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                Safe Use of Over-the-Counter Pain Relievers and Fever Reducers

Safe Use of Over-the-Counter Pain Relievers and Fever Reducers

                        Using Acetaminophen and Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs Safely Home
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          Safe Use of Over-the-Counter Pain Relievers and Fever Reducers
          Careful: Acetaminophen in pain relief medicines can cause liver damageSafe Use of Over-the-Counter Pain Relievers and Fever Reducers Careful: Acetaminophen in pain relief medicines can cause liver damage
  
  	
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    PrintAcetaminophen (a∙SEET∙a∙MIN∙o∙fen) is an active ingredient in many over-the-counter and prescription medicines that help relieve pain and reduce fever.More than 600 over-the-counter and prescription medicines contain acetaminophen. Some medicines combine acetaminophen with other active ingredients to treat pain, symptoms of colds, flu, allergy, and sleeplessness. To find out if an over-the-counter medicine contains acetaminophen, look for “acetaminophen” on the **Drug Factslabel. If a prescription medicine contains acetaminophen, the label may not spell out the whole word or may have the abbreviation "APAP."****Severe liver damage may occur and may lead to death if you take:**more acetaminophen than directedmore than one medicine containing acetaminophenacetaminophen while drinking 3 or more alcoholic drinks every day**Most healthy people can take acetaminophen safely by:**not using more than one medicine containing acetaminophen in a dayreading and following all the information on the medicine label, or the information given by your doctor**Ask your doctor before using acetaminophen if you:**have liver diseaseare taking the blood thinning drug warfarin (also known by the brand name Coumadin)**To take acetaminophen safely, make sure you understand:**how much you can take at one time (dose)how many hours you must wait before taking another dosehow many times you can take it each daywhen you should not take it and talk to your doctorIf you take too much acetaminophen you might have liver damage and not know it. Symptoms may not appear for days and early symptoms may seem like the flu, like loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, and yellowing of the skin and eyes (jaundice).**If you take too much acetaminophen, get medical help right away, even if you don't feel sick.** For immediate help, call:**Poison Control Center**1-800-222-1222or911For more information:talk to your doctor, nurse, or pharmacistvisit FDA online at www.fda.gov/drugscall FDA at 1-888-INFO-FDA, ore-mail questions to druginfo@fda.hhs.gov

                                                                                  Content current as of:
      08/28/2013Safe Use of Over-the-Counter Pain Relievers and Fever Reducers

          
                        Using Acetaminophen and Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs Safely
 
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