Before taking rifapentine,
tell your doctor and pharmacist if you are allergic to rifapentine, rifabutin (Mycobutin), rifampin (Rifadin, Rimactane, in Rifamate, in Rifater), rifaximin (Xifaxan), any other medications, or any of the ingredients in rifapentine tablets. Ask your pharmacist or check the Medication Guide for a list of the ingredients.
tell your doctor and pharmacist what other prescription and nonprescription medications, vitamins, nutritional supplements, and herbal products you are taking or plan to take. Be sure to mention any of the following: antibiotics medications such as chloramphenicol, ciprofloxacin (Cipro), clarithromycin (Biaxin, in Prevpac), dapsone, and doxycycline (Doryx, Monodox, Vibramycin, others); anticoagulants ('blood thinners') such as warfarin (Coumadin, Jantoven); antifungals such as fluconazole (Diflucan), itraconazole (Onmel, Sporanox), and ketoconazole (Nizoral); calcium channel blockers such as diltiazem (Cardizem, Taztia, Tiazac, others), nifedipine (Adalat, Afeditab, Procardia), and verapamil (Calan, Covera, Verelan); clofibrate (Atromid-S; no longer available in U.S.); cyclosporine (Gengraf, Neoral, Sandimmune); diazepam (Valium); digoxin (Lanoxin); disopyramide (Norpace); glyburide (Diabeta, Glynase); glipizide (Glucotrol); haloperidol (Haldol); HIV medications; levothyroxine (Levoxyl, Synthroid, Tirosint); methadone (Dolophine, Methadose); mexiletine, phenobarbital; phenytoin (Dilantin, Phenytek); prednisone (Rayos); propranolol (Hemangeol, Inderal, InnoPran); quinidine (in Nuedexta), quinine (Qualaquin); sildenafil (Revatio, Viagra); tacrolimus (Astagraf, Envarsus, Prograf); theophylline (Elixophyllin, Theochron, Uniphyl); tocainide (Tonocard; no longer available in U.S.); and tricyclic antidepressants such as amitriptyline and nortriptyline (Pamelor). Many other medications may interact with rifapentine, so be sure to tell your doctor about all the medications you are taking, even those that do not appear on this list. Your doctor may need to change the doses of your medications or monitor you carefully for side effects.
tell your doctor if you are taking or using hormonal contraceptives (birth control pills, patches, rings, implants, and injections). Rifapentine can decrease the effectiveness of hormonal contraceptives. You should use another method of birth control while taking this medication. Talk to your doctor about birth control while taking rifapentine.
tell your doctor if you have active TB or if you were unresponsive to other TB medications or if you have or have ever had porphyria (condition in which certain natural substances build up in the body and may cause stomach pain, changes in thinking and behavior, or other symptoms), HIV infection, or liver disease.
tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. If you become pregnant while taking rifapentine, call your doctor.
do not breastfeed while taking rifapentine. Rifapentine may cause breast milk to turn reddish-orange.
tell your doctor if you wear soft contact lenses or dentures. Rifapentine may cause permanent red stains on your contact lenses or dentures. It can also cause your skin, teeth, stool, urine, sweat, and tears to temporarily turn a reddish-orange color while taking rifapentine.