Fixapost Side Effects

Like all medicines, this medicine can cause side effects, although not everybody gets them.
The patient can usually carry on using the drops, unless the effects are serious. Advise patient to talk to a doctor or pharmacist if he/she is worried. He/she should not stop using Fixapost without speaking to the doctor.
Listed as follows are the known side effects of using Fixapost. The most important side-effect is the possibility of a gradual, permanent change in the eye colour. It is also possible that Fixapost might cause serious changes in the way the heart works. Advise patient to speak to a doctor in case of changes in the heart rate or heart function.
The following are known side effects of using Fixapost: Very common (may affect more than 1 in 10 people): A gradual change in the eye colour by increasing the amount of brown pigment in the coloured part of the eye known as the iris. If patient has mixed-colour eyes (blue-brown, grey-brown, yellow-brown or green-brown) he/she is more likely to see this change than those with eyes of one colour (blue, grey, green or brown eyes).
Any changes in the eye colour may take years to develop. The colour change may be permanent and may be more noticeable if Fixapost is used in only one eye. There appears to be no problems associated with the change in eye colour. The eye colour change does not continue after Fixapost treatment is stopped.
Common (may affect up to 1 in 10 people): Eye irritation (a feeling of burning, grittiness, itching, stinging or the sensation of a foreign body in the eye) and eye pain.
Uncommon (may affect up to 1 in 100 people): Headache; Redness of the eye, eye infection (conjunctivitis), blurred vision, watery eyes, inflammation of the eyelids, irritation or disruption of the surface of the eye; Skin rashes or itching (pruritus).
Other side effects: Like other medicines used in the eyes, Fixapost (latanoprost and timolol) is absorbed into the blood. The incidence of side effects after using eye drops is lower than when medicines are, for example, taken by mouth or injected.
Although not seen with Fixapost, the following additional side effects have been seen with the medicines in Fixapost (latanoprost and timolol) and therefore might occur when Fixapost is used. The listed side effects include reactions seen within the class of beta-blockers (e.g. timolol) when used for treating eye conditions: Developing a viral infection of the eye caused by the herpes simplex virus (HSV).
Generalized allergic reactions including swelling beneath the skin that can occur in areas such as the face and limbs and can obstruct the airway which may cause difficulty swallowing or breathing, hives or itchy rash, localized and generalized rash, itchiness, severe sudden life-threatening allergic reaction.
Low blood glucose levels.
Dizziness.
Difficulty sleeping (insomnia), depression, nightmares, memory loss, hallucination.
Fainting, stroke, reduced blood supply to the brain, increases in signs and symptoms of myasthenia gravis (muscle disorder), unusual sensations like pins and needles, and headache.
Swelling at the back of the eye (macular oedema), fluid filled cyst within the coloured part of the eye (iris cyst), light sensitivity (photophobia), sunken eye appearance (deepening of the eye sulcus).
Signs and symptoms of eye irritation (e.g. burning, stinging, itching, tearing, redness), inflammation of the eyelid, inflammation in the cornea, blurred vision and detachment of the layer below the retina that contains blood vessels following filtration surgery which may cause visual disturbances, decreased corneal sensitivity, dry eyes, corneal erosion (damage to the front layer of the eyeball), drooping of the upper eyelid (making the eye stay half closed), double vision.
Darkening of the skin around the eyes, changes to the eyelashes and fine hairs around the eye (increased number, length, thickness and darkening), changes to the direction of eyelash growth, swelling around the eye, swelling of the coloured part of the eye (iritis/uveitis), scarring of the surface of the eye.
Whistling/ringing in the ears (tinnitus).
Angina, worsening of angina in patients who already have heart disease.
Slow heart rate, chest pain, palpitations (awareness of heart rhythm), oedema (fluid build-up), changes in the rhythm or speed of the heartbeat, congestive heart failure (heart disease with shortness of breath and swelling of the feet and legs due to fluid build-up), a type of heart rhythm disorder, heart attack, heart failure.
Low blood pressure, poor blood circulation which makes the fingers and toes numb and pale, cold hands and feet.
Shortness of breath, constriction of the airways in the lungs (predominantly in patients with pre-existing disease), difficulty breathing, cough, asthma, worsening of asthma.
Taste disturbances, nausea, indigestion, diarrhoea, dry mouth, abdominal pain, vomiting.
Hair loss, skin rash with white silvery coloured appearance (psoriasiform rash) or worsening of psoriasis, skin rash.
Joint pain, muscle pain not caused by exercise, muscle weakness, tiredness.
Sexual dysfunction, decreased libido.
Reporting of side effects: Advise patient to talk to the doctor or pharmacist if he/she gets any side effects. This includes any possible side effects not listed in this monograph. By reporting side effects more information on the safety of this medicine can be provided.