How do other medicines affect Carbatrol?
Some medicines can cause carbamazepine (the medicine in Carbatrol) to build up in the blood. Having too much carbamazepine in the blood makes people feel dizzy, unsteady, or sleepy. Some of the medications and other substances that may raise carbamazepine levels include: • Depakote and other valproate seizure medicines • some medicines for high blood pressure, including Cardizem (diltiazem) and verapamil • Prozac (fluoxetine) • certain antibiotics, including erythromycin • cimetidine (Tagamet, also available without a prescription) • Darvon and Darvocet • several anti-fungus medicines, such as Diflucan (fluconazole) and Flagyl (metronidazole) • grapefruit juice On the other hand, some medicines reduce the amount of carbamazepine in the blood. More seizures may occur unless a higher dosage of Carbatrol is taken.
