Eltroxin

The following information is adapted from the consumer medicine information leaflet for Eltroxin^TM and is available on request from your doctor or GlaxoSmithKline.

What Eltroxin is used for

Eltroxin contains the active ingredient thyroxine.

Eltroxin is used to treat hypothyroidism, a disease in which the thyroid gland is underactive and does not produce enough thyroxine, a hormone, which is important for controlling your metabolism. Symptoms of hypothyroidism include tiredness, muscle weakness, cramps, feeling the cold, a slow heart rate, dry and flaky skin, hair loss, a deep husky voice and weight gain.

Eltroxin is also used to treat children born with hypothyroidism (congenital), those who develop hypothyroidism in the first year of life (neonatal) and children who have hypothyroidism as part of juvenile myxoedema, a condition in which the amount of thyroxine produced by the body is low.

Your doctor may have prescribed Eltroxin for another purpose.

Eltroxin belongs to a small group of medicines called thyroid hormones, which work by replacing the body's low levels of thyroxine.

Ask your doctor if you have any questions about why Eltroxin has been prescribed for you.

Eltroxin is available only with a doctor's prescription.

Before you take Eltroxin

Do not take Eltroxin if:

• You have had an allergic reaction before to any of the ingredients in Eltroxin vlisted on the Product Description page.
• The packaging is torn or shows signs of interference, or the tablets look damaged or discoloured.
• The expiry date on the packaging has passed. If you take this medicine after the expiry date has passed, it may not work as well. If the pharmacist has repacked the medicine for you, there may not be an expiry date on the pack.
• You have thyrotoxicosis, a disease in which the thyroid gland is overactive and produces too much thyroxine.

Before you start taking Eltroxin

Tell your doctor if:

• You are allergic to any of the ingredients in Eltroxin listed on the Product Description page
• You are pregnant or plan to become pregnant.
• Eltroxin is not thought to be harmful to an unborn baby when taken by a pregnant woman. However, thyroxine levels need to be watched carefully during pregnancy because too much or too little thyroxine in the mother's bloodstream could affect the well-being of an unborn baby.
• You are breastfeeding or planning to breastfeed.
• Although the active ingredient in Eltroxin, thyroxine, passes into breast milk, it is not likely to have a harmful effect on a baby. However, it might interfere with the results of tests to detect congenital hypothyroidism in the baby. You should not breastfeed unless your doctor says you can.
• You have any other health problems, especially:
• Diabetes
• Heart disease
• High blood pressure
• Underactive adrenal glands
• You are allergic to any other medicines, foods, dyes or preservatives.

If you have not told your doctor about any of the above, please do so before taking Eltroxin.

Some medicines may affect the way others work.

Tell your doctor if you are taking any other medicines, including the oral contraceptive pill or medicines you buy without a prescription from a pharmacy, supermarket or health food shop.

If you are taking any of the following types of medicines, please let your doctor know before taking

Eltroxin:

• Drugs to thin your blood
• Drugs for epilepsy
• Drugs for mental depression
• Cholestyramine (Questran^TM), a drug used to lower blood cholesterol levels
• Digoxin (Lanoxin^TM), or drugs known as cardiac glycosides
• Drugs to relieve asthma attacks
• Drugs used for weight reduction.
• Oral contraceptive pill

Your doctor or pharmacist will be able to tell you more about what to do when taking Eltroxin with other medicines.