Loxitane (Loxapine)
Loxitane is an antipsychotic medication which is prescribed most frequently to treat schizophrenia.
Loxitane may also be used for other mental health conditions as well, as prescribed by your doctor. Loxitane should not be used in patients with dementia.
Before Taking This Medication
Talk to your doctor about the following issues before taking Loxitane.
If you have any of these conditions, you may need a dose adjustment or special tests to safely use loxapine: epilepsy or other seizure disorder; a history of low white blood cell (WBC) counts; glaucoma; urination problems; heart disease; or a history of breast cancer.
Before using Loxitane, tell your doctor if you regularly use other medicines that make you sleepy (such as cold or allergy medicine, narcotic pain medicine, sleeping pills, muscle relaxers, and medicine for seizures, depression, or anxiety). You should not take loxapine if you have drowsiness caused by other medications.
Tell your doctor about all other medications you use, especially:
- atropine (Atreza, Sal-Tropine), belladonna (Donnatal, and others), benztropine (Cogentin), dimenhydrinate (Dramamine), methscopolamine (Pamine), or scopolamine (Transderm-Scop);
- bronchodilators such as ipratropium (Atrovent) or tiotropium (Spiriva);
- glycopyrrolate (Robinul);
- mepenzolate (Cantil);
- bladder or urinary medications such as darifenacin (Enablex), flavoxate (Urispas), oxybutynin (Ditropan, Oxytrol), tolterodine (Detrol), or solifenacin (Vesicare); or
- irritable bowel medications such as dicyclomine (Bentyl), hyoscyamine (Anaspaz, Cystospaz, Levsin, and others), or propantheline (Pro-Banthine).
Dosage
Initial Dose: 10 mg twice daily is recommended, although an initial dosage up to a total of 50 mg daily may be given. Dosage should then be increased fairly rapidly over the first seven to ten days until there is effective control of symptoms of schizophrenia.
Maintenance Dose: 60 mg to 100 mg daily.
Maximum dose: 250 mg/day.
Missing a Dose
If you miss a dose of this medication, take the missed dose as soon as you remember. If it is almost time for your next dose, wait until then to take the medicine and skip the missed dose. Do not take extra medicine to make up the missed dose.
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