Drug interactions
Benztropine + Nortriptyline
Severity: Moderate
Benztropine and Nortriptyline: moderate interaction.
Last updated
For healthcare professionals — reference only. This page is a brief summary, not medical advice and not a substitute for official labeling or clinical judgement. Always verify before prescribing or dispensing.
Summary
Both agents are strongly antimuscarinic, so combined use can cause constipation, urinary retention, dry mouth, tachycardia, blurred vision, and confusion or delirium. Heat intolerance and paralytic ileus are rarer but serious.
What this interaction means in plain words
Benztropine and Nortriptyline can affect each other. The combination is often manageable, but it may need a change of dose, a change of timing, or extra checks while both are taken.
Benztropine belongs to Central Nervous System; Nortriptyline belongs to Central Nervous System.
Why it happens
Additive muscarinic receptor antagonism.
What to do
Monitor cognition, bowel and bladder function, especially in older adults, and use the lowest effective benztropine dose. Consider a less anticholinergic antidepressant if toxicity occurs.
What to ask your pharmacist
- Should I take them at different times of day?
- Does the dose of either medicine need to change?
- Is there anything I should avoid, such as alcohol or certain foods, while on both?
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Other interactions of Nortriptyline
- Disopyramide + Nortriptyline Contraindicated
- Dofetilide + Nortriptyline Contraindicated
- Dronedarone + Nortriptyline Contraindicated
- Ibutilide + Nortriptyline Contraindicated
- Isocarboxazid + Nortriptyline Contraindicated
- Methylene blue + Nortriptyline Contraindicated
Other interactions of Benztropine
- Benztropine + Memantine-donepezil Major
- Abobotulinumtoxina + Benztropine Moderate
- Amantadine + Benztropine Moderate
- Amitriptyline + Benztropine Moderate
- Amoxapine + Benztropine Moderate
- Atropine iv / + Benztropine Moderate
Frequently asked questions
Can I take Benztropine with Nortriptyline?
MediHelp rates the interaction as moderate. Benztropine and Nortriptyline can affect each other. The combination is often manageable, but it may need a change of dose, a change of timing, or extra checks while both are taken. Both agents are strongly antimuscarinic, so combined use can cause constipation, urinary retention, dry mouth, tachycardia, blurred vision, and confusion or delirium. Heat intolerance and paralytic ileus are rarer but serious.
How serious is the interaction between Benztropine and Nortriptyline?
MediHelp rates it moderate, on a four-level scale (minor, moderate, major, contraindicated) based on published labels and references. What to do, in brief: Monitor cognition, bowel and bladder function, especially in older adults, and use the lowest effective benztropine dose. Consider a less anticholinergic antidepressant if toxicity occurs.
What other medicines interact with Nortriptyline?
MediHelp also lists interactions of Nortriptyline with, for example, Disopyramide, Dofetilide, Dronedarone. The full list is on the Nortriptyline page.
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