alimemazine tartrate: prescribing and clinical use
Focused clinical detail for use alongside current product information, local policy and patient-specific assessment.
alimemazine tartrate: clinical details
Prescribing considerations
- Confirm the exact product, indication and age restriction; selected licences differ between children aged from 2 years and those aged from 3 years.
- Assess additive sedation, respiratory-depressant and antimuscarinic burden.
- Use particular caution with cardiovascular disease, volume depletion, chronic constipation, seizure history and older age.
- Consider susceptibility to hypotension, arrhythmia and impaired temperature regulation.
- Avoid direct sunlight and advise against alcohol.
Contraindications and cautions
- Hypersensitivity to phenothiazines or relevant excipients
- Hepatic or renal dysfunction
- Epilepsy
- Parkinson’s disease
- Hypothyroidism
- Phaeochromocytoma
- Myasthenia gravis
- History of narrow-angle glaucoma or agranulocytosis
- Prostatic hypertrophy
- Children below the product-specific minimum age
Monitoring
- Assess sedation, respiratory rate, postural symptoms and antimuscarinic adverse effects clinically.
- Consider ECG and electrolyte assessment where cardiac disease, hypokalaemia or interacting medicines increase arrhythmia risk.
- Investigate unexplained fever, sore throat, mouth ulcers or infection promptly with a blood count.
- Stop and assess if jaundice, significant movement disorder or features of neuroleptic malignant syndrome develop.
Clinical pharmacology
A systemic phenothiazine antihistamine with central sedative, antihistamine and anti-emetic actions. Human pharmacokinetic information is limited; phenothiazine metabolism and elimination may be slower in older people.
Formulation and product differences
- Selected products include syrup and sugar-free oral solutions; they are not automatically interchangeable.
- The syrup contains sucrose, ethanol, benzoate and sulphites, with implications for intolerance, hypersensitivity and bronchospasm.
- Some sugar-free solutions contain propylene glycol, small amounts of ethanol, benzoate and sulphites; others contain sodium methyl parahydroxybenzoate.
- Product-specific licences differ regarding minimum age and which formulation is suitable for pre-anaesthetic sedation.
- Use the measuring device supplied with the individual product.
alimemazine tartrate preparations and strengths
Oral solution
Route: Oral
Strengths: 7.5 mg/5 mL, 10 mg/5 mL, 30 mg/5 mL
Syrup
Route: Oral
Strengths: 7.5 mg/5 mL, 30 mg/5 mL
alimemazine tartrate interactions
Check prescribed, pharmacy and herbal products before use. Important interactions include:
Alcohol, opioids, hypnotics, anxiolytics and other sedatives
Sedation and respiratory depression can be intensified.
Tricyclic antidepressants and monoamine oxidase inhibitors
Sedative and antimuscarinic effects may increase, with possible respiratory depression.
Antimuscarinic medicines
Dry mouth, constipation, urinary retention, blurred vision and overheating may become more likely.
Sources
These sources were used to prepare and review this medicine page.
Prepared and reviewed by the iatroX editorial team.