Fluphenazine is a medication used to treat mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, a condition characterized by hallucinations and the inability to make a distinction between reality and fiction. According to Drugs.com, fluphenazine is an antipsychotic medication. Typically, a physician will initially prescribe 2.5 to 10mg of fluphenazine to be taken daily every six to eight hours.
Common Side Effects
According to MedlinePlus, fluphenazine's most common side effects include fluctuations in weight and appetite, stomach problems, dry mouth, drowsiness and photosensitivity (extreme sensitivity to sunlight). It can also affect your psyche and cause anxiety, euphoria and nightmares. Fluphenazine's other side effects include trouble sleeping, fatigue and weakness. Inform your physician when these symptoms remain for three to four days.
Serious Side Effects
According to the National Library of Medicine, fluphenazine can lead to a potentially fatal condition called neuroleptic malignant syndrome (NMS). Symptoms of NMS include muscle stiffness, changes in mental status, diaphoresis (sweating), tachycardia (fast heartbeat) and changes in blood pressure. Call 911 if these symptoms appear. Additionally, fluphenazine has caused sudden and idiopathic (for unknown reasons) death.
Fluphenazine's other troublesome side effects include tardive dyskinesias, a condition of involuntary movements. It may also affect the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) and cause hyperreflexia (increased reflexes) and opisthotonos, a muscle contraction condition in which you hyperextend your back. Fluphenazine can also cause menstrual irregularities, lactation, gynecomastia (development of male breasts), low white cell counts and thrombocytopenia (low platelet counts). Thrombocytopenia makes you prone to bleeding and bruising, while low white cell counts make you susceptible to infection. Jaundice, a condition in which your eyes and skin turn yellow, is another side effect of fluphenazine. Jaudice is typically an indication of liver damage.
Additional Concerns
Avoid fluphenazine if you are allergic to it. Symptoms of a severe allergic reaction include hives, trouble breathing and swelling of your tongue, face or lips.
Drugs.com says you must inform your doctor if you have high blood pressure, heart disease, kidney or liver disease, glaucoma, an enlarged prostate, asthma or breast cancer. Fluphenazine may aggravate these medical conditions.
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