Isosorbide Dinitrate

• ​Dizziness, lightheadedness or faintness
• This may occur especially when you get up quickly from lying or sitting down. Getting up slowly or changing posture slowly may help. Take a rest by sitting or lying down if you feel dizzy
• This is also more likely to happen if you drink alcohol, stand for a long period of time, exercise or when the weather is hot. Do limit the amount of alcohol you drink while you are on Nitrates. Do take extra care during exercise, when the weather is hot or if you need to stand for long periods of time.
• Temporary headache
• This is a common side effect that will go away after taking the medication for a while. You may choose to take painkillers such as Paracetamol at the start of using Nitrates, to relieve the temporary headaches. Consult your healthcare professional if the headaches do not go away or become worse.
• Flushing or redness of the skin
• Fast heartbeat
• Nausea and Vomiting

The symptoms of a drug allergy include one or more of the following:

• Swollen face/eyes/lips/tongue
• Difficulty in breathing
• Itchy skin rashes over your whole body

If you experience any of these symptoms, you should stop your medication and see your healthcare professional immediately.

​Inform your healthcare professional if:

• You are allergic to this medication or any of the other ingredients of this medication
• You are pregnant, planning to become pregnant, or breastfeeding

​Do not take Sildenafil (Viagra®), Tadalafil (Cialis®), Vardenafil (Levitra®) if you are taking this medication. When Sildenafil, Tadalafil or Vardenafil is taken with Nitrates, your blood pressure can lower greatly, resulting in dizziness, lightheadedness or fainting. In some cases, death has been reported when Sildenafil was taken with Nitrates.

• ​Do not stop taking your medication without checking with your healthcare professional. Stopping your medication suddenly may cause angina attacks. Ask your doctor for recommendations on how to reduce the dose slowly before stopping completely.
• This medication should be taken before food, on an empty stomach.
• This medication is used to reduce the number of angina attacks that occur. They should not be used for immediate relief for chest pain.

​If you miss a dose, take the missed dose as soon as you remember. If it is almost time for your next dose, take only the usual dose. Do not double your dose or use extra medication to make up for the missed dose.

​Throw away all expired medications.

​Pack this medication into a black trash bag and seal it tightly before throwing into the rubbish chute or bin.