FDA label 987a279f-0291-440b-9ecd-b40194b5d4ae

WARNINGS FENTANYL CITRATE SHOULD BE ADMINISTERED ONLY BY PERSONS SPECIFICALLY TRAINED IN THE USE OF INTRAVENOUS ANESTHETICS AND MANAGEMENT OF THE RESPIRATORY EFFECTS OF POTENT OPIOIDS. AN OPIOID ANTAGONIST, RESUSCITATIVE AND INTUBATION EQUIPMENT AND OXYGEN SHOULD BE READILY AVAILABLE. See also discussion of narcotic antagonists in PRECAUTIONS and OVERDOSAGE . If fentanyl is administered with a tranquilizer such as droperidol, the user should become familiar with the special properties of each drug, particularly the widely differing duration of action. In addition, when such a combination is used, fluids and other countermeasures to manage hypotension should be available. As with other potent narcotics, the respiratory depressant effect of fentanyl may persist longer than the measured analgesic effect. The total dose of all narcotic analgesics administered should be considered by the practitioner before ordering narcotic analgesics during recovery from anesthesia. It is recommended that narcotics, when required, should be used in reduced doses initially, as low as 1/4 to 1/3 those usually recommended. Fentanyl may cause muscle rigidity, particularly involving the muscles of respiration. In addition, skeletal muscle movements of various groups in the extremities, neck and external eye have been reported during induction of anesthesia with fentanyl; these reported movements have, on rare occasions, been strong enough to pose patient management problems. This effect is related to the dose and speed of injection and its incidence can be reduced by: 1) administration of up to 1/4 of the full paralyzing dose of a non-depolarizing neuromuscular blocking agent just prior to administration of fentanyl citrate; 2) administration of a full paralyzing dose of a neuromuscular blocking agent following loss of eyelash reflex when fentanyl is used in anesthetic doses titrated by slow intravenous infusion; or, 3) simultaneous administration of fentanyl citrate and a full paralyzing dose of a neuromuscular blocking agent when fentanyl citrate is used in rapidly administered anesthetic dosages. The neuromuscular blocking agent used should be compatible with the patient’s cardiovascular status. Adequate facilities should be available for postoperative monitoring and ventilation of patients administered anesthetic doses of fentanyl. Where moderate or high doses are used (above 10 mcg/kg), there must be adequate facilities for postoperative observation, and ventilation if necessary, of patients who have received fentanyl. It is essential that these facilities be fully equipped to handle all degrees of respiratory depression. Fentanyl may also produce other signs and symptoms characteristic of narcotic analgesics including euphoria, miosis, bradycardia and bronchoconstriction. Severe and unpredictable potentiation by monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors has been reported for other narcotic analgesics. Although this has not been reported for fentanyl, there are insufficient data to establish that this does not occur with fentanyl. Therefore, when fentanyl is administered to patients who have received MAO inhibitors within 14 days, appropriate monitoring and ready availability of vasodilators and beta-blockers for the treatment of hypertension is indicated. Head Injuries and Increased Intracranial Pressure − Fentanyl should be used with caution in patients who may be particularly susceptible to respiratory depression, such as comatose patients who may have a head injury or brain tumor. In addition, fentanyl may obscure the clinical course of patients with head injury.

ADVERSE REACTIONS As with other narcotic analgesics, the most common serious adverse reactions reported to occur with fentanyl are respiratory depression, apnea, rigidity, and bradycardia; if these remain untreated, respiratory arrest, circulatory depression or cardiac arrest could occur. Other adverse reactions that have been reported are hypertension, hypotension, dizziness, blurred vision, nausea, emesis, laryngospasm, and diaphoresis. It has been reported that secondary rebound respiratory depression may occasionally occur postoperatively. Patients should be monitored for this possibility and appropriate countermeasures taken as necessary. When a tranquilizer such as droperidol is used with fentanyl citrate, the following adverse reactions can occur: chills and/or shivering, restlessness, and postoperative hallucinatory episodes (sometimes associated with transient periods of mental depression); extrapyramidal symptoms (dystonia, akathisia, and oculogyric crisis) have been observed up to 24 hours postoperatively. When they occur, extrapyramidal symptoms can usually be controlled with anti-parkinson agents. Postoperative drowsiness is also frequently reported following the use of droperidol.