Citalopram/QT Prolonging Agents Interactions
This information is generalized and not intended as specific medical advice. Consult your healthcare professional before taking or discontinuing any drug or commencing any course of treatment.
Medical warning:
Serious. These medicines may interact and cause very harmful effects. Contact your healthcare professional (e.g. doctor or pharmacist) for more information.
How the interaction occurs:
Citalopram can affect your heart's rhythm. Other drugs can have the same effect.
What might happen:
Taking citalopram with other agents that can affect your heart rhythm and may increase your risk of irregular heartbeat, which may be life-threatening.
What you should do about this interaction:
Make sure your healthcare professionals (e.g. doctor or pharmacist) know that you are taking these medicine together and all other medicines you are taking. Your doctor may want to monitor a test called an electrocardiogram (ECG) on you while you are taking citalopram to see if it is affecting your heart's rhythm. Let your doctor know right away if you notice an irregular heartbeat or have any dizziness, fainting episodes, or seizures.Your healthcare professionals may already be aware of this interaction and may be monitoring you for it. Do not start, stop, or change the dosage of any medicine before checking with them first.
- 1.Celexa (citalopram hydrobromide) US prescribing information. Forest Laboratories Inc. August, 2023.
- 2.Gagne M. Dear Canadian Healthcare Professional: Subject: Association of CELEXA (citalopram hydrobromide) with Dose - Dependent QT Prolongation. Lundbeck Canada January 25, 2012.
- 3.USFood and Drug Administration. FDA Drug Safety Communication: Revised recommendations for Celexa (citalopram hydrobromide) related to a potential risk of abnormal heart rhythms with high doses. available at: http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/ucm297391.htm March 28, 2012.
- 4.Drew BJ, Ackerman MJ, Funk M, Gibler WB, Kligfield P, Menon V, Philippides GJ, Roden DM, Zareba W. Prevention of torsade de pointes in hospital settings: a scientific statement from the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology Foundation. J Am Coll Cardiol 2010 Mar 2;55(9):934-47.
- 5.Drye LT, et al. Changes in QTc interval in the citalopram for agitation in Alzheimer's disease (CitAD) randomized trial. PLoS One 2014;9(6):e98426.
- 6.USDepartment of Health and Human Services Food and Drug Administration. ICH E14 Clinical Evaluation of QT/QTc Interval Prolongation and Proarrhythmic Potential for Non-Antiarrhythmic Drugs. Available at: https://www.fda.gov/media/71372/download October, 2005.
- 7.Phansalkar S, Desai AA, Bell D, Yoshida E, Doole J, Czochanski M, Middleton B, Bates DW. High-priority drug-drug interactions for use in electronic health records. J Am Med Inform Assoc 2012 Sep-Oct; 19(5):735-43.
Selected from data included with permission and copyrighted by First Databank, Inc. This copyrighted material has been downloaded from a licensed data provider and is not for distribution, except as may be authorized by the applicable terms of use.
CONDITIONS OF USE: The information in this database is intended to supplement, not substitute for, the expertise and judgment of healthcare professionals. The information is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, drug interactions or adverse effects, nor should it be construed to indicate that use of a particular drug is safe, appropriate or effective for you or anyone else. A healthcare professional should be consulted before taking any drug, changing any diet or commencing or discontinuing any course of treatment.