Tizanidine (By mouth)

tye-ZAN-i-deen

Treats muscle spasticity.

Drug classes

Skeletal Muscle Relaxant, Centrally Acting (About this – PubMed Health)

Uses

Uses of This Medicine

Tizanidine is used to help relax certain muscles in your body. It relieves spasms, cramping, and tightness of the muscles caused by medical problems, such as multiple sclerosis or certain injuries to the spine. Tizanidine does not cure these problems, but it may allow other treatment, such as physical therapy, to be more helpful in improving your condition.

Tizanidine acts on the central nervous system (CNS) to produce its muscle relaxant effects. Its actions on the CNS may also cause some of the medicine’s side effects.

This medicine is available only with your doctor’s prescription.

Other uses (PubMed Health)

How To Use

Capsule, Tablet

Take your medicine as directed. Your dose may need to be changed several times to find what works best for you.

You may take this medicine with or without food, but always take it the same way every time. Tizanidine works differently depending on whether you take it on an empty stomach or a full stomach. Talk to your doctor if you have any questions about this.

Missed dose: Take a dose as soon as you remember. If it is almost time for your next dose, wait until then and take a regular dose. Do not take extra medicine to make up for a missed dose.

Store the medicine in a closed container at room temperature, away from heat, moisture, and direct light.

Drugs and Foods to Avoid

Ask your doctor or pharmacist before using any other medicine, including over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal products.

Do not use this medicine together with ciprofloxacin or fluvoxamine.

Some foods and medicines can affect how tizanidine works. Tell your doctor if you are using any of the following:

Acyclovir, baclofen, cimetidine, famotidine, ticlopidine, verapamil, zileuton Birth control pills, blood pressure medicine, medicine for heart rhythm problems (such as amiodarone, mexiletine, propafenone), or medicine to treat an infection (such as levofloxacin, moxifloxacin)

Do not drink alcohol while you are using this medicine.

Tell your doctor if you use anything else that makes you sleepy. Some examples are allergy medicine, narcotic pain medicine, and alcohol.

When Not To Use

This medicine is not right for everyone. Do not use if you had an allergic reaction to tizanidine.

Warnings

Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, or if you have kidney disease or liver disease.

This medicine may cause the following problems:

Low blood pressure Liver damage

This medicine may make you dizzy or drowsy. Do not drive or do anything else that could be dangerous until you know how this medicine affects you. Stand or sit up slowly if you are dizzy.

Do not stop using this medicine suddenly. Your doctor will need to slowly decrease your dose before you stop it completely.

Your doctor will do lab tests at regular visits to check on the effects of this medicine. Keep all appointments.

Keep all medicine out of the reach of children. Never share your medicine with anyone.

Possible side effects

Summary More details

Call your doctor right away if you notice any of these side effects:

Allergic reaction: Itching or hives, swelling in your face or hands, swelling or tingling in your mouth or throat, chest tightness, trouble breathing

Dark urine or pale stools, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, stomach pain, yellow skin or eyes

Lightheadedness, dizziness, or fainting

Seeing or hearing things that are not really there

Slow heartbeat

If you notice these less serious side effects, talk with your doctor:

Dry mouth

Drowsiness or sleepiness

Weakness

If you notice other side effects that you think are caused by this medicine, tell your doctor.

Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

More side effects of this drug

Brand names include

Comfort Pac w/Tizanidine, Zanaflex, Zanaflex Capsule

There may be other brand names for this medicine.