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In this Article

• What is adefovir (Hepsera)?
• What are the possible side effects of adefovir (Hepsera)?
• What is the most important information I should know about adefovir (Hepsera)?
• What should I discuss with my healthcare provider before taking adefovir (Hepsera)?
• How should I take adefovir (Hepsera)?
• What happens if I miss a dose (Hepsera)?
• What happens if I overdose (Hepsera)?
• What should I avoid while taking adefovir (Hepsera)?
• What other drugs will affect adefovir (Hepsera)?
• Where can I get more information?

What happens if I miss a dose (Hepsera)?

Take the missed dose as soon as you remember. If it is almost time for your next dose, skip the missed dose and take the medicine at your next regularly scheduled time. Do not take extra medicine to make up the missed dose.

What happens if I overdose (Hepsera)?

Seek emergency medical attention if you think you have used too much of this medicine.

Overdose symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and other stomach problems.

What should I avoid while taking adefovir (Hepsera)?

Avoid having unprotected sex or sharing needles, razors, or toothbrushes. Taking this medication will not prevent you from passing hepatitis B to other people. Talk with your doctor about safe methods of preventing hepatitis transmission during sex. Sharing drug or medicine needles is never safe, even for a healthy person.

What other drugs will affect adefovir (Hepsera)?

Before taking adefovir, tell your doctor if you are using any of the following drugs:

• amphotericin B (Fungizone, AmBisome, Amphotec, Abelcet);
• pentamidine (Nebupent, Pentam);
• antibiotics such as capreomycin (Capastat), rifampin (Rifadin, Rimactane, Rifater), vancomycin (Vancocin, Vancoled);
• antiviral medicines such as acyclovir (Zovirax), cidofovir (Vistide), or foscarnet (Foscavir);
• cancer medicine such as aldesleukin (Proleukin), carmustine (BiCNU, Gliadel), cisplatin (Platinol), ifosfamide (Ifex), oxaliplatin (Eloxatin), plicamycin (Mithracin), streptozocin (Zanosar), or tretinoin (Vesanoid);
• medicines used to prevent organ transplant rejection, such as cyclosporine (Gengraf, Neoral, Sandimmune), sirolimus (Rapamune) or tacrolimus (Prograf);
• pain or arthritis medicines such as aspirin (Anacin, Excedrin), acetaminophen (Tylenol), diclofenac (Cataflam, Voltaren), etodolac (Lodine), ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin), indomethacin (Indocin), naproxen (Aleve, Naprosyn), and others; or
• HIV medicines such as abacavir (Ziagen), didanosine (Videx), efavirenz (Sustiva), emtricitabine (Emtriva), lamivudine (Epivir), stavudine (Zerit), tenofovir (Viread), zalcitabine (Hivid), zidovudine (Retrovir), or combinations such as Atripla, Combivir, Epzicom, Trizivir, or Truvada.

This list is not complete and there may be other drugs that can interact with adefovir. Tell your doctor about all the prescription and over-the-counter medications you use. This includes vitamins, minerals, herbal products, and drugs prescribed by other doctors. Do not start using a new medication without telling your doctor.

Where can I get more information?

Your pharmacist can provide more information about adefovir.

Remember, keep this and all other medicines out of the reach of children, never share your medicines with others, and use this medication only for the indication prescribed.

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