Join Today & Get 4% Cash Back Then 6, 7...Up to 10% Off Reorders!

Online Pharmacy Dictionary

Find drugs by alphabetical list:
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z View All

News on Serevent Diskus (salmeterol xinafoate)

Serevent Diskus (salmeterol xinafoate)

Last updated on: Jan 24, 2007

What Is Serevent?

Serevent is a medicine called a ?long-acting beta-agonist? and is a long-acting bronchodilator medicine. Bronchodilator medicines help to relax the muscles around the airways in your lungs. Wheezing happens when the muscles around the airways tighten. This makes it hard to breathe. In severe cases, wheezing can stop your breathing and cause death if not treated right away.

Serevent does NOT relieve sudden breathing problems. Always have a short-acting bronchodilator medicine with you to treat sudden breathing problems.

SEREVENT DISKUS is used for:

Asthma

SEREVENT DISKUS is used long-term, twice-a-day, to control symptoms of asthma and prevent wheezing in adults and children ages 4 and older.

Because SEREVENT DISKUS can increase the chance of death from asthma, it is not for adults and children with asthma who:

are well controlled with other asthma-controller medicines such as low-to-medium doses of inhaled corticosteroids
need only short-acting bronchodilators once in awhile

Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm (EIB)
SEREVENT DISKUS is used for the prevention of wheezing (bronchospasm) caused by exercise in adults and children 4 years of age and older.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
SEREVENT DISKUS is used long-term, twice-a-day in controlling wheezing (bronchospasms) in adults with COPD.

What Are The Risks?

The following are the major potential risks and side effects of Serevent therapy. However, this list is not complete.

Serevent may worsen your breathing problems. See FDA Alert.

Other possible side effects with Serevent include:

allergic reactions including, rash, hives, and swelling of the face, mouth, and tongue
increased blood pressure
fast and irregular heartbeat
chest pain
headache
tremor
nervousness
throat irritation

Tell your healthcare professional about any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away.

What Should I Tell My Healthcare Professional?

Before you start using Serevent, tell your healthcare professional if you:

have heart problems
have high blood pressure
have seizures
have thyroid problems
have diabetes
have liver problems
are pregnant or planning to become pregnant. It is not known if Serevent may harm your unborn baby.
are breastfeeding. It is not known if Serevent passes into your milk and if it can harm your baby.

Can Other Medicines or Food Affect Serevent?

Serevent and certain other medicines can interact with each other. Tell your healthcare professional about all the medicines you take including prescription and non-prescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. Some medicines may affect how Serevent works or Serevent may affect how your other medicines work. Know the medicines you take. Keep a list of them with you to show your healthcare professional.

How Do I Use Serevent?

Read the step-by-step instructions for ?How to Use Serevent? that comes with the medicine. Do not use Serevent unless your healthcare professional has taught you and you understand everything.

Use Serevent exactly as prescribed. Do not use Serevent more often than prescribed.

Do not use a spacer device with Serevent Diskus. Do not breathe into the Diskus inhaler.
Do not change or stop any of your medicines to control or treat your breathing problems. Your healthcare professional will adjust your medicines as needed.
Make sure you always have a short-acting bronchodilator medicine with you. Use your short-acting bronchodilator if you have breathing problems between doses of Serevent.

Call your healthcare professional right away if:

your breathing problems worsen while you are taking Serevent
you need to use your short-acting bronchodilator more often
your short-acting bronchodilator does not work as well for you at relieving symptoms
you need to use 4 or more inhalations of your short-acting bronchodilator for 2 or more days in a row
you use 1 whole canister of your short-acting bronchodilator medicine in less than 8 weeks time

This information is provided by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration.
For more information about this drug, click here.