Medications and Drugs

1. The Common Cold Slideshow Pictures
2. Slideshow: Treating Your Child's Cold or Fever
3. Take the Cold & Flu Quiz

Brand Names: Actifed Cold And Sinus

Generic Name: acetaminophen, pseudoephedrine, and triprolidine (Pronunciation: a SEET a MIN oh fen, trye PROE li deen, and SOO doe ee FED rin)

• What is acetaminophen, pseudoephedrine, and triprolidine (Actifed Cold And Sinus)?
• What are the possible side effects of acetaminophen, pseudoephedrine, and triprolidine (Actifed Cold And Sinus)?
• What is the most important information I should know about acetaminophen, pseudoephedrine, and triprolidine (Actifed Cold And Sinus)?
• What should I discuss with my healthcare provider before taking acetaminophen, pseudoephedrine, and triprolidine (Actifed Cold And Sinus)?
• How should I take acetaminophen, pseudoephedrine, and triprolidine (Actifed Cold And Sinus)?
• What happens if I miss a dose (Actifed Cold And Sinus)?
• What happens if I overdose (Actifed Cold And Sinus)?
• What should I avoid while taking acetaminophen, pseudoephedrine, and triprolidine (Actifed Cold And Sinus)?
• What other drugs will affect acetaminophen, pseudoephedrine, and triprolidine (Actifed Cold And Sinus)?
• Where can I get more information?

What is acetaminophen, pseudoephedrine, and triprolidine (Actifed Cold And Sinus)?

Acetaminophen is a pain reliever and fever reducer.

Pseudoephedrine is a decongestant that shrinks blood vessels in the nasal passages. Dilated blood vessels can cause nasal congestion (stuffy nose).

Triprolidine is an antihistamine that reduces the natural chemical histamine in the body. Histamine can produce symptoms of sneezing, itching, watery eyes, and runny nose.

The combination of acetaminophen, pseudoephedrine, and triprolidine headache, fever, body aches, runny or stuffy nose, sneezing, itching, watery eyes, and sinus congestion caused by allergies, the common cold, or the flu.

Acetaminophen, pseudoephedrine, and triprolidine may also be used for purposes not listed in this medication guide.

What are the possible side effects of acetaminophen, pseudoephedrine, and triprolidine (Actifed Cold And Sinus)?

Get emergency medical help if you have any of these signs of an allergic reaction: hives; difficulty breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat.

Stop using this medication and call your doctor at once if you have a serious side effect such as:

• chest pain, rapid pulse, fast or uneven heart rate;
• confusion, hallucinations, severe nervousness;
• tremor, seizure (convulsions);
• easy bruising or bleeding, unusual weakness;
• urinating less than usual or not at all;
• nausea, pain in your upper stomach, itching, loss of appetite, dark urine, clay-colored stools, jaundice (yellowing of your skin or eyes); or
• dangerously high blood pressure (severe headache, blurred vision, buzzing in your ears, anxiety, chest pain, shortness of breath, uneven heartbeats, seizure).

Less serious side effects may include:

• dizziness, drowsiness;
• mild headache;
• dry mouth, nose, or throat;
• constipation;
• blurred vision;
• feeling nervous; or
• sleep problems (insomnia);

This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

What is the most important information I should know about acetaminophen, pseudoephedrine, and triprolidine (Actifed Cold And Sinus)?

Do not take more of this medication than is recommended. An overdose of acetaminophen can damage your liver or cause death. Do not take this medication without a doctor's advice if you have ever had alcoholic liver disease (cirrhosis) or if you drink more than 3 alcoholic beverages per day.

You should not use this medicine if you have severe constipation, a blockage in your stomach or intestines, or if you are unable to urinate.

Do not use this medicine if you have untreated or uncontrolled diseases such as glaucoma, asthma or COPD, high blood pressure, heart disease, coronary artery disease, or overactive thyroid.

Avoid drinking alcohol. It may increase your risk of liver damage while taking acetaminophen and can increase certain side effects of triprolidine.

Do not use this medicine if you have used an MAO inhibitor such as furazolidone (Furoxone), isocarboxazid (Marplan), phenelzine (Nardil), rasagiline (Azilect), selegiline (Eldepryl, Emsam, Zelapar), or tranylcypromine (Parnate) in the last 14 days. A dangerous drug interaction could occur, leading to serious side effects.

Ask a doctor or pharmacist before using any other cold, allergy, pain, or sleep medication. Acetaminophen (sometimes abbreviated as APAP) is contained in many combination medicines. Taking certain products together can cause you to get too much acetaminophen which can lead to a fatal overdose.

Need help identifying pills and medications?
Use the pill finder tool on RxList.