Modafinil, also known as Provigil, promotes wakefulness and is used to treat excessive sleepiness associated with narcolepsy, obstructive sleep apnea (in addition to treating the underlying obstruction), and shift work sleep disorder. It is not a cure for these conditions, but it can help you feel more awake during the day.

Dosage

Modafinil 200 mg is a wakefulness-promoting drug that treats excessive daytime sleepiness associated with narcolepsy, obstructive sleep apnea/hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS), or shift work sleep disorder. It acts by affecting brain chemicals that regulate sleep and wakefulness.

It is similar to stimulants such as amphetamine and methylphenidate but has a different chemical structure. It is also used off-label as a cognitive enhancer. Modafinil may cause side effects, such as nausea, dizziness, headache, anxiety, and nervousness. It is important to follow your doctor's instructions carefully.

Modafinil can interact with other medications, including prescription and over-the-counter drugs, vitamins, and herbal products. Tell your doctor if you are taking or have recently taken any other medicines.

This medicine should not be used in children. Modafinil can increase the risk of seizures in some children. It can interact with certain birth control pills, so you should use an alternate form of birth control while you are taking it and for one month after stopping it.

Side effects

Modafinil is a wakefulness-promoting medication used to treat excessive sleepiness caused by narcolepsy, shift work disorder, and obstructive sleep apnea. It works by increasing the activity of certain chemicals in your brain. It also may affect your blood levels of certain drugs.

Your doctor will tell you how much to take and when to take it. Keep track of how many tablets you have left. Modafinil can be habit-forming, so do not take a larger dose or more often than prescribed by your doctor.

It is not known how modafinil interacts with other medications, but it can decrease the effectiveness of some drugs and increase their toxicity. Tell your doctor about all the drugs you are taking. This includes prescription and nonprescription drugs, vitamins, and herbal supplements. Modafinil can interact with some drugs that are used to treat depression and other mental illnesses. It can also decrease the effectiveness of some types of birth control.

Precautions

Modafinil produces euphoric and psychoactive effects that affect thinking, mood, feelings, and perception like other central nervous system stimulants. It should be used with caution in patients with a history of drug abuse or mental illness. It may interact with certain medicines that affect the liver or kidneys. It may also increase the risk of an allergic reaction to other medicines, including some foods. Talk to your doctor about how to avoid interactions.

Modalert 200 mg may cause dizziness or drowsiness. Do not drive, use machinery, or do anything that requires alertness until you know how this medicine affects you. If you are taking this medication to treat shift work sleep disorder, it should be taken 1 hour before your shift begins.

This medication is not approved for use by children younger than 17 years old. Severe reactions, including a severe skin rash called Stevens-Johnson syndrome, have been reported in children taking this medication. Store this medicine at room temperature and protect it from moisture and light.

Interactions

Modafinil acts on the brain to improve sleep cycles in patients with narcolepsy, obstructive sleep apnea and shift work sleep disorder. It promotes wakefulness but does not treat the underlying cause of the sleepiness, so it should be used in conjunction with other treatments for these disorders.

Modafinil is related to stimulants like amphetamine and methylphenidate but has a different chemical structure. It is not known exactly how it works to promote wakefulness, but it may act on chemicals that regulate sleep and wakefulness.

Modafinil is moderately bound to plasma protein and is eliminated by the liver and renal system. Hepatic impairment decreases clearance and increases exposure to the inactive metabolite, modafinil acid. Renal impairment does not affect pharmacokinetics or elimination.

Tell your doctor and pharmacist what other medicines, vitamins, or dietary supplements you are taking. This medicine interacts with a number of other drugs. It may increase or decrease the blood levels of medications such as narcotics, sedatives, antidepressants, and other sleep medicines. It may also affect the efficacy of oral contraceptives.