Fioricet contains a combination of acetaminophen, butalbital, and caffeine. Acetaminophen is a pain reliever and fever reducer. Acetaminophen is also well known as tylenol, or Paracetamol.

Acetaminophen is over the counter medicine, is commonly used for the relief of headaches, other minor aches pain and daily pain relieving. Acetaminophen is a major ingredient in numerous cold and flu remedies. In combination with opioid analgesics, Acetaminophen can also be used in the management of more severe pain such as post surgical pain and providing palliative care in advanced cancer patients. The max dosage of Acetaminophen is 4000mg for adult, and 2000mg dosage if you drink alcohol.

The words acetaminophen (used in the United States, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong, Iran and Colombia) and paracetamol (used elsewhere) both come from chemical names for the compound: para-acetylaminophenol and para-acetylaminophenol. In some contexts, it is simply abbreviated as APAP, for acetyl-para-aminophenol.

An overdose of acetaminophen can cause damage to your liver. Do not use any other cold, allergy, pain, or sleep medication without first asking your doctor or pharmacist. Acetaminophen (sometimes abbreviated as "APAP") is contained in many combination medicines. If you use certain products together with Fioricet you may accidentally use too much acetaminophen. Read the label of any other medicine you are using to see if it contains acetaminophen or APAP. Avoid drinking alcohol. It can increase the risk of liver damage while you are taking acetaminophen.

Butalbital is in a group of drugs called barbiturates. It relaxes muscle contractions involved in a tension headache.Butalbital, structure presents as 5-allyl-5-isobutylbarbituric acid, is a barbiturate with an intermediate duration of action. It has the same chemical formula as talbutal but a different structure. Butalbital is often combined with other medications, such as paracetamol (acetaminophen) or aspirin, and is commonly prescribed for the treatment of pain and headache.

Butalbital is a physically and psychologically addictive barbiturate. Butalbital should not be mixed with alcohol due to increased risk of intoxication, increased respiratory depression, and increased liver toxicity when it is a butalbital combination including paracetamol. Many opioid-dependent persons frequently use barbiturates as a potentiator to their normal dose of opiates in order to increase the effects, or with a less than normal dose as means of conserving their supply.

Caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant. It relaxes muscle contractions in blood vessels to improve blood flow.

Fioricet is used to treat tension headaches that are caused by muscle contractions. Fioricet (Butalbital, Acetaminophen, and Caffeine Tablets, USP) is supplied in tablet form for oral administration.

Each tablet contains the following active ingredients:

• butalbital USP . . . . . . . . . .50 mg
• acetaminophen USP . . . . ........325 mg
• caffeine USP . . . . . . . . . . .40 mg

Important information about Fioricet

Taking too much acetaminophen can cause liver damage, sometimes serious enough to require liver transplantation or cause death. You might accidentally take too much acetaminophen if you do not follow the directions on the prescription or package label carefully, or if you take more than one product that contains acetaminophen.

Do not use Fioricet if you have used an MAO inhibitor such as isocarboxazid (Marplan), phenelzine (Nardil), rasagiline (Azilect), selegiline (Eldepryl, Emsam), or tranylcypromine (Parnate) within the past 14 days. Serious, life-threatening side effects can occur if you take Fioricet before the MAO inhibitor has cleared from your body.

Do not take more Fioricet than is recommended. An overdose of acetaminophen can cause damage to your liver. Do not use any other cold, allergy, pain, or sleep medication without first asking your doctor or pharmacist. Acetaminophen (sometimes abbreviated as "APAP") is contained in many combination medicines. If you use certain products together with Fioricet you may accidentally use too much acetaminophen. Read the label of any other medicine you are using to see if it contains acetaminophen or APAP. Avoid drinking alcohol. It can increase the risk of liver damage while you are taking acetaminophen. If you drink more than three alcoholic beverages per day, do not take acetaminophen without your doctor's advice, and never take more than 2 grams (2000 mg) per day.

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

Butalbital may be habit-forming and should be used only by the person it was prescribed for. Fioricet should never be shared with another person, especially someone who has a history of drug abuse or addiction. Keep the medication in a secure place where others cannot get to it.

Do not take Fioricet without first talking to your doctor if you drink more than three alcoholic beverages per day or if you have had alcoholic liver disease (cirrhosis). You may not be able to take medication that contains acetaminophen.

You should not take Fioricet if you are allergic to acetaminophen, butalbital, or caffeine, or if you have porphyria.

Before using Fioricet, tell your doctor if you are allergic to any drugs, or if you have:

• kidney disease,

• liver disease; or

• a history of mental illness or suicidal thoughts.

If you have any of these conditions, you may need a dose adjustment or special tests to safely take Fioricet.

FDA pregnancy category C. It is not known whether Fioricet is harmful to an unborn baby. Before taking Fioricet, tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant during treatment. Acetaminophen, butalbital, and caffeine can pass into breast milk and may harm a nursing baby. Do not use Fioricet without telling your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby.

How should I take Fioricet?

Take Fioricet exactly as prescribed by your doctor. Do not take it in larger amounts or for longer than recommended. Follow the directions on your prescription label. Tell your doctor if the medicine seems to stop working as well in relieving your pain.

Take Fioricet with food or milk if it upsets your stomach. An overdose of acetaminophen can cause serious harm. The maximum amount of acetaminophen for adults is 1 gram (1000 mg) per dose and 4 grams (4000 mg) per day. Taking more acetaminophen could cause damage to your liver. One tablet may contain up to 750 mg of acetaminophen. Know the amount of acetaminophen in the specific product you are taking.

Store Fioricet at room temperature away from moisture and heat.

Keep track of how much medicine has been used from each new bottle. Butalbital is a drug of abuse and you should be aware if any person in the household is using this medicine improperly or without a prescription.

What should I avoid while taking Fioricet?

Fioricet can cause side effects that may impair your thinking or reactions. Be careful if you drive or do anything that requires you to be awake and alert. Tell your doctor if you regularly use other medicines that make you sleepy (such as cold or allergy medicine, narcotic pain medicine, sleeping pills, muscle relaxers, and medicine for seizures, depression, or anxiety). They can add to sleepiness caused by butalbital.

Avoid drinking alcohol. It can increase the risk of liver damage while you are taking acetaminophen. If you drink more than three alcoholic beverages per day, do not take acetaminophen without your doctor's advice, and never take more than 2 grams (2000 mg) of acetaminophen per day. Do not use any other cold, allergy, pain, or sleep medication without first asking your doctor or pharmacist. Acetaminophen (sometimes abbreviated as "APAP") is contained in many combination medicines. If you use certain products together you may accidentally use too much acetaminophen. Read the label of any other medicine you are using to see if it contains acetaminophen or APAP.

While you are taking Fioricet, avoid taking diet pills, caffeine pills, or other stimulants (such as ADHD medications) without your doctor's advice.

Fioricet side effects

Get emergency medical help if you have any of these signs of an allergic reaction to Fioricet: hives; difficulty breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat.

Stop using Fioricet and call your doctor at once if you have any of these serious side effects:

• fast, pounding, or uneven heartbeat;

• feeling light-headed or short of breath;

• nausea, upper stomach pain, itching, loss of appetite, dark urine, clay-colored stools, jaundice (yellowing of the skin or eyes); or

• easy bruising or bleeding, unusual weakness, fever, chills, body aches, flu symptoms.

Less serious Fioricet side effects may include:

• drowsiness;

• dizziness, confusion or lightheadedness;

• dry mouth;

• nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, loss of appetite;

• feeling anxious or jittery;

• drunk feeling; or

• headache.

What other drugs will affect Fioricet?

Tell your doctor if you regularly use other medicines that make you sleepy (such as cold or allergy medicine, narcotic pain medicine, sleeping pills, muscle relaxers, and medicine for seizures, depression, or anxiety). They can add to sleepiness caused by butalbital.

Tell your doctor about all other medicines you use, especially:

• an antibiotic;

• a blood thinner such as warfarin (Coumadin, Jantoven);

• isoniazid (for treating tuberculosis);

• zidovudine (Retrovir, AZT);

• seizure medication such as phenytoin (Dilantin) or phenobarbital (Luminal, Solfoton);

• gout medications such as probenecid (Benemid) or sulfinpyrazone;

• steroids such as prednisone, fluticasone (Advair), mometasone (Asmanex, Nasonex), dexamethasone (Decadron, Hexadrol) and others; or

• an antidepressant such as amitriptyline (Elavil, Vanatrip, Limbitrol), clomipramine (Anafranil), desipramine (Norpramin), imipramine (Janimine, Tofranil), and others.

This list is not complete and other drugs may interact with Fioricet. Tell your doctor about all medications you use. This includes prescription, over-the-counter, vitamin, and herbal products. Do not start a new medication without telling your doctor.

Fioricet Pregnancy and Breastfeeding Warnings, How to USE Fioricet, Fioricet CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, Fioricet OverDose