What does it do?

Risperidone is used to treat and prevent some mental health problems such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Before you start

• Tell your doctor if you have heart, kidney or liver problems.
• Tell your doctor if you have diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, have ever had a seizure, blood clot, stroke or ‘mini-stroke’, or if you have experienced strange movements with another medicine.
• Tell your doctor if you are pregnant, planning to become pregnant, or breastfeeding.
• Your doctor may do a heart test (ECG) before you start and while you are taking risperidone.

How is it given?

Risperidone injection is given into a muscle by a health professional, usually every two weeks.
The first injection will take a few weeks to start working so you may need to take risperidone tablets until the injection is working.

What if you forget a dose?

If you miss an appointment for your injection, contact your health professional as soon as possible.

Can you take other medicines?

Some medicines available without a prescription may react with risperidone including:

• some antihistamines (may be in anti-allergy, anti-nausea and cough/cold medicines)
• anti-nausea medicines (e.g. prochlorperazine, hyoscine (e.g. Scopoderm TTS®), meclozine (e.g. Sea-legs®)

Tell your pharmacist or doctor about all medicines or treatments that you may be taking, including vitamins, herbal products (e.g. St John's wort, kava) or recreational drugs.

What side effects might you notice?

Side Effects	Recommended action
Fever, stiffness, sweating, confusion Feeling restless, strange or uncontrolled movements, tremor Fast or irregular heartbeat, chest pain, fainting Symptoms of a blood clot including: sudden shortness of breath, swelling or pain in one leg Seizures Prolonged erection (longer than four hours)	Tell your doctor immediately
Drowsiness, dizziness, tiredness or weakness, headache, anxiety, trouble sleeping Weight gain More saliva than usual, drooling Stomach upset Peeing when you don’t want to Changes in periods Sore or enlarged breasts, breastmilk production Less interest in sex, impotence Pain, tenderness or redness at injection site	Tell your doctor if troublesome

If you notice any other effects, discuss them with your doctor or pharmacist.

Other information:

• Risperidone can impair your ability to do tasks such as driving or using machines. Alcohol makes this worse. Discuss your risk with your health professional. (search NZTA - Are you safe to drive?)
• Risperidone reduces your body’s ability to maintain a normal temperature. Be careful of becoming too cold or too hot. When exercising, drink plenty of water.
• You have an increased risk of getting diabetes while taking risperidone. Discuss with your doctor.
• Do not stop taking risperidone without talking to your doctor first.