodone, nortriptyline (Pamelor), trazodone, and sertraline (Zoloft)
• antifungal medicines such as clotrimazole, fluconazole (Diflucan), itraconazole (Sporanox), ketoconazole (Nizoral), miconazole (Monistat, Micatin), and voriconazole (VFEND)
• anti-HIV medicines such as atazanavir (Reyataz), delavirdine (Rescriptor), indinavir (Crixivan), nelfinavir (Viracept), nevirapine (Viramune), ritonavir (Norvir), and saquinavir (Invirase)
• antinausea medicines such as aprepitant (Emend) and ondansetron (Zofran)
• antipsychotic medicines such as aripiprazole (Abilify), haloperidol (Haldol), pimozide (Orap), and quetiapine (Seroquel)
• antiseizure medicines such as carbamazepine (Tegretol), phenobarbital, phenytoin (Dilantin), and primidone (Mysoline)
• benzodiazepine medicines such as alprazolam (Xanax), clonazepam (Klonopin), clorazepate (Tranxene), midazolam (Versed), and triazolam (Halcion)
• birth control pills, rings, patches, and implants and hormones such as conjugated estrogens (Premarin), estradiol (Estrace), medroxyprogesterone (Provera), and norethindrone (Aygestin, Camila, Jolivette, Micronor)
• calcium channel blockers such as amlodipine (Norvasc), diltiazem (Cardizem, Dilacor), felodipine, nifedipine (Procardia, Adalat), and verapamil (Calan, Isoptin)
• cholesterol-lowering medicines (statins) such as atorvastatin (Lipitor), lovastatin (Mevacor), rosuvastatin (Crestor), and simvastatin (Zocor)
• colchicine
• corticosteroids such as dexamethasone, hydrocortisone (Cortef), methylprednisolone (Medrol), prednisolone (Orapred), and prednisone
• digoxin (Lanoxin)
• ergot medicines such as dihydroergotamine (D.H.E. 45, Migranal), ergotamine (Ergomar), and methylergonovine (Methergine)
• immunosuppressants such as cyclosporine (Sandimmune, Neoral, Gengraf), sirolimus (Rapamune), and tacrolimus (Prograf, Protopic)
• maraviroc (Selzentry)
• medicines to treat cancer such as dasatinib (Sprycel), erlotinib (Tarceva), imatinib (Gleevec), nilotinib (Tasigna), pazopanib (Votrient), and sunitinib (Sutent)
• medicines to treat erectile dysfunction such as sildenafil (Viagra), tadalafil (Cialis), or vardenafil (Levitra)
• medicines to treat Parkinson's disease such as bromocriptine (Parlodel) and ropinirole (Requip)
• medicines to treat pulmonary hypertension such as ambrisentan (Letairis), bosentan (Tracleer), sildenafil (Revatio), and tadalafil (Adcirca)
• pain medicines such as fentanyl (Duragesic), methadone (Dolophine, Methadose), and tramadol (Ultram)
• ranolazine (Ranexa)
• salmeterol (Serevent)
• sleeping pills such as eszopiclone (Lunesta), zaleplon (Sonata) and zolpidem (Ambien)
• stimulants such as armodafinil (Nuvigil) and modafinil (Provigil)
• St. John's Wort
• tamoxifen (Nolvadex)
• tolvaptan (Samsca)

The effects of this medicine may be increased if you drink a lot of grapefruit juice. Talk with your healthcare provider about this.

If you are not sure if your medicines might interact, ask your pharmacist or healthcare provider. Keep a list of all your medicines with you. List all the prescription medicines, nonprescription medicines, supplements, natural remedies, and vitamins that you take. Be sure that you tell all healthcare providers who treat you about all the products you are taking.

This advisory includes selected information only and may not include all side effects of this medicine or interactions with other medicines. Ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist for more information or if you have any questions.

Keep all medicines out of the reach of children.