Tadalafil Information

Tadalafil is used to increase blood flow to certain areas of the body, as a muscle relaxant and as a male impotence or erectile dysfunction treatment.

You should not take tadalafil if you take any nitrate drugs for heart problems or chest pain. These include isosorbide dinitrate (Isordil, Dilatrate-SR, Sorbitrate), isosorbide mononitrate (Imdur, Monoket, ISMO) or nitroglycerin (Nitrostat, Nitro-Dur, Nitrolingual, Nitro-Bid). Certain recreational drugs like nitrite (“poppers”) and amyl nitrate may also contain nitrates. Combining tadalafil with any of these nitrate medications may result in fainting, heart attack, stroke or a serious drop in blood pressure.

A small percentage of individuals have experienced a sudden loss of eyesight caused by decreased blood flow to the eye’s optic nerve. It has not been proven whether tadalafil is the cause of the vision loss. Individuals who are older than 50, smokers or who have diabetes, high cholesterol, pre-existing eye problems, high blood pressures or diabetes are more at risk of experiencing a sudden vision loss after taking tadalafil.

If you have experienced any of the following conditions, be sure to consult with your doctor:

• Angina or chest pain
• Liver disease
• Heart rhythm problems or heart disease
• High or low blood pressure
• Heart attack within the past 90 days
• Stroke or congestive heart failure within the past 6 months
• Bleeding disorder such as hemophilia
• Stomach ulcer
• Retinitis pigmentosa (inherited eye condition)
• Physical deformity of the penis such as Peyronie's disease
• Kidney disease or are on dialysis
• Blood cell disorder such as leukemia, multiple myeloma or sickle cell anemia
• Inability to engage in sexual intercourse due to health reasons

If you have any of the above conditions, you may require a dosage adjustment or special tests or you may not be able to take tadalafil. Although tadalafil is not meant to be taken by women, the medication is not believed to be harmful to unborn babies. However, you should not take the drug if you are pregnant, plan to become so or are breast-feeding as the drug may pass into the breast milk. If you are older than 65, you may require a lower dose of tadalafil.

Make sure to drink a full glass of water with each dose of the medication. Don’t take any high-fat foods beforehand as they may delay the time period required for the drug to take effect. You should only take tadalafil when required, 30 to 60 minutes before engaging in sexual activity. When combined with sexual stimulation, the medication can help men obtain an erection.

Never take tadalafil more than once daily, and wait 24 hours before taking another dose. You should also store the medication at room temperature away from heat and moisture. If you believe you have taken too much of the drug, be sure to seek immediate medical attention. Possible symptoms of a tadalafil overdose include nausea, fainting, light headedness, chest pain or an irregular heartbeat.

You should avoid drinking alcohol, grapefruit juice or grapefruits while taking tadalafil as they may increase some of the side effects. Never take any other drug such as yohimbine (Yodoxin, Yocon) or alprostadil (Edex, Caverject, Muse) used to treat erectile dysfunction.

If you experience any of the following possible serious side effects, be sure to consult medical attention immediately:

• Sudden vision loss or vision changes
• Nausea
• Dizziness, light headedness or fainting
• Tingling, numbness or pain in your jaw, neck, chest or arms during sexual activity
• Signs of an allergic reaction such as swelling of your tongue, face, throat or lips, hives or difficulty breathing.
• Swelling of your feet, hands or ankles
• Irregular heartbeat
• Shortness of breath
• Painful erection or one that lasts longer than 4 hours
• Chest pain or a pain or heavy feeling in your shoulder or arm
• Sweating
• General ill feeling

If you experience less serious side effects such as a stuffy nose, headache, back pain, upset stomach or redness or warmth in your neck, chest or face, you can continue taking tadalafil. However, you should consult with your doctor. If you experience any unusual or bothersome side effects that are not listed, talk to your doctor.

Don’t take tadalafil with any nitroglycerin-type drugs for chest of heart pain such as isosorbide dinitrate, nitroglycerin or amyl nitrite. Tadalafil may also cause interactions with any of the following:

• Bosentan
• Cimetidine
• Grapefruit juice
• Cisapride
• Nicardipine
• Rifabutin, rifapentine or rifampin
• Verapamil
• Drugs used to treat mood problems, anxiety or depression such as fluvoxamine, nefazodone and fluoxetine
• Quinidine
• Certain drugs used to treat seizures such as phenytoin, phenobarbital and carbamazepine
• Mibefradil
• Certain antibiotics such as erythromycin, troleandomycin and clarithromycin
• Certain medications used to treat AIDS or HIV infections
• Diltiazem
• Medications used to treat fungal infections such as voriconazole, itraconazole, ketoconazole or fluconazole
• Alpha blockers, such as prazosin (Minipress®), doxazosin (Cardura®), terazosin (Hytrin®) or alfuzosin (UroXatral®) used to treat an enlarged prostate or high blood pressure

What is the shelf life of the pills?

The expiry date is listed on each blister. The date will vary depending on the particular batch. The shelf life is 2 years from the manufacturing date and varies depending on when the pills were manufactured.