Sotalol (Betapace Af) Tips from Pharmacists

• You can take oral sotalol without regard to meals, but you should consistently take it with food or without food.

• Keep all your medical and laboratory appointments while on sotalol therapy. Your health care provider will order blood tests to measure electrolyte levels and kidney function as well as monitor heart rate, blood pressure, and ECG.

• Do not start any new medications while taking sotalol without checking with your doctor first. Interactions between sotalol and other medications can cause serious adverse effects.

• Tell your doctor if you feel lightheaded, dizzy, or faint. You may have hypotension (low blood pressure) and your doctor may adjust your sotalol dose.

• Talk to your doctor about adjusting the dose of your insulin and other diabetes medications if you have diabetes mellitus. Also, discuss how often you should measure blood glucose levels. Sotalol can mask some of the symptoms of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) such as a fast heart rate.

• Do not stop taking sotalol suddenly. This can put you at risk of chest pain and heart attack. Your doctor will tell you how to reduce the dose gradually.