All you need to know about the side effects of Ribavirin

Ribavirin contains the active substance ribavirin. This medicine stops the multiplication of hepatitis C virus. Ribavirin must not be used alone.
Depending on the genotype of the hepatitis C virus that you have, your doctor may choose to treat you with a combination of this medicine with other medicines.
The combination of Ribavirin and other medicines is used in order to treat adult patients who have chronic hepatitis C (HCV).
Like all medicines, Ribavirin 200 mg used in combination with other medicines can cause side effects, although not everyone gets these adverse reactions. Apart from this, not all of these undesired adverse reactions may occur, and if they do occur, immediately seek medical attention.

• Severe stomach pain
• Black or tar-like stools
• Blood in stool or urine
• Severe bleeding from your nose
• Chills or fever.
• Lower back or side pain
• Painful or difficult urination
• Problems with your eyesight or hearing,
• Severe skin rash or redness

Contact your healthcare provider immediately if you observe any of the following side effects occurring during combination treatment with other medicines:

• Chest pain or persistent cough; changes in the way your heart beats, fainting. 
• Confusion, feeling depressed, suicidal thoughts. 
• Attempt suicide, aggressive behaviour.
• Feelings of numbness or tingling. 
• Trouble sleeping, thinking or concentrating. 
• Severe stomach pain, black or tar-like stools, blood in stool or urine, lower back or side pain. 
• Painful or difficult urination. 
• Irregular or no menstrual period, disorder of vagina, inflammation of the vagina, development of male body traits, testis pain. 
• Eczema, increased or decreased sensitivity to touch, acne, bruising, increased sweating, increase in muscle movement, tense muscle, irritation or itching at the site of injection, nail disorder, limb pain. 

Very commonly reported side effects:
Very common side effects are as follows:

• Decreases in the number of red blood cells (that may cause fatigue, shortness of breath, dizziness), decrease in neutrophils (that make you more susceptible to different infections).
• Difficulty in concentrating, feeling nervous, feeling depressed or irritable, mood swings, tired feeling, staying asleep, trouble falling. 
• Cough, dry mouth, pharyngitis (sore throat). 
• Dizziness, diarrhoea, fever, flu-like symptoms, nausea, headache, shaking chills, virus infection, weakness, vomiting. 
• Loss of weight, loss of appetite and stomach pain. 
• Dry skin, irritation, hair loss, itching, muscle pain, muscle aches, pain in joints and muscles, rash.

Commonly reported side effects: 
The following mentioned are not the full list of commonly reported side effects:

• Bruising and spontaneous bleeding, decrease in certain white blood cells, low calcium level in the blood, severe anaemia. 
• Fungal or bacterial infections, crying, agitation, amnesia, memory impaired, nervousness, abnormal behaviour, aggressive behaviour, anger, feeling confused, lack of interest, mental disorder, mood changes, unusual dreams, wanting to harm yourself, trouble sleeping, feeling sleepy, lack of interest in sex or inability to perform, spinning feeling (vertigo). 
• Blurred or abnormal vision, eye irritation or pain or infection, dry or teary eyes, changes in your hearing or voice, ringing in ears, ear infection, earache, cold sores (herpes simplex), change in taste, taste loss, bleeding gums or sores in mouth, burning sensation on tongue, sore tongue, inflamed gums, tooth problem, migraine, respiratory infections, sinusitis, nose bleed, nonproductive cough, rapid or difficult breathing, stuffy or runny nose, thirst, tooth disorder. 

Uncommonly reported side effects:
The uncommonly reported side effects in patients with Ribavirin capsule are as follows:

• Abnormal behaviour, emotional disorder, fear, nightmare. 
• Bleeding of the mucous membrane that lines the inner surface of the eyelids, blurred vision, drowsiness, intolerance to light, itchy eyes, facial pain, inflamed gums. 
• Chest discomfort, difficult breathing, lung infection, nasal discomfort, pneumonia, wheezing. 
• Low blood pressure. 
• Enlarged liver. 
• Painful menstruation. 
• Pain in the skin, peeling of skin, redness, swelling, paleness. 

Read:- How Ribavirin is helpful in the treatment of Hepatitis C