Zyloprim (Allopurinol)

Allopurinol is used to treat gout or kidney stones and to decrease level of uric acid by persons receiving cancer treatment.

Therapeutic actions:
Allopurinol is used to lower blood uric acid levels. Uric acid is a breakdown product of purines in food. Uric acid forms crystals in the tissues of the body to cause the inflammation of gout. Elevated blood uric acid levels can also cause kidney disease and stones. Allopurinol can be used to prevent uric acid kidney stones and to prevent recurrent gouty arthritis attacks.

What is it used for?:
- Treating gout.
- Treating high uric acid levels in the blood or urine caused by certain types of cancer chemotherapy.
- Treating certain patients with calcium oxalate kidney stones and high amounts of uric acid in the urine.

Contraindications and cautions:
Hypersensitivity to the preparation components.

Interactions:
- Amoxicillin or ampicillin may increase the risk of developing a skin rash;
- Chlorpropamide may increase the risk of low blood sugar;
- Zyloprim may increase the risk of bleeding if taking it together with dicumarol or oral anticoagulants (eg, warfarin);
- the risk of Zyloprim 's side effects may be increased by thiazide diuretics (eg, hydrochlorothiazide) or uricosurics (eg, probenecid);
- Zyloprim may increase the risk of cyclosporine’s or thiopurines’s (eg, azathioprine, mercaptopurine) side effects.