When having phenytoin injection or subsequently, you may encounter acute or life-threatening low blood pressure or irregular heartbeats. Inform your physician if you experience or have ever experienced heart block or irregular heartbeat (condition in which electrical signals are not passed normally from the upper chambers of the heart to the lower chambers). The injection of phenytoin may not be recommended by your doctor. Tell your doctor if you currently have heart failure or if you’ve ever experienced low blood pressure. Tell your doctor right away if you suffer any of the following symptoms: fatigue, dizziness, irregular heartbeat, or chest pain.

Each time you receive a phenytoin injection, you will do it in a medical setting, and a nurse or doctor will closely supervise you both during and after the injection.

The injection of phenytoin is used to treat primary generalised tonic-clonic seizures, also referred to as grand mal seizures because they affect the entire body, as well as to treat and prevent seizures that could start during or after brain or nervous system operations. Those who are unable to take oral phenytoin may also use phenytoin injection to manage some types of seizures. Anticonvulsants are a group of drugs that includes phenytoin. It reduces the brain’s aberrant electrical activity in order to work.

A doctor or nurse will slowly inject phenytoin injection intravenously (into a vein) using a solution (liquid) in a medical setting. Typically, it is administered once every six to eight hours.

For a copy of the manufacturer’s information for the patient, ask your chemist or doctor.

Injections of phenytoin are also used to manage irregular heartbeat. The dangers of using this drug for your illness should be discussed with your doctor.

Ask your doctor or chemist for more details if you believe this drug should be used for something else.

Before receiving phenytoin injection,

• If you have an allergy to phenytoin, other hydantoin drugs like ethotoin (Peganone) or fosphenytoin (Cerebyx), any other medications, or any of the chemicals in phenytoin injection, let your doctor and chemist know right away. Get a list of the ingredients from your chemist.
• Informing your physician that you are taking Delavirdine (Rescriptor). If you are on this drug, your doctor generally won’t want you to get phenytoin injection.
• Inform your doctor and chemist about all prescription and over-the-counter drugs, vitamins, dietary supplements, and herbal products that you are now taking or intend to use. Incorporate any of the following: Amiodarone (Nexterone, Pacerone), albendazole (Albenza); warfarin (Coumadin, Jantoven) is an anticoagulant (sometimes known as a “blood thinner”); fluconazole (Diflucan), ketoconazole (Nizoral), itraconazole (Onmel, Sporanox, Tolsura), miconazole (Oravig), posaconazole (Noxafil), and voriconazole (Vfend) are antifungal drugs; bleomycin; a few antiviral medications, including efavirenz (Sustiva, in Atripla), indinavir (Crixivan), lopinavir (in Kaletra), nelfinavir (Viracept), ritonavir (Norvir, in Kaletra), and saquinavir (Invirase); cholesterol-lowering drugs such atorvastatin (Lipitor, in Caduet), fluvastatin (Lescol), and simvastatin (Zocor, in Vytorin); cisplatin; carboplatin; chloramphenicol; chlordiazepoxide (Librium, in Librax); diazepam (Valium), Diazoxide (Proglycem), Digoxin (Lanoxin), Disopyramide (Norpace), Clozapine (Fazaclo, Versacloz), Cyclosporine (Gengraf, Neoral, Sandimmune), Disulfiram (Antabuse); fluvoxamine (Luvox), fluoxetine (Prozac, Sarafem, in Symbyax, among others), doxorubicin (Doxil), doxycycline (Acticlate, Doryx, Monodox, Oracea, and Vibramycin), folic acid, fosamprenavir (Lexiva), and furosemide (Lasix); hormonal contraceptives (birth control pills, patches, rings, or injections); hormone replacement treatment (HRT); H2 antagonists like cimetidine (Tagamet), famotidine (Pepcid), nizatidine (Axid), and ranitidine (Zantac); drugs for nausea and mental illness, isoniazid (Laniazid, in Rifamate, in Rifater), and irinotecan (Camptosar); other seizure medications, such as oxcarbazepine (Trilepta, Oxtellar XR), felbamate (Felbatol), lamotrigine (Lamictal), methsuximide (Celontin), carbamazepine (Carbatrol, Equetro, Tegretol, and others), ethosuximide (Zarontin), topiramate (Topamax), and valproic acid (Depaken); methylphenidate (Daytrana, Concerta, Metadate, Ritalin), methadone (Dolophine, Methadose), methotrexate (Otrexup, Rasuvo, Trexall, Xatmep), mexiletine, nifedipine (Adalat, Procardia), nimodipine (Nymalize), and nisoldipine (Sular); paclitaxel (Abraxane, Taxol), paroxetine (Paxil, Pexeva), and omeprazole (Prilosec), as well as oral steroids such dexamethasone, methylprednisolone (Medrol), prednisone, and prednisone (Rayos), quinidine (in Nuedexta), reserpine, praziquantel (Biltricide), quetiapine (Seroquel), rifampin (Rifadin, Rimactane, in Rifamate, in Rifater), and quinidine (in Nuedexta); aspirin, choline magnesium trisalicylate, choline salicylate, diflunisal, magnesium salicylate (Doan’s, among others), and salsalate are salicylate painkillers. Sertraline (Zoloft); sulfa antibiotics; teniposide; verapamil (Calan, Verelan, in Tarka), vigabatrin (Sabril), theophylline (Elixophyllin, Theo-24, Theochron), ticlopidine, tolbutamide, trazodone, and vitamin D. Your doctor might need to adjust your medication doses or keep a closer eye out for any negative side effects.
• Please let your doctor know if you are taking any herbal supplements, especially St. John’s wort.
• If you ever experienced liver issues while taking phenytoin, let your doctor know. You won’t likely get a phenytoin injection from your doctor.
• If you consume or have ever consumed substantial amounts of alcohol, let your doctor know. If you have undergone laboratory tests that revealed you have a hereditary risk factor that increases your risk of developing a significant skin reaction to phenytoin, let your doctor know. Additionally, let your doctor know if you suffer from or have ever suffered from diabetes, porphyria (a condition in which certain naturally occurring substances accumulate in the body and may cause stomach pain, mental or behavioural changes, or other symptoms), low albumin levels in your blood, or kidney or liver disease.
• Inform your physician if you are nursing a baby, intend to get pregnant, or are already pregnant. Pregnancy should not occur while you are taking phenytoin. See your doctor about reliable birth control options you can take while undergoing therapy. Call your doctor if you conceive while taking phenytoin. The foetus could suffer from phenytoin.
• Inform the surgeon or dentist that you are taking phenytoin if you are having surgery, including dental surgery.
• You should be aware that this prescription may make you feel groggy, sleepy, or uncoordinated. Until you know how this drug affects you, do not operate machinery or drive a car.
• Consult your doctor about drinking responsibly while taking this medicine.
• During your phenytoin therapy, discuss with your doctor how to take the best possible care of your teeth, gums, and mouth. To lessen the chance of gum damage brought on by phenytoin, it is crucial that you take good care of your mouth.

Your blood sugar may rise as a result of phenytoin. The signs of high blood sugar and what to do if you experience them should be discussed with your doctor.

Side effects from phenytoin injection are possible. If any of these symptoms are severe or do not go away, let your doctor know right once:

• Having trouble falling or staying asleep
• Irregular eye motions
• Inconsistent body movements
• Inability to coordinate
• Confusion
• Muddled speech
• Headache
• Alterations to your palate
• Constipation
• Excessive hair growth
• The deterioration of facial features
• Expansion of the lips
• Gum overgrowth
• Discomfort or penis curvature

Some adverse effects may be severe. Call your doctor right away if you suffer any of the symptoms described below or in the SPECIAL PRECAUTIONS section:

• Pain, swelling, or a change in colour at the injection site
• Rash
• Hives
• Itching
• Eye, face, throat, tongue, arm, hand, ankle, or lower leg swelling
• Breathing or swallowing challenges
• Hoarseness
• Enlarged glands
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Eyes or skin that have a yellow tint
• Stomach’s upper right corner hurts
• Extreme fatigue
• Significant bruising or bleeding
• Little skin patches that are red or purple
• Reduced appetite
• Flu-like signs
• Inflammation of the face, a fever, a sore throat, a rash, mouth ulcers, or easy bruising

Further negative consequences of phenytoin injection are possible. If you have any strange side effects while taking this medicine, contact your doctor right once.

You or your doctor can submit a report to the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting programme online or by phone if you have a serious side event (1-800-332-1088).

Phenytoin use may increase your risk of developing lymph node issues, such as Hodgkin’s disease (cancer that begins in the lymph system). Discuss the dangers of using this drug to treat your disease with your doctor.

Call the poison control hotline at 1-800-222-1222 in the event of an overdose. Moreover, information can be found online at https://www.poisonhelp.org/help. Call 911 right once if the person has collapsed, experienced a seizure, is having difficulty breathing, or cannot be roused.

Overdose signs could include the following:

• Irregular eye motions
• Inability to coordinate
• Slurred or sluggish speech
• Fatigue
• Fuzzy vision
• Body part shaking that is uncontrollable
• Nausea
• Vomiting

Keep all of your appointments with your physician and the lab. To determine how you responded to the phenytoin injection, your doctor can order specific lab tests.

Inform the lab staff and your doctor that you are receiving a phenytoin injection prior to any laboratory test.

You should keep a written record of every medication you take, including any over-the-counter (OTC) items, prescription drugs, and dietary supplements like vitamins and minerals. This list should be brought with you whenever you see a doctor or are admitted to the hospital. You should always have this information with you in case of emergencies.