Patient/caregiver was educated on how to take Ezetimibe as follows:
- Take this medication as ordered by your physician. Do not change the dose on this medication without consulting your doctor.
- Take the medication dose with a glass of water at the same time, every day, to avoid forgetting the intake of medication.
- This medication can induce some nausea and vomiting, when taken on empty stomach. Taking the medication with some food or snack can help avoid these unpleasant gastrointestinal symptoms.
- Take the tablet as a whole. If you encounter difficulty swallowing the whole tablet, you may cut the tablet and swallow it in pieces with a glass of water. You may also crush the tablet and sprinkle the powder on a spoonful of soft jelly or applesauce and swallow the jelly or sauce along with the medication.
- Maintain strict compliance with intake of the medication as ordered, with regards to dosage and frequency, to derive the benefit of the medication.
- When used as part of combination therapy for lowering the blood cholesterol, Ezetimibe could be taken at the same time with some lipid lowering medications and should be avoided taking at the same time with some other lipid lowering medications.
- Ezetimibe could be taken at the same time with statins and fibrates, but should be avoided from being taken at the same time with bile acid sequestrants or binders, such as, cholestyramine and colestipol. Bile acid binders not only bind the bile acids, but also bind with the Ezetimibe, if taken together. This binding inhibits the absorption of Ezetimibe in the intestines, thus compromising the therapeutic benefit of Ezetimibe intake. If both bile acid binders and Ezetimibe are prescribed for lowering blood cholesterol, space them out by atleast 4 hours, to avoid compromising the therapeutic benefit of Ezetimibe.
- Observe compliance with other measures for reducing blood cholesterol levels, to derive optimum benefit from the medication, such as, low fat diet and smoking cessation. Also, consider life-style changes, such as, physical exercise based on endurance, and weight loss, if obese.
- It takes about 2 – 3 weeks and may be even longer, before the cholesterol levels are lowered and the benefits of medication are noted. So, do not discontinue taking the medication without your physician’s consult, as you failed to see the desired result immediately after taking the medication.
- Your physician could change the dose of Ezetimibe, based on the lab results obtained. So, maintain compliance with follow-up physician appointments and lab draws ordered. Be accommodative to the plan of frequent dose changes, until you show an optimum response.
- Continue taking Ezetimibe as ordered, even if your lab results show the cholesterol levels under control. Abrupt discontinuation on Ezetimibe intake can elevate the lipid levels back again. Discontinuing the medication should only be on your physician’s recommendation.
