Before Using This Medicine

In deciding to use a medicine, the risks of taking the medicine must be weighed against the good it will do. This is a decision you and your doctor will make. For nabilone, the following should be considered:

Allergies—Tell your doctor if you have ever had any unusual or allergic reaction to nabilone or marijuana products. Also tell your health care professional if you are allergic to any other substances, such as foods, preservatives, or dyes.

Pregnancy—Studies have not been done in pregnant women. However, studies in animals have shown a decrease in successful pregnancies and a decrease in the number of live babies born, when nabilone was given in doses many times the usual human dose.

Breast-feeding—It is not known whether nabilone passes into the breast milk. However, nabilone is not recommended during breast-feeding because other medicines similar to nabilone that pass into the breast milk have been shown to cause unwanted effects in the nursing baby.

Children—Studies on this medicine have been done only in adult patients, and there is no specific information comparing use of nabilone in children with use in other age groups.

Older adults—Fast or pounding heartbeat, feeling faint or lightheaded, and unusual tiredness or weakness may be especially likely to occur in elderly patients, who are usually more sensitive than younger adults to the effects of nabilone. Also, the effects this medicine may have on the mind may be of special concern in the elderly. Therefore, older people should be watched closely while taking this medicine.

Other medicines—Although certain medicines should not be used together at all, in other cases two different medicines may be used together even if an interaction might occur. In these cases, your doctor may want to change the dose, or other precautions may be necessary. When you are taking nabilone, it is especially important that your health care professional know if you are taking any of the following:

• Central nervous system (CNS) depressants (medicine that causes drowsiness) or
• Tricyclic antidepressants (medicine for depression)—Taking these medicines with nabilone may increase the CNS-depressant effects

Other medical problems—The presence of other medical problems may affect the use of nabilone. Make sure you tell your doctor if you have any other medical problems, especially:

• Alcohol abuse (or history of) or
• Drug abuse or dependence (or history of)—Dependence on nabilone may develop

• Emotional problems or
• Heart disease or
• Low blood pressure or
• Manic or depressive states or
• Mental illness (severe) or
• Schizophrenia—Nabilone may make the condition worse

• Liver disease (severe)—Higher blood levels of nabilone may occur, increasing the chance of side effects