Package Leaflet: Information for the User
paliperidona cinfa 9 mg prolonged-release tablets EFG
Read the entire package leaflet carefully before starting to take this medication, as it contains important information for you.
Contents of the Package Leaflet
Paliperidona contains the active substance paliperidona, which belongs to the class of antipsychotic medications.
Paliperidona is used to treat schizophrenia in adults and adolescents aged 15 years and older.
Schizophrenia is a disorder that causes symptoms such as hearing, seeing, or feeling things that do not exist, having false beliefs, being abnormally suspicious, being withdrawn, having disorganized speech, and a flattening of behavior and emotions. People with this disorder may also feel depressed, anxious, guilty, or tense.
Paliperidona is also used to treat schizoaffective disorder in adults.
Schizoaffective disorder is a mental condition in which the person experiences several of the symptoms of schizophrenia (listed in the previous paragraph) in addition to symptoms of mood disorder (feeling euphoric, sad, agitated, distracted, insomnia, talkativeness, loss of interest in daily activities, excessive or insufficient sleep, excessive or insufficient food intake, and recurring thoughts of suicide).
Paliperidona can help alleviate the symptoms of your illness and prevent them from recurring.
Do not take paliperidona cinfa
Warnings and precautions
Consult your doctor or pharmacist before starting to take paliperidona cinfa.
You should know that these two disorders can be caused by this type of medication.
If you have any of these diseases, please consult your doctor, as it may be necessary to adjust your dose or keep you under observation for a period of time.
Because a dangerously low number of a type of white blood cell necessary to fight infections in the blood has been observed in patients treated with paliperidona, your doctor may check your white blood cell count.
Paliperidona may cause you to gain weight. Significant weight gain can negatively affect your health. Your doctor will regularly monitor your weight.
In patients treated with paliperidona, diabetes mellitus or worsening of pre-existing diabetes mellitus has been observed. Your doctor should check for signs of increased blood sugar. In patients with pre-existing diabetes mellitus, blood sugar should be regularly monitored.
During eye surgery for cataracts, the pupil (the black circle in the center of the eye) may not increase in size as needed. Additionally, the iris (the colored part of the eye) may become flaccid during surgery, which can cause eye damage. If you are planning to have eye surgery, make sure to inform your ophthalmologist that you are using this medication.
Children and adolescents
Paliperidona should not be administered to children and adolescents under 15 years of age for the treatment of schizophrenia.
Paliperidona should not be administered to children and adolescents under 18 years of age for the treatment of schizoaffective disorder.
This is because it is unknown whether paliperidona is safe or effective in this age group.
Other medications and paliperidona cinfa
Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you are taking, have recently taken, or may need to take any other medication.
Abnormalities in heart function may occur when taking this medication with other medications for heart rhythm control or other medications such as antihistamines, antimalarials, or antipsychotics.
Since this medication acts primarily on the brain, it may interfere with other medications (or alcohol) that also act on the brain, due to the cumulative effect on brain function.
This medication may reduce blood pressure, so you should be careful if you take this medication with other medications that also reduce blood pressure.
This medication may reduce the effect of medications for Parkinson's disease and restless legs syndrome (e.g., levodopa).
The effects of this medication may be affected if you take medications that influence intestinal motility (e.g., metoclopramide).
A reduction in the dose of this medication should be considered when administered with valproate.
The use of oral risperidone with this medication is not recommended, as this combination may increase the risk of side effects.
Paliperidona should be used with caution with medications that increase the activity of the central nervous system (psychostimulants such as methylphenidate).
Taking paliperidona cinfa with alcohol
You should avoid consuming alcohol during treatment with this medication.
Pregnancy and breastfeeding
If you are pregnant or breastfeeding, think you may be pregnant, or plan to become pregnant, consult your doctor or pharmacist before using this medication.
You should not take this medication during pregnancy unless you have discussed it with your doctor. The following symptoms may occur in newborn babies of mothers who have been treated with paliperidona in the last trimester of pregnancy (last three months of pregnancy): tremors, stiffness and/or muscle weakness, drowsiness, agitation, breathing problems, and difficulty feeding. If your baby develops any of these symptoms, you should contact your doctor.
You should not take this medication during breastfeeding.
Driving and using machines
Paliperidona may cause symptoms such as drowsiness, dizziness, or vision changes, and may reduce your reaction time. These effects, as well as the underlying disease, may impair your ability to drive vehicles or operate machines. Therefore, do not drive, operate machines, or engage in other activities that require special attention until your doctor assesses your response to this medication.
Paliperidona cinfa contains sodium
This medication contains less than 1 mmol of sodium (23 mg) per tablet; it is essentially "sodium-free".
Follow your doctor's instructions for taking this medication exactly. If you are unsure, consult your doctor or pharmacist again.
Use in adults
The recommended dose in adults is 6 mg once daily in the morning. Your doctor may increase or decrease the dose within the dosage range of 3 mg to 12 mg once daily for schizophrenia or 6 mg to 12 mg once daily for schizoaffective disorder, depending on how well the medication works for you.
Use in adolescents
The recommended starting dose for the treatment of schizophrenia in adolescents aged 15 years and older is 3 mg once daily in the morning.
For adolescents who weigh 51 kg or more, the dose may be increased within the range of 6 mg to 12 mg once daily.
For adolescents who weigh less than 51 kg, the dose may be increased to 6 mg once daily.
Your doctor will decide how much to administer. The amount you take depends on how well the medication works for you.
How and when to take paliperidona cinfa
This medication should be taken orally, swallowed whole with water or other liquids. It should not be chewed, broken, or crushed.
This medication should be taken in the morning with breakfast or on an empty stomach, but in the same way every day. Do not alternate between taking the medication one day with breakfast and the next day on an empty stomach.
The active substance, paliperidona, is dissolved once swallowed, and the tablet coating is eliminated from the body through the feces.
Patients with kidney problems
Your doctor may adjust the dose of this medication based on your kidney function.
Elderly patients
Your doctor may reduce your dose of medication if your kidney function is reduced.
If you take more paliperidona cinfa than you should
In case of overdose or accidental ingestion, consult your doctor or pharmacist immediately or call the Toxicology Information Service, telephone 91 562 04 20, indicating the medication and the amount ingested. You may experience drowsiness, fatigue, abnormal body movements, difficulty standing and walking, dizziness due to decreased blood pressure, and changes in heart rhythm.
If you forget to take paliperidona cinfa
Do not take a double dose to make up for forgotten doses. If you forget a dose, take the next dose the following day. If you forget two or more doses, contact your doctor.
If you stop taking paliperidona cinfa
Do not stop taking this medication, as you will lose its effects. You should not stop taking this medication unless your doctor tells you to, as your symptoms may recur.
If you have any other questions about the use of this medication, ask your doctor or pharmacist.
Like all medications, this medication can produce adverse effects, although not all people suffer from them.
Report immediately to your doctorif:
Very frequent: may affect more than 1 in 10 patients
rigidity or muscle tension (making sudden movements) and sometimes a feeling of "freezing" of movement that then restarts. Other signs of parkinsonism include walking slowly, dragging feet, trembling while at rest, increased saliva and/or drooling, and loss of facial expressiveness
Frequent: may affect up to 1 in 10 patients
Uncommon: may affect up to 1 in 100 patients
decrease in the number of white blood cells in the blood, decrease in platelets (blood cells that help stop bleeding), anemia, decrease in the number of red blood cells
inability to achieve orgasm, nervousness, nightmares
excess gas or flatulence
muscle weakness, neck pain
breast discomfort
Rare: may affect up to 1 in 1,000 patients
skin inflammation caused by mites
voice disorder
Unknown: frequency cannot be estimated from the available data
The following adverse effects have appeared with the use of another medication called risperidone that is very similar to paliperidone, so it is also expected to appear with paliperidone: sleep-related eating disorder, other types of cerebrovascular problems, crackling sounds in the lungs, and severe or fatal skin rash with blisters and peeling that can start inside and around the mouth, nose, eyes, and genitals and spread to other areas of the body (Stevens-Johnson Syndrome / Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis). Eye problems may also occur during cataract surgery. During cataract surgery, a condition called intraoperative floppy iris syndrome (IFIS) may occur if you are taking or have taken paliperidone. If you need to undergo cataract surgery, make sure to inform your ophthalmologist if you are taking or have taken this medication.
Additional adverse effects in adolescents
Adolescents generally presented similar adverse effects to those found in adults, except for the following adverse effects that were detected more frequently:
Reporting of adverse effects
If you experience any type of adverse effect, consult your doctor or pharmacist, even if it is a possible adverse effect that does not appear in this prospectus. You can also report them directly through the Spanish Pharmacovigilance System for Human Use Medicines: https://www.notificaram.es. By reporting adverse effects, you can contribute to providing more information on the safety of this medication.
Keep this medication out of sight and reach of children.
Do not use this medication after the expiration date that appears on the packaging after CAD. The expiration date is the last day of the month indicated.
Store in the original packaging to protect it from moisture.
Medications should not be thrown down the drain or into the trash. Deposit the packaging and medications that you no longer need at the SIGRE Point in the pharmacy. In case of doubt, ask your pharmacist how to dispose of the packaging and medications that you no longer need. This way, you will help protect the environment.
Composition of paliperidone cinfa
Appearance of the product and package contents
White to grayish-white, round, biconvex film-coated tablets with a possible irregular surface and marked with P3 on one side. Approximate diameter 9 mm.
It is possible that only some package sizes are marketed.
Marketing authorization holder and manufacturer
Marketing authorization holder
Laboratorios Cinfa, S.A.
Carretera Olaz-Chipi, 10. Polígono Industrial Areta
31620 Huarte (Navarra) – Spain
Manufacturer
Krka, d.d., Novo mesto
Šmarješka cesta 6
8501 Novo mesto
Slovenia
or
Laboratorios Cinfa, S.A.
Carretera Olaz-Chipi, 10. Polígono Industrial Areta
31620 Huarte (Navarra) - Spain
Date of the last revision of this prospectus: April 2024
Detailed and updated information on this medication is available on the website of the Spanish Agency for Medicines and Health Products (AEMPS) https://www.aemps.gob.es/
You can access detailed and updated information on this medication by scanning the QR code included in the prospectus and packaging with your mobile phone (smartphone). You can also access this information at the following internet address: https://cima.aemps.es/cima/dochtml/p/85826/P_85826.html
QR code to: https://cima.aemps.es/cima/dochtml/p/85826/P_85826.html
The average price of PALIPERIDONE CINFA 9 mg PROLONGED-RELEASE TABLETS in October, 2025 is around 82.75 EUR. Prices may vary depending on the region, pharmacy, and whether a prescription is required. Always check with a local pharmacy or online source for the most accurate information.