Drug Reactions: recognizing and responding to symptoms

A drug reaction can be an emergency. Following is a list of serious symptoms that could be caused by a drug reaction. These drug reactions often begin shortly after starting a new medicine or when the dosage (amount and frequency) of a drug is changed.
Call the doctor or nurse immediately or go to the emergency room if any of the following symptoms occur
A person displays one or more of the following common signs of having not used medicines safely:

• Hallucinations (hearing or seeing things that are not there)
• Palpitations or rapid heart beat
• Great trouble waking up, especially when others try to wake the person
• Severe nausea or vomiting
• Dizziness , falling, trouble with balance
• Unusual bruising or bleeding from minor cuts or blood in the stool
• Severe confusion
• Severe fatigue
• Impaired or blurred vision, or seeing gold “halos” around objects
• Hives, itching, skin rash, or swelling of the face.

It is especially important that if a person has difficulty breathing or if there is swelling in the throat, call 911 or take the person to an emergency room immediately.
Call the doctor or nurse during office hours to discuss the following problems
While some side effects from medicines happen immediately, others happen slowly over a period of days or weeks, or even months. What may seem to be a new health problem or a worsening of an existing condition may be a reaction to a medicine.

• Shortness of breath (If sudden or severe, call the doctor immediately.)
• Fatigue (If sudden or severe, call the doctor immediately.)
• Confusion or being “out of it” (If sudden or severe, call the doctor immediately.)
• Incontinence (If sudden or severe, call the doctor immediately.)
• Depression, feeling “down,” or taking no interest in activities previously found enjoyable
• Constipation
• Persistent cough
• Insomnia
• Sexual problems
• Feeling jittery or fearful
• Sensitivity to sunlight
• Black, tarry stool

Know the answers to the following questions before calling the doctor
Symptoms

• What is the symptom? (Try to be accurate and specific.)
• When did the symptom start?
• Is it a new symptom or an ongoing problem that is now worse?
• How severe is the symptom? Does it interfere with usual activities (such as preparing meals or dressing)?

Medicines

• What medicines are being taken? (Include prescription and non-prescription.)
• Is the older person following instructions for prescription medicines? If not, what is being taken and how much?
• Has a day or two been skipped in taking prescription medicine?
• Does the older person have any allergies?

Here is an example of what you might say when calling for help
“Hello. This is Ellen Smith. My mother is Ann Smith and she is Dr. Miller’s patient. My mother has been throwing up for the past 12 hours. Two days ago she started taking Indocin(TM) for her arthritis. Dr. Miller prescribed it. Do you think it could be causing the nausea?”