BuSpar

Generic Name: buspirone (byoo SPYE rone)

What is BuSpar?

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BuSpar is an anti-anxiety medicine that affects chemicals in your brain that may become unbalanced and cause anxiety.

BuSpar is used in the treatment of anxiety disorders and and for short-term relief of the symptoms of anxiety, such as fear, tension, irritability, dizziness, pounding heartbeat, and other physical symptoms.

BuSpar may also be used for purposes not listed in this medication guide.

Important information about BuSpar

Do not use BuSpar if you are allergic to buspirone, or if you have used an MAO inhibitor such as isocarboxazid (Marplan), phenelzine (Nardil), rasagiline (Azilect), selegiline (Eldepryl, Emsam), or tranylcypromine (Parnate) within the past 14 days. Serious, life-threatening side effects can occur if you take BuSpar before the MAO inhibitor has cleared from your body. BuSpar can cause side effects that may impair your thinking or reactions. Be careful if you drive or do anything that requires you to be awake and alert. Avoid drinking alcohol. It may increase some of the side effects caused by BuSpar.

Grapefruit and grapefruit juice may interact with BuSpar and lead to potentially dangerous effects. Discuss the use of grapefruit products with your doctor. Do not increase or decrease the amount of grapefruit products in your diet without first talking to your doctor.

BuSpar is usually taken for only a short time. Do not take this medication for longer than 4 weeks without your doctors advice.

What should I discuss with my healthcare provider before taking BuSpar?

Before taking BuSpar, tell your doctor if you are allergic to any drugs, or if you have:

kidney disease; or
liver disease.

If you have any of these conditions, you may not be able to use BuSpar, or you may need a dosage adjustment or special tests during treatment.

FDA pregnancy category B. This medication is not expected to be harmful to an unborn baby. Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant during treatment. It is not known whether BuSpar passes into breast milk or if it could harm a nursing baby. Do not use this medication without telling your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby. Do not give this medication to a child younger than 18 years old.

How should I take BuSpar?

Take BuSpar exactly as it was prescribed for you. Do not take the medication in larger amounts, or take it for longer than recommended by your doctor. Follow the directions on your prescription label.

BuSpar is usually taken for only a short time. Do not take this medication for longer than 4 weeks without your doctors advice.

You may take BuSpar with or without food but take it the same way each time.

Some tablet forms of buspirone (Buspar Dividose) may need to be broken before you take the medicine. These tablets have special scored marks on them to make breaking the tablet easy. Do not use the tablet if it has not broken correctly and the piece is too big or too small. Follow your doctors instructions about how much of the tablet to take.

If you have been switched to BuSpar from another anxiety medication, you may need to slowly decrease your dose of the other medication rather than stopping suddenly. Some anxiety medications can cause withdrawal symptoms when you stop taking them suddenly after long-term use.

Store BuSpar at room temperature away from moisture and heat.

What happens if I miss a dose?

Take the missed dose as soon as you remember. If it is almost time for your next dose, skip the missed dose and take the medicine at your next regularly scheduled time. Do not take extra medicine to make up the missed dose.

What happens if I overdose?

Seek emergency medical attention if you think you have used too much of this medicine.

Overdose symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, dizziness, drowsiness, blurred vision, and stomach pain.

What should I avoid while taking BuSpar?

BuSpar can cause side effects that may impair your thinking or reactions. Be careful if you drive or do anything that requires you to be awake and alert. Avoid drinking alcohol. It may increase some of the side effects caused by BuSpar.

Cold or allergy medicine, narcotic pain medicine, sleeping pills, muscle relaxers, and medicine for seizures, or depression can add to sleepiness caused by BuSpar. Tell your doctor if you regularly use any of these other medicines.

What are the possible side effects of BuSpar?

Get emergency medical help if you have any of these signs of an allergic reaction: hives; difficulty breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat. Call your doctor at once if you have any of these serious side effects:

feeling light-headed, fainting;
fast or uneven heart rate;
depressed mood, unusual thoughts or behavior; or
lack of balance or coordination.

Less serious side effects may be more likely to occur, such as:

drowsiness, dizziness, blurred vision;
feeling restless;
nausea, upset stomach;
sleep problems (insomnia); or
trouble concentrating.

This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur. Tell your doctor about any unusual or bothersome side effect.

What other drugs will affect BuSpar?

Before taking BuSpar, tell your doctor if you are using any of the following drugs:

medicines to treat psychiatric disorders, such as chlorpromazine (Thorazine), haloperidol (Haldol), mesoridazine (Serentil), pimozide (Orap), or thioridazine (Mellaril);
dexamethasone (Decadron, Hexadrol);
erythromycin (E-Mycin, E.E.S., Ery-Tab, Erythrocin);
itraconazole (Sporanox), ketoconazole (Nizoral);
ritonavir (Norvir);
rifampin (Rifadin, Rimactane, Rifater);
antibiotics such as capreomycin (Capastat), rifampin (Rifadin, Rimactane, Rifater), vancomycin (Vancocin, Vancoled);
a calcium channel blocker such as diltiazem (Tiazac, Cartia, Cardizem) or verapamil (Calan, Covera, Isoptin, Verelan); or
seizure medication such as carbamazepine (Carbatrol, Tegretol), phenytoin (Dilantin), phenobarbital (Luminal, Solfoton).

If you are using any of these drugs, you may not be able to use BuSpar, or you may need dosage adjustments or special tests during treatment.

This list is not complete and there may be other drugs that can interact with BuSpar. Tell your doctor about all your prescription and over-the-counter medications, vitamins, minerals, herbal products, and drugs prescribed by other doctors. Do not start using a new medication without telling your doctor.

Where can I get more information?

Your pharmacist can provide more information about BuSpar.

What does my medication look like?

Buspirone is available with a prescription under the brand name BuSpar. Other brand or generic forms may also be available. Ask your pharmacist any questions you have about this medication, especially if it is new to you.

BuSpar 5 mg white, rounded rectangular, scored tablet
BuSpar 10 mg white, rounded rectangular, scored tablet
BuSpar 15 mg two joined, rounded rectangles, forming a white, scored tablet

Remember, keep this and all other medicines out of the reach of children, never share your medicines with others, and use this medication only for the indication prescribed.
Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided by Cerner Multum, Inc. ('Multum') is accurate, up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. Drug information contained herein may be time sensitive. Multum information has been compiled for use by healthcare practitioners and consumers in the United States and therefore Multum does not warrant that uses outside of the United States are appropriate, unless specifically indicated otherwise. Multum's drug information does not endorse drugs, diagnose patients or recommend therapy. Multum's drug information is an informational resource designed to assist licensed healthcare practitioners in caring for their patients and/or to serve consumers viewing this service as a supplement to, and not a substitute for, the expertise, skill, knowledge and judgment of healthcare practitioners. The absence of a warning for a given drug or drug combination in no way should be construed to indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective or appropriate for any given patient. Multum does not assume any responsibility for any aspect of healthcare administered with the aid of information Multum provides. The information contained herein is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. If you have questions about the drugs you are taking, check with your doctor, nurse or pharmacist.