These comments are made for the purpose of discussion and should NOT be used as recommendations for or against therapies or other treatments. An individual patient is always advised to consult their own physician.
Seldane
Question: Do you have any information on the drug Seldane and also its side effects and reactions
to other drugs?
Answer: Side effects include Ventricular Tachycardia, Ventricular Fibrillation, Cardiac
arrest, low blood pressure, palpitations, syncope, dizziness,
drowsiness, headache, fatigue, nervousness, weakness,
increase appetite, nausea, vomiting , change in bowel habits and dry mouth.
Interactions with other drugs include Itraconazole, Ketoconazole, Erythromycin, Clarithromycin and Azithromycin. Any of these drugs are given with Seldane can cause serious cardiovascular side effects.
Seldane-D
Question: I heard that Seldane-D is a discontinued product.
If not, is it safe to use? If yes, can you recommend me
something other than Afrin? My nasal congestion is very
chronic.
Answer: Seldane and Seldane-D will soon be off the market. This is due to buildup of the drug
when taken with certain other drugs, especially macrolides (erythromycin, Biaxin, Zithromax,
etc.) and/or ketoconazole (an anti-fungal drug). This drug is relatively non-sedating compared
to traditional antihistamines like Benadryl, etc. Consequently was used a lot for allergic
symptoms. Other drugs that act in a similar manner, but don’t have the interaction with the
above drugs, are Claritin, Claritin-D, Allegra, etc. Afrin is mainly pseudo-effedrine (similar to
the D part of Seldane-D or Claritin-D). You shouldn’t use this more than one or two days in
a row or you can develop the exact runny nose you are trying to avoid. This is called rhinitis
medicosium. Other drugs (not antihistamines) that work on allergic symptoms are nasal steroid
inhalers and cromlyn sulfate nasal inhalers. These will not help the itching eyes, ears, etc.,
but will generally help allergic rhinitis.
