Drug interactions
Fentanyl intranasal + Succinylcholine
Severity: Moderate
Fentanyl intranasal and Succinylcholine: 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
Fentanyl is an opioid with respiratory depressant and sedative effects, and succinylcholine causes paralysis including respiratory muscles. Together they heighten the risk of hypoventilation, hypotension and profound sedation. In monitored anesthesia settings this pairing is routine, but outside such settings it is hazardous.
What this interaction means in plain words
Fentanyl intranasal and Succinylcholine 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.
Why it happens
Additive pharmacodynamic effects: opioid-induced central respiratory depression combined with neuromuscular paralysis.
What to do
Use only where airway control and ventilation are available, and reduce opioid dose as needed. Monitor respiratory rate, oxygen saturation and blood pressure.
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 Succinylcholine
Frequently asked questions
Can I take Fentanyl intranasal with Succinylcholine?
MediHelp rates the interaction as moderate. Fentanyl intranasal and Succinylcholine 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. Fentanyl is an opioid with respiratory depressant and sedative effects, and succinylcholine causes paralysis including respiratory muscles. Together they heighten the risk of hypoventilation, hypotension and profound sedation. In monitored anesthesia settings this pairing is routine, but outside such settings it is hazardous.
How serious is the interaction between Fentanyl intranasal and Succinylcholine?
MediHelp rates it moderate, on a four-level scale (minor, moderate, major, contraindicated) based on published labels and references. What to do, in brief: Use only where airway control and ventilation are available, and reduce opioid dose as needed. Monitor respiratory rate, oxygen saturation and blood pressure.
What other medicines interact with Succinylcholine?
MediHelp also lists interactions of Succinylcholine with, for example, Amikacin, Bacitracin-neomycin-polymyxin, Capreomycin. The full list is on the Succinylcholine page.
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