Warnings
Dorzolamide-Timolol (Cosopt) Risks, Warnings, and Complications
Dorzolamide and timolol can cause serious health problems in some people. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist about other treatment options if you are at an increased risk of complications from this combination of medicines. Some of the risks of using dorzolamide-timolol include:
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Precautions Before Starting Dorzolamide-Timolol (Cosopt)
Tell your doctor if you have had an allergic reaction to timolol (Timoptic), dorzolamide (Trusopt), any of the active or inactive ingredients in dorzolamide-timolol ophthalmic solution, sulfa drugs, or any other medications. Your pharmacy can give you a list of ingredients.
Give your doctor or pharmacist a complete list of all the medicines you are taking, including prescription drugs, nonprescription medicines, other eye drops, vitamins, supplements, and herbal products. This can help avoid possible interactions between dorzolamide-timolol and your other medicines.
Give your doctor a complete medical history. Dorzolamide-timolol may not be suitable for people with certain health conditions, including lung conditions like asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), chronic bronchitis, emphysema, diabetes, heart disease, severe allergic reactions, hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid gland), myasthenia gravis, kidney disease, and liver disease.
Tell your doctor if you are pregnant, could be pregnant, are planning a pregnancy, or are breastfeeding.
Precautions During Use of Dorzolamide-Timolol (Cosopt)
Keep all your healthcare appointments while using dorzolamide-timolol. Your doctor may want to adjust your dose and monitor you for adverse effects.
If you are using other eye drops, apply them at least 10 minutes away from dorzolamide-timolol.
If you wear contact lenses, remove them before instilling dorzolamide-timolol ophthalmic solution. Wait at least 15 minutes before putting your contact lenses back in. Cosopt contains a preservative called benzalkonium chloride that can damage soft contact lenses. Cosopt PF is a preservative-free version.
Side effects of dorzolamide-timolol, such as eye irritation, can affect your ability to see clearly. Do not drive, operate heavy machinery, or engage in any hazardous activities until you know how this medication affects you.
Tell your healthcare professional if you become pregnant while using dorzolamide and timolol.
Let your doctors know you are using dorzolamide-timolol before any surgery, including dental procedures.
If you have an eye infection, eye injury, or are having eye surgery, ask your healthcare professionals if you can continue using the same bottle of dorzolamide-timolol.
Dorzolamide-Timolol (Cosopt) Drug Interactions
Concomitant administration of dorzolamide and timolol with certain other medicines can affect how the medicines work. Possible interactions between dorzolamide-timolol and other medicines can increase the risk of severe adverse effects. Your doctor may change the dose of your medications, choose different medications, or monitor you carefully for side effects if there are known interactions between dorzolamide-timolol and your other medicines.
The following medications can have interactions with dorzolamide-timolol:
- Beta blockers such as atenolol (Tenormin), metoprolol (Lopressor, Toprol XL), labetalol (Normodyne), propranolol (Inderal), and nadolol (Corgard)
- Carbonic anhydrase inhibitors such as acetazolamide (Diamox), methazolamide (GlaucTabs, Neptazane), and dichlorphenamide (Danaride)
- Calcium channel blockers such as felodipine (Plendil), diltiazem (Cardizem, Tiazac, Dilacor, others), nicardipine (Cardene), amlodipine (Norvasc), nimodipine (Nimotop), isradipine (DynaCirc), nifedipine (Adalat, Procardia), nisoldipine (Sular), and verapamil (Calan, Verelan, Isoptin)
- Diuretics or water pills
- Medications used to treat high blood pressure such as clonidine (Catapres, Catapres-TTS) and reserpine (Serpasil, Serpalan, Serpatabs)
- Heart medications such as digoxin (Lanoxin)
- Medications used to treat irregular heart rhythms, such as quinidine (Quinidex)
- Salicylate pain relievers such as aspirin, diflunisal (Dolobid), magnesium salicylate (Doan's, others), choline salicylate (Arthropan), choline magnesium trisalicylate, and salsalate (Disalcid, Argesic, Salgesic)
The above list may not include all the possible interactions of dorzolamide-timolol. Give your doctor or pharmacist a complete list of your medications, including prescription drugs, non-prescription medicines, dietary supplements, and herbal remedies. Also, tell your healthcare provider if you smoke, drink alcohol, or use recreational drugs because some of these substances can cause serious health complications when used with prescription and over-the-counter medicines.
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