Home > Community Treatment Reports and Side Effects > Enfuvirtide

What is the most important information I should know about enfuvirtide?

Before using enfuvirtide, tell your doctor if you are allergic to any drugs, if you take a blood thinner such as Coumadin, or if you have a bleeding or blood clotting disorder, such as hemophilia. You may not be able to use enfuvirtide, or you may need dosage adjustments or special tests during treatment.

Enfuvirtide may increase your risk of developing pneumonia, especially if you have a high viral load, a history of lung disease, or if you smoke. Call your doctor at once if you have symptoms of pneumonia, such as cough, fever, rapid breathing, or shortness of breath.

Do not use enfuvirtide as your only HIV medication. HIV/AIDS is usually treated with a combination of different drugs. Your disease may become resistant to enfuvirtide if you do not use it in combination with other HIV medicines your doctor has prescribed.

To best treat your condition, use all of your medications as directed by your doctor. Do not change your doses or medication schedule without advice from your doctor. Every person with HIV or AIDS should remain under the care of a doctor.

To be sure this medication is helping your condition, your blood will need to be tested on a regular basis. Do not miss any scheduled visits to your doctor.

Stop using enfuvirtide and call your doctor at once if you have serious side effects such as a signs of a new infection, such as fever or chills, cough, or flu symptoms; or severe pain, irritation, or skin changes where you injected the medicine.

Warning

Remember, keep this and all other medicines out of the reach of children, never share your medicines with others, and use this medication only for the indication prescribed.

Back to Treatment Report

What is enfuvirtide?

Enfuvirtide is an antiviral medication in a group of HIV medicines called fusion inhibitors. Enfuvirtide prevents human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) from entering and taking over the cells in your body.

Enfuvirtide is used to treat HIV, which causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Enfuvirtide is not a cure for HIV or AIDS.

Enfuvirtide is usually given after other medications have been tried without successful treatment of HIV.

Enfuvirtide may also be used for other purposes not listed in this medication guide.

Precautions

Do not use this medication if you are allergic to enfuvirtide.

Before using enfuvirtide, tell your doctor if you are allergic to any drugs, or if you have a bleeding or blood clotting disorder, such as hemophilia. You may need a dose adjustment or special tests to safely use enfuvirtide.

FDA pregnancy category B. This medication is not expected to be harmful to an unborn baby, but HIV can be passed to the baby if the mother is not properly treated during pregnancy. Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant during treatment. Take all of your HIV medicines as directed to control your infection while you are pregnant.

You should not breast-feed while you are using enfuvirtide. Women with HIV or AIDS should not breast-feed at all. Even if your baby is born without HIV, you may still pass the virus to the baby in your breast milk.

Enfuvirtide may increase your risk of developing pneumonia, especially if you have a high viral load, a history of lung disease, or if you smoke. Call your doctor at once if you have symptoms of pneumonia, such as cough, fever, rapid breathing, or shortness of breath.

Avoid injecting this medication near your elbow, knee, groin, navel, or buttocks. Do not inject into moles, scars, tattoos, burns, bruises, or skin that is not otherwise healthy.

Using enfuvirtide will not prevent you from passing HIV to other people through unprotected sex or sharing of needles. Talk with your doctor about safe methods of preventing HIV transmission during sex, such as using a condom and spermicide. Sharing drug or medicine needles is never safe, even for a healthy person.

Enfuvirtide can cause side effects that may impair your thinking or reactions. Be careful if you drive or do anything that requires you to be awake and alert.

Back to top

Instructions

Seek emergency medical attention if you think you have used too much of this medicine. Symptoms of an enfuvirtide overdose are unknown.

Use the missed dose as soon as you remember. If it is almost time for your next dose, skip the missed dose and use the medicine at your next regularly scheduled time. Do not use extra medicine to make up the missed dose.

Back to top

Side Effects

Get emergency medical help if you have any of these signs of an allergic reaction: skin rash or hives; fever, chills; nausea, vomiting; difficulty breathing; feeling light-headed or fainting; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat.

Stop using enfuvirtide and call your doctor at once if you have any of these serious side effects:

  • cough with fever, chest congestion, and shortness of breath;
  • signs of a new infection, such as fever or chills, cough, or flu symptoms.
  • nerve pain lasting for several weeks or months; or
  • severe or prolonged (more than 7 days) injection site reaction.

Less serious side effects may include:

  • pain, itching, irritation, redness, swelling, or raised bumps under your skin where the medicine was injected;
  • pain or numbness in your feet or legs;
  • weakness or loss of strength;
  • muscle pain;
  • sleep problems (insomnia);
  • depression;
  • loss of appetite; or
  • constipation.

This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur. Tell your doctor about any unusual or bothersome side effect. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

Back to top

Interactions

Before using enfuvirtide, tell your doctor if you are using a blood thinner such as warfarin (Coumadin). You may need a dosage dose adjustment or special tests during treatment.

There may be other drugs that can interact with enfuvirtide. Tell your doctor about all the prescription and over-the-counter medications you use. This includes vitamins, minerals, herbal products, and drugs prescribed by other doctors. Do not start using a new medication without telling your doctor.

Back to top

Disclaimer

Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided by Cerner Multum, Inc. ('Multum') is accurate, up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. Drug information contained herein may be time sensitive. Multum information has been compiled for use by healthcare practitioners and consumers in the United States and therefore Multum does not warrant that uses outside of the United States are appropriate, unless specifically indicated otherwise. Multum's drug information does not endorse drugs, diagnose patients or recommend therapy. Multum's drug information is an informational resource designed to assist licensed healthcare practitioners in caring for their patients and/or to serve consumers viewing this service as a supplement to, and not a substitute for, the expertise, skill, knowledge and judgment of healthcare practitioners. The absence of a warning for a given drug or drug combination in no way should be construed to indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective or appropriate for any given patient. Multum does not assume any responsibility for any aspect of healthcare administered with the aid of information Multum provides. The information contained herein is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. If you have questions about the drugs you are taking, check with your doctor, nurse or pharmacist.

Copyright 1996-2004 Cerner Multum, Inc. Version 2.05. Revision date 8/23/04