What is Bactrim Ds: Uses, Warnings & Interactions

How to take Bactrim Ds

• Your doctor will tell you how much medicine to use. Do not use more than directed.

• Take all of the medicine in the prescription for the full duration of treatment, even if you feel better after the first few doses.

• Bactrim DS can be taken with or without food. If it causes stomach problems, take the dose with a meal, a snack, or milk.

• Swallow the tablet whole with a drink of water.

• Bactrim DS tablets are scored so that they can be divided into half-tablets. If necessary, ask a pharmacist or other healthcare professional how to break scored tablets into two pieces correctly.

• Store the medicine in a light-resistant, closed container at room temperature.

What to do if you miss a dose of Bactrim Ds

• Take a missed dose when you remember it. If the next dose is almost due, skip the missed dose and wait to take the next dose. 

• Refrain from taking extra tablets to make up for a missed dose.

Bactrim Ds contraindications

• This medicine is not right for some. 

• Bactrim DS is not to be used in children younger than 2 months.

• Do not use Bactrim in any of the following situations:

• Any history of an allergic reaction to trimethoprim, sulfamethoxazole, or sulfa drugs

• Any history of blood-clotting problems due to trimethoprim or sulfamethoxazole use

• Pregnancy

• Blood disorders (megaloblastic anemia) due to folate deficiency 

• Liver damage

• Kidney dysfunction

Bactrim Ds warnings

• Tell any doctor, dentist, or other healthcare professional who treats you that you are taking Bactrim DS. 

• The prescriber may need to check on your progress or do lab tests. Keep all appointments.

• It is not safe to take Bactrim DS during pregnancy because it can harm an unborn baby. Immediately tell the prescribing doctor if you become pregnant.

• Tell the prescribing doctor if you are breastfeeding, pregnant, or have:

• Asthma

• Severe allergies

• Diabetes

• Malnutrition

• Difficulty absorbing nutrients from food (malabsorption syndrome)

• Folate deficiency

• A genetic disorder called G6PD deficiency

• Porphyria

• Underactive thyroid

• HIV/AIDS

• Sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim can cause serious side effects including:

• Liver problems

• Kidney dysfunction

• Breathing problems

• Blood disorders

• Rapid or uneven heartbeats

• Low blood sugar

• High potassium

• Low sodium

• Pancreas swelling

• Muscle damage

• Severe allergic reactions

• Drink extra fluids to help prevent kidney problems.

• This medicine lowers the number of blood cells responsible for blood clotting so that you may bleed or bruise more easily. Be careful to avoid injuries.

• This medicine can cause diarrhea weeks to months after Bactrim DS has been discontinued. Call a healthcare professional immediately if you experience severe, watery, or bloody diarrhea when taking Bactrim DS or in the weeks following. Do not take any medicine to stop the diarrhea until you have talked to your doctor. 

Bactrim Ds interactions

• Bactrim DS should never be taken by someone who is also taking the heart rhythm drug Tikosyn (dofetilide) or, in people with Pneumocystis jirovecii, leucovorin, a drug that’s used with methotrexate in cancer treatment.

• Tell the prescribing doctor about all the prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications, and supplements being used, including:

  • Blood pressure drugs called ACE inhibitors or angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs)

  • Oral diabetes drugs

  • Drugs that make you pee (diuretics)

  • Drugs that treat depression, especially tricyclic antidepressants

  • Amantadine, cyclosporine, digoxin, indomethacin, memantine, methotrexate, phenytoin, procainamide, pyrimethamine, warfarin, zidovudine

• Tell all other healthcare professionals that you are taking Bactrim DS before they prescribe new medications. 

Find more information about sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim interactions to avoid here.