ticlopidine (oral) Health Article

Generic name(s):

ticlopidine (oral)

Brand name(s):

ticlopidine, Ticlid

What is the most important information I should know about ticlopidine?

It may take longer than usual for you to stop bleeding, even from minor wounds. Contact your doctor if you experience unusual, prolonged, or severe bleeding or bruising.

Treatment with ticlopidine may reduce the number of white blood cells in your body (called neutropenia), which could lead to infection. If caught early, this side effect can be reversed, but if undetected, it can be fatal. Notify your doctor immediately if you develop signs of infection including fever, chills, or a sore throat. Ticlopidine may also cause a decrease in platelets (called thrombocytopenia). This may occur as part of a syndrome called TTP that includes injury to red blood cells, causing anemia, kidney problems, neurologic changes, fever, and possibly death. Notify your doctor immediately if you develop signs of TTP including yellow skin or eye color, pinpoint dots (rash) on the skin, pale color, fever, weakness on a side of the body, or dark urine. Also, some people may develop jaundice (liver damage) while taking ticlopidine. Notify your doctor immediately if you develop yellowing of the skin or the whites of the eyes, dark-yellow urine, or light-colored stools.

Your doctor will need to monitor your blood with blood tests before starting treatment with ticlopidine and every 2 weeks for the first 3 months of treatment. If your treatment with ticlopidine is stopped within the first three months of treatment, you will still need a blood test two weeks after stopping the medication.

Do not take aspirin, ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil, Nuprin, others), naproxen (Aleve, Anaprox, Naprosyn, others), ketoprofen (Orudis, Orudis KT, Oruvail), indomethacin (Indocin), nabumetone (Relafen), oxaprozin (Daypro), or other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications (NSAIDs) without first talking to your doctor.

Tell your doctor and dentist that you are taking this medication before undergoing any surgical procedures.

What is ticlopidine?

Ticlopidine prevents substances in the blood, called platelets, from clustering. This helps to prevent blood clots from forming.

Ticlopidine is used to prevent strokes in patients who have had a stroke or who have experienced transient ischemic attacks (TIAs or "mini-strokes").

Although not approved by the FDA for these purposes, ticlopidine has also been used to reduce the rate of reocclusion of arteries following angioplasty or stent placement, and to reduce the chance of a heart attack in some patients with coronary artery disease.

Ticlopidine may also be used for purposes other than those listed in this medication guide.

What should I discuss with my healthcare provider before taking ticlopidine?

Do not take ticlopidine without first talking to your doctor if you have

• had an allergic reaction to ticlopidine,

• active bleeding anywhere in your body {such as bleeding in the stomach from an ulcer or a stroke of a certain type (bleeding in the head)},

• a blood disorder or a bleeding problem including neutropenia or thrombocytopenia, or

• been told that you had TTP.

Before taking ticlopidine, tell your doctor if you have:

• a stomach or intestinal ulcer,

• high levels of cholesterol or triglycerides (types of fat) in your blood,

• kidney disease,
• liver disease, or

• recently had, or need to have, surgery (including dental surgery).

You may not be able to take ticlopidine, or you may require a dosage adjustment or special monitoring during treatment if you have any of the conditions listed above.

Ticlopidine is in the FDA pregnancy category B. This means that it is not expected to harm an unborn baby. Do not take this medication without first talking to your doctor if you are pregnant or planning a pregnancy. It is not known whether ticlopidine passes into breast milk. Do not take this medication without first talking to your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby.