Drug interactions: general info

• Some interactions are very severe, but not common...like combining an MAOI with another antidepressant or pseudoephedrine.
• Others are common but usually not life-threatening... NSAIDs and antihypertensives...or beta-blockers and sulfonylureas.
  There are too many to try to remember.
• It makes more sense to keep some GENERAL SITUATIONS in mind.
• Take a closer look any time you see a narrow therapeutic index drug...warfarin, digoxin, levothyroxine, lithium, carbamazepine, phenytoin, theophylline. Small changes in these drug levels can have severe consequences.
• Be extra careful when using any drug notorious for interactions... erythromycin, ketoconazole, clarithromycin and other enzyme INHIBITORS... or rifampin, St. John's wort, and other enzyme INDUCERS.
• Keep an eye on situations that involve more than one prescriber. For example, an ACE inhibitor and a potassium-sparing diuretic can lead to a problem...but it's easily avoided if one prescriber monitors potassium.