Prescribers or other health professionals should inform patients, their families, and their caregivers about the benefits and risks associated with treatment with bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets (SR) and should counsel them in its appropriate use. A patient Medication Guide about “Antidepressant Medicines, Depression and Other Serious Mental Illnesses, and Suicidal Thoughts or Actions” “Quitting Smoking, Quit-Smoking Medication, Changes in Thinking and Behavior, Depression, and Suicidal Thoughts or Actions,” and “What Other Important Information Should I Know About bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets (SR)?" is available for bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets (SR). The prescriber or health professional should instruct patients, their families, and their caregivers to read the Medication Guide and should assist them in understanding its contents. Patients should be given the opportunity to discuss the contents of the Medication Guide and to obtain answers to any questions they may have. The complete text of the Medication Guide is reprinted at the end of this document.

Patients should be advised of the following issues and asked to alert their prescriber if these occur while taking bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets (SR).

Clinical Worsening and Suicide Risk in Treating Psychiatric Disorders: Patients, their families, and their caregivers should be encouraged to be alert to the emergence of anxiety, agitation, panic attacks, insomnia, irritability, hostility, aggressiveness, impulsivity, akathisia (psychomotor restlessness), hypomania, mania, other unusual changes in behavior, worsening of depression, and suicidal ideation, especially early during antidepressant treatment and when the dose is adjusted up or down. Families and caregivers of patients should be advised to look for the emergence of such symptoms on a day-to-day basis, since changes may be abrupt. Such symptoms should be reported to the patient’s prescriber or health professional, especially if they are severe, abrupt in onset, or were not part of the patient’s presenting symptoms. Symptoms such as these may be associated with an increased risk for suicidal thinking and behavior and indicate a need for very close monitoring and possibly changes in the medication.

Neuropsychiatric Symptoms and Suicide Risk in Smoking Cessation Treatment:Although bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets (SR) are not indicated for smoking cessation treatment, it contains the same active ingredient as Zyban®* which is approved for this use. Patients should be informed that quitting smoking, with or without Zyban®*, may be associated with nicotine withdrawal symptoms (including depression or agitation), or exacerbation of pre-existing psychiatric illness. Furthermore, some patients have experienced changes in mood (including depression and mania), psychosis, hallucinations, paranoia, delusions, homicidal ideation, aggression, anxiety, and panic, as well as suicidal ideation, suicide attempt, and completed suicide when attempting to quit smoking while taking Zyban®*. If patients develop agitation, hostility, depressed mood, or changes in thinking or behavior that are not typical for them, or if patients develop suicidal ideation or behavior, they should be urged to report these symptoms to their healthcare provider immediately.

Bupropion-Containing Products:Patients should be made aware that bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets (SR) contain the same active ingredient found in Zyban®*, used as an aid to smoking cessation treatment, and that bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets should not be used in combination with Zyban®* or any other medications that contain bupropion hydrochloride (such as Wellbutrin®*, the immediate-release formulation and Wellbutrin XL®*, the extended-release formulation).

As dose is increased during initial titration to doses above 150 mg/day, patients should be instructed to take bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets (SR) in 2 divided doses, preferably with at least 8 hours between successive doses, to minimize the risk of seizures.

Patients should be told that bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets (SR) should be discontinued and not restarted if they experience a seizure while on treatment.

Patients should be told that any CNS-active drug like bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets (SR) may impair their ability to perform tasks requiring judgment or motor and cognitive skills. Consequently, until they are reasonably certain that bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets (SR) do not adversely affect their performance, they should refrain from driving an automobile or operating complex, hazardous machinery.

Patients should be told that the excessive use or abrupt discontinuation of alcohol or sedatives (including benzodiazepines) may alter the seizure threshold. Some patients have reported lower alcohol tolerance during treatment with bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets (SR). Patients should be advised that the consumption of alcohol should be minimized or avoided.

Patients should be advised to inform their physicians if they are taking or plan to take any prescription or over-the-counter drugs. Concern is warranted because bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets (SR) and other drugs may affect each other’s metabolism.

Patients should be advised to notify their physicians if they become pregnant or intend to become pregnant during therapy.

Patients should be advised to swallow bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets (SR) whole so that the release rate is not altered. Do not chew, divide, or crush tablets, as this may lead to an increased risk of adverse effects, including seizures.