Trimipramine

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Brand name(s): Surmontil®

What special precautions should I follow?

Before taking trimipramine,

• tell your doctor and pharmacist if you are allergic to trimipramine, clomipramine (Anafranil), desipramine (Norpramin), imipramine (Tofranil), or any other medications.
• do not take trimipramine if you are taking monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors, including phenelzine (Nardil) and tranylcypromine (Parnate). You must wait at least 2 weeks after stopping to take MAO inibitors before starting to take trimipramine.
• tell your doctor and pharmacist what prescription and nonprescription medications, vitamins, nutritional supplements, and herbal products you are taking. Be sure to mention any of the following: cimetidine (Tagamet); decongestants; guanethidine (Ismelin); ipratropium (Atrovent); medications for irritable bowel disease, motion sickness, Parkinson's disease, ulcers, or urinary problems; medications for irregular heartbeats such as quinidine (Quinidex), flecainide (Tambocor), and propafenone (Rythmol); other antidepressants; and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) such as fluoxetine (Prozac, Sarafem), paroxetine (Paxil), and sertraline (Zoloft), even if you have stopped taking them within the past 5 weeks. Your doctor may need to change the doses of your medications or monitor you carefully for side effects.
• tell your doctor if you have or have ever had , or anyone in your family has or has ever had, depression, bipolar disorder (mood that changes from depressed to abnormally excited), or mania (frenzied, abnormally excited mood), or if you have, or anyone in your family has, thought about or attempted suicide. Also tell your doctor if you have recently had a heart attack and if you have or have ever had glaucoma, urinary retention (benign prostatic hypertrophy), thyroid disease, seizures, or heart, kidney, or liver disease.
• tell your doctor if you are pregnant, plan to become pregnant, or are breast-feeding. If you become pregnant while taking trimipramine, call your doctor.
• if you are having surgery, including dental surgery, tell the doctor or dentist that you are taking trimipramine.
• you should know that trimipramine may make you drowsy. Do not drive a car or operate machinery until you know how this medication affects you.
• remember that alcohol can add to the drowsiness caused by this medication.
• plan to avoid unnecessary or prolonged exposure to sunlight and to wear protective clothing, sunglasses, and sunscreen. Trimipramine may make your skin sensitive to sunlight.
• you should know that your mental health may change in unexpected ways, especially at the beginning of your treatment and any time that your dose is increased or decreased. These changes may occur at any time if you have depression or another mental illness, whether or not you are taking trimipramine or any other medication. You, your family, or your caregiver should call your doctor right away if you experience any of the following symptoms: new or worsening depression; thinking about harming or killing yourself, or planning or trying to do so; extreme worry; agitation; panic attacks; difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep; aggressive behavior; irritability; acting without thinking; severe restlessness; and frenzied abnormal excitement. Be sure that your family or caregiver knows which symptoms may be serious so they can call the doctor when you are unable to seek treatment on your own.

Last Revised: 01/01/2005

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