Linaclotide
Linaclotide has caused life-threatening dehydration in young laboratory mice. Children younger than 2 years of age should never take linaclotide.
Your doctor or pharmacist will give you the manufacturer’s patient information sheet (Medication Guide) when you begin treatment with linaclotide and each time you refill your prescription. Read the information carefully and ask your doctor or pharmacist if you have any questions. You can also visit the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) website (http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/ucm085729.htm) or the manufacturer’s website to obtain the Medication Guide.
Talk to your doctor about the risks of taking linaclotide.
🔔 Why is this medication prescribed?
Linaclotide is used in adults to treat irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C; a condition that causes stomach pain or cramps, bloating, and infrequent or difficult passage of stools) and chronic idiopathic constipation (CIC; difficult or infrequent passage of stools that lasts for 3 months or longer and is not caused by a disease or a medication). Linaclotide is also used in children 6 to 17 years of age to treat functional constipation (FC; difficult, painful, or infrequent passage of stools that is not caused by a medical condition). Linaclotide is in a class of medications called guanylate cyclase-C agonists. It works by increasing the movement of food and waste through the stomach and intestines.
🔔 How should this medicine be used?
Linaclotide comes as a capsule to take by mouth. It is usually taken once a day on an empty stomach, at least thirty minutes before a meal. Take linaclotide at around the same time every day. Follow the directions on your prescription label carefully, and ask your doctor or pharmacist to explain any part you do not understand. Take linaclotide exactly as directed. Do not take more or less of it or take it more often than prescribed by your doctor.
Swallow the capsules whole; do not split, chew, or crush them.
Preventable medical errors kill about 22,000 patients a year, according to research from the Yale School of Medicine. That’s much less than a previously reported number of 250,000 deaths a year where medical error is to blame.
If you cannot swallow the capsules or if you are giving this medication to a child, you may open the capsules and sprinkle the beads they contain over one teaspoonful of room temperature applesauce or into a cup containing 1 ounce (30 mL) of room temperature bottled water. Do not mix the beads with other foods or liquids. If you sprinkle the contents of the capsules into water, gently swirl the beads and water for at least 20 seconds. Swallow the mixture of applesauce or water and medication right away without chewing or crushing the beads. If you sprinkled the beads into water and you see beads in the cup, rinse the cup with 1 ounce (30 mL) of water, swirl the contents for at least 20 seconds, and drink the water right away to be sure you swallow any leftover beads.
The contents of linaclotide capsules can be given through a feeding tube.If you have a feeding tube, ask your doctor or pharmacist how you should take the medication. Follow those directions carefully.
Linaclotide controls the symptoms of IBS-C, CIC, and FC but does not cure these conditions. Your constipation symptoms may improve in 1 week, and it may take slightly longer for your stomach pain to improve. Continue to take linaclotide even if you feel well. Do not stop taking linaclotide without talking to your doctor. If you stop taking linaclotide, your symptoms may return in about 1 week.
🔔 Other uses for this medicine
This medication may be prescribed for other uses; ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information.
