Contains the active ingredients macrogol and electrolytes sodium chloride, potassium chloride, sodium bicarbonate
Consumer Medicine Information
What is in this leaflet
Read this leaflet carefully before taking your medicine.
This leaflet answers some common questions about APO-MACROGOL PLUS ELECTROLYTES. It does not contain all the available information. It does not take the place of talking to your doctor or pharmacist.
The information in this leaflet was last updated on the date listed on the last page. More recent information on this medicine may be available.
Ask your doctor or pharmacist:
if there is anything you do not understand in this leaflet
if you are worried about taking your medicine, or
to obtain the most up-to-date information.
All medicines have risks and benefits. Your doctor has weighed the risks of you using this medicine against the benefits they expect it will have for you.
Pharmaceutical companies cannot give you medical advice or an individual diagnosis.
Keep this leaflet with your medicine. You may want to read it again.
What this medicine is used for
The name of your medicine is APO-MACROGOL PLUS ELECTROLYTES. It contains the active ingredient macrogol and electrolytes sodium chloride, potassium chloride and sodium bicarbonate.
It is used:
to help you have a comfortable bowel movement even if you have been constipated for a long time
works in faecal impaction (as diagnosed by your doctor).
If the product has been prescribed by your doctor, talk to your doctor if you have any questions about why this medicine was prescribed for you. Your doctor may have prescribed this medicine for another reason.
Before you take this medicine
When you must not take it
Do not take this medicine if:
you have an obstruction in your intestine (gut)
you have a perforated gut wall
you have severe inflammatory bowel disease, like ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, or toxic megacolon
you have paralysis of the bowel
the expiry date (EXP) printed on the pack has passed
the packaging is torn, shows signs of tampering or it does not look quite right
you have an allergy to macrogol or any of the ingredients listed at the end of this leaflet.
Symptoms of an allergic reaction may include cough, shortness of breath, wheezing or difficulty breathing; swelling of the face, lips, tongue, throat or other parts of the body, rash, itching or hives on the skin; fainting or hayfever-like symptoms.
If you think you are having an allergic reaction, do not take any more of the medicine and contact your doctor immediately or go to the Accident and Emergency department at the nearest hospital.
If you are pregnant or breast feeding, talk to your doctor before taking this medicine.
Laxative products such as APO-MACROGOL PLUS ELECTROLYTES may interact with other medicines, by altering their absorption. Close monitoring of the effects of your medications may be necessary when you commence or cease to take this medicine regularly. It is important to discuss this with your doctor.
How to take this medicine
Follow carefully all directions given to you by your doctor or pharmacist. Their instructions may be different to the information in this leaflet.
How much to take
For adults and children over 12 years the recommended dose of APO-MACROGOL PLUS ELECTROLYTES is:
Constipation:
1 sachet a day. This can be increased to 2 or 3 sachets daily if necessary.
Faecal Impaction:
8 sachets a day taken within 6 hours. You may need to take this dose for up to 3 days.
If you have a heart condition, do not take more than two sachets in any one hour.
How to take it
Open the sachet and pour the contents into a glass. Add about 125 mL of water to the glass. Stir well until all the powder has dissolved and the solution is clear or slightly hazy, then drink it. If you like, you can add a flavour such as orange juice to the drink.
If you are taking the medicine for faecal impaction, it may be easier to dissolve 8 sachets in 1 litre of water.
Drink plenty of water. Increase fibre into the diet, except in cases of medication-induced constipation.
How long to take it for
Prolonged use of laxatives is undesirable and may lead to dependence.
If symptoms persist seek medical advice.
If you take too much
If you take too much of this medicine, you may get bad diarrhoea. Stop taking the medicine until it clears.
If constipation recurs, or you are worried, you should check with your doctor or pharmacist.
If you think that you or anyone else may have taken too much of this medicine, immediately telephone your doctor or go to the Accident and Emergency Department at your nearest hospital.
Do this even if there are no signs of discomfort or poisoning. You may need urgent medical attention.
While you are taking this medicine
Things you must do
Discuss with your doctor or pharmacist that you are taking this medicine if:
you are pregnant or are planning to become pregnant
you are breast-feeding or are planning to breast-feed.
Tell your doctor, or any other doctors and pharmacists who are treating you for other conditions, that you take this medicine.
Possible side effects
Sometimes people have:
stomach ache or rumbles
feel bloated or sick
diarrhoea, especially when you first start taking the medicine
an allergic reaction to the medicine.
If you feel weak, breathless, very thirsty with a headache, or get puffy ankles, stop taking the medicine and tell your doctor.
Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you think the medicine is causing you any problem.
Other side effects not listed above may occur in some patients.
Allergic reactions
If you think you are having an allergic reaction to APO-MACROGOL PLUS ELECTROLYTES, do not take any more of this medicine and tell your doctor immediately or go to the Accident and Emergency department at your nearest hospital.
Symptoms of an allergic reaction may include some or all of the following:
cough, shortness of breath, wheezing or difficulty breathing.
swelling of the face, lips, tongue, or other parts of the body
rash, itching or hives on the skin
fainting
hayfever-like symptoms.
Storage and disposal
Storage
Keep your medicine in its original packaging until it is time to take it.
If you take your medicine out of its original packaging it may not keep well.
Keep your medicine in a cool dry place where the temperature will stay below 25°C.
Once you have made up the powder in water, put it in the fridge (2 to 8°C) and keep it covered.
Throw away any solution not used within a 24 hour period.
Do not use the medicine after the expiry date on the label.
Do not store your medicine, or any other medicine, in the bathroom or near a sink. Do not leave it on a window sill or in the car. Heat and dampness can destroy some medicines.
Keep this medicine where children cannot reach it.
A locked cupboard at least one-and-a-half metres above the ground is a good place to store medicines.
Disposal
If your doctor or pharmacist tells you to stop taking this medicine or they have passed their expiry date, your pharmacist can dispose of the remaining medicine safely.
Product description
What APO-MACROGOL PLUS ELECTROLYTES looks like
Sachets containing 13.72 g of a white crystalline powder.
Pack sizes: 2, 8, 20, 30 sachets.
Not all pack sizes may be available.
Ingredients
Each sachet contains:
Macrogol 3350 - 13.125 g
Sodium chloride - 350.7 mg
Sodium bicarbonate - 178.5 mg
Potassium chloride - 46.6 mg
It also contains lemon flavour and potassium acesulfame as a sweetener.
The powder is added to water to make a drink.
When it is made into a drink with 125 mL of water, each sachet gives the equivalent of:
Sodium - 65 mmol/L
Chloride - 53 mmol/L
Bicarbonate - 17 mmol/L
Potassium - 5.4 mmol/L
This medicine is gluten-free and lactose-free.
