The information on this site is intended to supplement and enhance, not replace, the advice of a physician who is familiar with your medical history. Decisions about your health should always be made ONLY after detailed conversation with your doctor.
Generic drug name:
amantadine
(a MAN ta deen)
Brand name(s):
GOCOVRI,
OSMOLEX
GENERIC:
available
FAMILIES:
Drugs for Viral Infection, Drugs for Parkinson’s Disease
Find the drug label by
searching at DailyMed.
Pregnancy and Breast-feeding Warnings [top]
Pregnancy Warning
This drug caused harm to developing fetuses in animal studies, including malformations and death. Because of the potential for serious adverse effects to the fetus, this drug should not be used by pregnant women.
Breast-feeding Warning
Amantadine is excreted in human milk. Because of the potential for serious adverse effects in nursing infants, you should not take this drug while nursing.
Facts About This Drug [top]
Amantadine is approved by the FDA to prevent and treat influenza A, Parkinson’s disease, and drug-induced movement disorders.[1] If you are over 60, you will probably need to take less than the usual adult dose. For use against flu, a lower dose of no more than 100 milligrams is recommended for older people, even less if your kidney function is impaired or you are underweight.[2],[3]
For flu (influenza) prevention, it is best to get a flu shot early in the season. However, if you cannot...
Amantadine is approved by the FDA to prevent and treat influenza A, Parkinson’s disease, and drug-induced movement disorders.[1] If you are over 60, you will probably need to take less than the usual adult dose. For use against flu, a lower dose of no more than 100 milligrams is recommended for older people, even less if your kidney function is impaired or you are underweight.[2],[3]
For flu (influenza) prevention, it is best to get a flu shot early in the season. However, if you cannot get a flu shot because it is unavailable, or you have a medical condition that prevents it, you can use amantadine. During outbreaks of the flu, amantadine may be prescribed in addition to earlier flu shots. For amantadine to be effective against the flu, you must take it within 48 hours of your first flu symptoms.[4]
Your doctor may also prescribe amantadine if you have Parkinson’s disease, usually as a supplement to another drug. A combination of two drugs called levodopa and carbidopa (SINEMET, SINEMET CR) is the best treatment for Parkinson’s disease. Amantadine is often effective only for a limited time (less than six months), and it often produces adverse effects such as confusion, lightheadedness, hallucinations, and anxiety, which reduce its usefulness.[5] When you are taking amantadine, especially if you are a woman, the skin of your legs may become mottled (this is known as livedo reticularis). This will go away when you stop taking the drug.
If you have symptoms of parkinsonism, you should know that they might be caused by a drug that you are taking for another problem. As many as half of older adults with these symptoms may have developed them as an adverse effect of one of their drugs. See list of drugs that can cause symptoms of parkinsonism. If you are taking any of the drugs on this list, discuss the possibility of drug-induced parkinsonism with your doctor and ask to have your prescription changed or stopped.
Deaths have been reported from overdose with amantadine (Symmetrel). The lowest reported acute lethal dose was 1 gram. Immediate, short-term adverse effects may be attributable to the anticholinergic affects of amantadine.[6]
Before You Use This Drug [top]
Tell your doctor if you have or have had:
Tell your doctor about any other drugs you take, including aspirin, herbs, vitamins, and other nonprescription products.
When You Use This Drug [top]
How to Use This Drug [top]
Interactions with Other Drugs [top]
Evaluations of Drug Interactions 2003 lists no drugs, biologics (e.g., vaccines, therapeutic antibodies), or foods as causing “highly clinically significant” or “clinically significant” interactions when used together with the drugs in this section. We also found no interactions in the drugs’ FDA-approved professional package inserts. However, as the number of new drugs approved for marketing increases and as more experience is gained with these drugs over time, new interactions may be discovered.
Adverse Effects [top]
Call your doctor immediately if you experience:
Call your doctor if these symptoms continue:
Signs of overdose:
If you suspect an overdose, call this number to contact your poison control center: (800) 222-1222.
Periodic Tests[top]
Ask your doctor which of these tests should be done periodically while you are taking this drug:
last reviewed October 31, 2023
Worst Pills, Best Pills is a project of Public Citizen's Health Research Group Group. As an independent, nonprofit organization, we take no corporate or government contributions and accept no advertising. Copyright © 2024 Public Citizen's Health Research Group. All rights reserved.
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