by Jennifer Kirkman

Created on: April 07, 2010

Concerta is a drug which helps a person with hyperactivity disorders. It helps the central nervous system in the brain so that the areas of focus and concentration are better. This drug is an aid only. The person affected with ADHD will also need other outside help socially in helping their ADHD.

If you are taking Marplan or other MAOI Inhibitor types of drugs such as these, you will need to stop these drugs before even taking Concerta for at least 14 days. By combining MAOI inhibitors with drugs like Concerta, this could prove to be very dangerous and cause potentially fatal side effects. The treating doctor therefore, should know ALL of the medications which you are taking to avoid bad interactions.

Concerta, like so many other drugs, is capable of causing a rare allergic reaction. Anyone taking Concerta that starts to have trouble breathing, is breaking out in hives, and having tongue swelling needs to report to the emergency room right away for treatment.

Your doctor should also be informed if you have eye problems like glaucoma, hypertension, hyperthyroidism, Tourette's Syndrome, chest pain, or any heart attack which happened in the recent past. Under these conditions, Concerta may not be able to be taken safely.

It has not been confirmed as to whether this medication is harmful to unborn babies or not. Another fact about this medication is that it usually needs to be stopped before any type of surgical procedure.

This medication needs to be taken just as your doctor prescribed it for you. Do not take it in double doses if you happen to miss a scheduled dose. It is always best in that case to wait for your next scheduled dosage. Double dosing can cause some very serious side effects.

Be especially careful when operating a car or other machinery while taking Concerta. This drug may impair your judgement and alertness behind the wheel.

Some of the more serious side effects from taking Concerta include a heart rate which speeds way up, and a heart rate that is pounding. Feeling behavioral changes are also a problem for some people where aggressiveness, hostility, and anger have been reported.

Another important serious side effect to take note of is that this medication can raise the blood pressure to extremely high levels, possibly causing stroke. Having blurry vision, headaches, and trouble breathing are also yet another possible serious problem.

The lesser serious effects are a loss of weight, possible mild skin rash, numbness, and trouble falling to sleep.

As always, if any of these effects are bothersome, it is important to talk to your doctor right away. Medications work different in everyone.

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