Home : Drugs A - Z : Droperidol

What is this medicine?
DROPERIDOL (droe PER i dole) is used to prevent nausea and vomiting associated with surgery or other procedures.

This medicine may be used for other purposes; ask your health care provider or pharmacist if you have questions.

What side effects may I notice from receiving this medicine?
Side effects that you should report to your doctor or health care professional as soon as possible:

• allergic reactions like skin rash, itching or hives, swelling of the face, lips, or tongue
• fainting spells or dizziness
• fast or irregular heartbeat (palpitations)
• hallucinations
• movement difficulties
• muscle spasms or stiffness
• restlessness or agitation, nervousness
• rolling or rotating movement of the eyes
• slow or difficult breathing
• sweating

Side effects that usually do not require medical attention (report to your doctor or health care professional if they continue or are bothersome):

• chills
• facial flushing
• involuntary muscle movements
• trembling

This list may not describe all possible side effects. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

How should I use this medicine?
This medicine is for injection into a muscle or for slow injection into a vein. It is given by a health care professional in a hospital or clinic setting.

Talk to your pediatrician regarding the use of this medicine in children. Special care may be needed. While this medicine may be prescribed for children as young as 2 years for selected conditions, precautions do apply.

Overdosage: If you think you have taken too much of this medicine contact a poison control center or emergency room at once.
NOTE: This medicine is only for you. Do not share this medicine with others.

What if I miss a dose?
This does not apply.

What may interact with this medicine?
Do not take this medicine with any of the following medications:

• abarelix
• alfuzosin
• amoxapine
• apomorphine
• arsenic trioxide
• certain antibiotics like ciprofloxacin, clarithromycin, erythromycin, gatifloxacin, gemifloxacin, levofloxacin, moxifloxacin, norfloxacin, ofloxacin, sparfloxacin, telithromycin, and troleandomycin
• certain medicines used in chemotherapy like daunorubicin, doxorubicin
• chloroquine
• cisapride
• clozapine
• cyclobenzaprine
• general and local anesthetics
• halofantrine
• haloperidol
• levomethadyl
• maprotiline
• medicines to control heart rhythm
• methadone
• octreotide
• other medicines for nausea and vomiting like dolasetron and palonosetron
• pentamidine
• phenothiazines like chlorpromazine, fluphenazine, mesoridazine, perphenazine, prochlorperazine, thioridazine, and trifluoperazine
• pimozide
• ranolazine
• risperidone
• sertindole
• sodium phosphate salts
• tacrolimus
• tricyclic antidepressants like amitriptyline, desipramine, nortriptyline, and others
• vardenafil
• ziprasidone

This medicine may also interact with the following medications:

• barbiturate medicines for inducing sleep or treating seizures
• diuretics
• laxatives
• medicines for depression
• prescription pain medicines

This list may not describe all possible interactions. Give your health care provider a list of all the medicines, herbs, non-prescription drugs, or dietary supplements you use. Also tell them if you smoke, drink alcohol, or use illegal drugs. Some items may interact with your medicine.

Who should NOT use this medication?

• Known or suspected QT interval prolongation (i.e., QT_c interval >440 msec in males, >450 msec in females), including congenital long QT syndrome.
• Known hypersensitivity to droperidol or any ingredient in the formulation.

What should I watch for while using this medicine?
Your condition will be closely monitored following administration of this medicine.

You may get drowsy or dizzy. Do not drive, use machinery, or do anything that needs mental alertness until you know how this medicine affects you. Do not stand or sit up quickly, especially if you are an older patient. This reduces the risk of dizzy or fainting spells. Alcohol may interfere with the effect of this medicine. Avoid alcoholic drinks.

What should I tell my health care provider before I take this medicine?
They need to know if you have any of these conditions:

• heart disease, including heart failure
• if you frequently drink alcohol-containing beverages
• irregular heart beats or slow heart rate
• kidney disease
• liver disease
• an unusual or allergic reaction to droperidol, other medicines, foods, dyes, or preservatives
• pregnant or trying to get pregnant
• breast-feeding

Can I stop taking the medication if I feel better?
As a general rule, you should always take your medications exactly as prescribed and do not change the dosage or stop taking the medication without first discussing it with your healthcare provider.

I am on so many medications; do I have to take them all?
This is called polypharmacy—many different medications being used at the same time by one person. Sometimes, being on multiple medications is acceptable and appropriate but at other times it may be problematic. If you are receiving your medications from multiple physicians you need to ensure that they all know what medications you are taking. The best way to do this is to make a list of all the medications you are currently using, including all nutritional supplements, homeopathic remedies, vitamins and over-the-counter drugs (if possible, also include all the diseases you have been diagnosed with). Give a copy to every doctor who takes care of you so they have it on file, this way they can avoid duplicating medications and perhaps even try to consolidate some. After every doctor's visit remember to update the list accordingly. Also, as much as you possibly can, try to use the same pharmacy to fill all your prescriptions, this way any potential drug interactions can be caught and averted.