Flexeril Uses, Dosage, Side Effects & Warnings

Avoid or limit the use of alcohol or other sedating medicines while being treated with cyclobenzaprine. Also avoid driving, operating machinery, or other hazardous activities until you know how cyclobenzaprine affects you. There are many prescription and over-the-counter medications available that can provide relief for muscle spasms and muscle spasticity.

• Benzodiazepines are sedatives that can help relax muscles.
• Although not all of these side effects may occur, if they do occur they may need medical attention.
• The overall incidence of adverse reactions among patients in the surveillance program was less than the incidence in the controlled clinical studies.
• In addition, they have more side effects than NSAIDs or acetaminophen.
• Drugs.com provides accurate and independent information on more than 24,000 prescription drugs, over-the-counter medicines and natural products.
• In light of these findings, therapy with FLEXERIL in the elderly should be initiated with a 5 mg dose and titrated slowly upward.

Flexeril is also a skeletal muscle relaxant—the active ingredient is cyclobenzaprine. Flexeril is no longer available commercially as a brand-name product. Flexeril is only available as its generic, cyclobenzaprine. Cyclobenzaprine is also available in an extended-release form with the brand name of Amrix. Flexeril is used for short-term treatment—the manufacturer’s information recommends that Flexeril should not be taken for more than two or three weeks.

Drug interactions

Examples of drugs that can cause interactions with cyclobenzaprine are listed below. If it’s almost time for your next dose, skip the missed dose and resume taking drugs on the right schedule. Do not take extra doses at the same time to make up for a missed dose. Within the last five years, emergency room department visits related to muscle relaxant abuse almost doubled; they increased from 15,830 to 31,763 visits.

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Check the labels on all your medicines (such as allergy or cough-and-cold products) because they may contain ingredients that cause drowsiness. If you notice other effects not listed above, contact your doctor or pharmacist. Remember that this medication has been prescribed because your doctor has judged that the benefit to you is greater than the risk of side effects. This medication is not recommended for use in older adults because they may be at greater risk for side effects while using this drug. You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA.

Cyclobenzaprine (Oral Route)

Cyclobenzaprine is used short-term to treat muscle spasms. Tablets should only be used for short periods (up to 2 to 3 weeks). Prolonged use has not been shown to be adequately effective because muscle spasm due to acute, painful musculoskeletal conditions is generally short and longer therapy is usually not warranted. Antispastic medications are effective in treating spasticity, but high doses can lead to unwanted side effects. Other treatments can help with spasticity as well, including physical therapy and Botox® injections. Food & Drug Administration in February 2003, is comparable in efficacy to the 10 mg strength, but has been shown to be less sedating.

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This medication should only be used short-term (for 3 weeks or less) unless directed by your doctor. A post-marketing surveillance program was carried out in 7607 patients with acute musculoskeletal disorders, and included 297 patients treated with FLEXERIL 10 mg for 30 days or longer. The overall effectiveness of FLEXERIL was similar to that observed in the double-blind controlled studies; the overall incidence of adverse effects was less (see ADVERSE REACTIONS). These patients are generally more susceptible to drugs with potentially sedating effects, including cyclobenzaprine. FLEXERIL should be used with caution in subjects with mild hepatic impairment starting with a 5 mg dose and titrating slowly upward.

Note that all prescriptions are at the discretion of your health care provider. Providers on Sesame cannot prescribe controlled substances. Cyclobenzaprine starts to relax muscles and relieve muscle spasms about an hour after it is ingested. flexeril and liver damage Before taking cyclobenzaprine, tell your doctor or pharmacist if you are allergic to it; or if you have any other allergies. This product may contain inactive ingredients, which can cause allergic reactions or other problems.

The dose of this medicine will be different for different patients. Follow your doctor’s orders or the directions on the label. The following information includes only the average doses of this medicine. If your dose is different, do not change it unless your doctor tells you to do so.

Muscle spasm, local pain and tenderness, limitation of motion, and restriction in activities of daily living were evaluated. In three of these studies there was a significantly greater improvement with FLEXERIL than with diazepam, while in the other studies the improvement following both treatments was comparable. In a pharmacokinetic study of sixteen subjects with hepatic impairment (15 mild, 1 moderate per Child-Pugh score), both AUC and Cmax were approximately double the values seen in the healthy control group. Based on the findings, FLEXERIL should be used with caution in subjects with mild hepatic impairment starting with the 5 mg dose and titrating slowly upward.

If you have allergies to any of the below substances, please do not take the medication(s) and notify us immediately. Avoid taking MAO inhibitors (isocarboxazid, linezolid, metaxalone, methylene blue, moclobemide, phenelzine, procarbazine, rasagiline, safinamide, selegiline, tranylcypromine) during treatment with this medication. Before having surgery, tell your doctor or dentist about all the products you use (including prescription drugs, nonprescription drugs, and herbal products). RxList does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.