• Basic Info
• Top Questions
• Clinical Info
• Interactions

What is doxycycline?
Doxycycline is a tetracycline antibiotic. It fights bacteria in the body. Doxycycline is used to treat many different bacterial infections, such as urinary tract infections, acne, gonorrhea, and chlamydia, periodontitis (gum disease), and others. Doxycycline may also be used for other purposes not listed in this medication guide.

Back to Top

What are the possible side effects of doxycycline?

Get emergency medical help if you have any of these signs of an allergic reaction: hives; difficulty breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat.

Stop using doxycycline and call your doctor at once if you have any of these serious side effects:

• severe headache, dizziness, blurred vision;

• fever, chills, body aches, flu symptoms;

• severe blistering, peeling, and red skin rash;

• urinating less than usual or not at all;

• pale or yellowed skin, dark colored urine, fever, confusion or weakness;

• severe pain in your upper stomach spreading to your back, nausea and vomiting, fast heart rate;

• loss of appetite, jaundice (yellowing of the skin or eyes); or

• easy bruising or bleeding, unusual weakness.

Less serious side effects may include:

• swollen tongue, trouble swallowing;

• mild nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or stomach upset;

• white patches or sores inside your mouth or on your lips;

• sores or swelling in your rectal or genital area; or

• vaginal itching or discharge.

This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur. Tell your doctor about any unusual or bothersome side effect.

Back to Top

How should I take doxycycline?
Take this medication exactly as it was prescribed for you. Do not take the medication in larger amounts, or take it for longer than recommended by your doctor. Follow the directions on your prescription label. Take doxycycline with a full glass of water (8 ounces). You may take this medication with or without food. Do not take the medication with milk or other dairy products, unless your doctor has told you to. Dairy products can make it harder for your body to absorb the medicine. Certain brands of doxycycline may not have restrictions about taking them with dairy products. If your doctor has instructed you to take doxycycline with milk, tell your pharmacist that you need a brand of doxycycline that can be taken with milk.

Back to Top

What is the most important information I should know about doxycycline?
Do not use this medication if you are pregnant. It could cause harm to the unborn baby, including permanent discoloration of the teeth later in life. Doxycycline can make birth control pills less effective. Use a second method of birth control while you are taking doxycycline to keep from getting pregnant. Doxycycline passes into breast milk and may affect bone and tooth development in a nursing baby. Do not take this medication without telling your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby.

Back to Top

What happens if I miss a dose?
Take the missed dose as soon as you remember. If it is almost time for your next dose, skip the missed dose and take the medicine at the next regularly scheduled time. Do not take extra medicine to make up the missed dose.

Back to Top

What other drugs will affect doxycycline?
Before taking doxycycline, tell your doctor if you are taking any of the following drugs: cholesterol-lowering medications such as cholestyramine (Prevalite, Questran) or colestipol (Colestid); isotretinoin (Accutane); tretinoin (Renova, Retin-A, Vesanoid); an antacid such as Tums, Rolaids, Milk of Magnesia, Maalox, and others; a product that contains bismuth subsalicylate such as Pepto-Bismol; minerals such as iron, zinc, calcium, magnesium, and over-the-counter vitamin and mineral supplements;

Back to Top

Can I take this if I am pregnant or trying to get pregnant or if I am breastfeeding?

Doxycycline has been assigned to pregnancy category D by the FDA. Animal studies have revealed evidence of embryo- and fetotoxicity, including toxic effects on skeletal formation. There are no controlled data in human pregnancies. However, congenital defects have been reported with the class of tetracyclines. Fetal effects may be dose-related. When used during tooth development (second half of pregnancy) tetracyclines may cause permanent yellow-gray-brown discoloration of the teeth and enamel hypoplasia. Doxycycline is only recommended for use during pregnancy when there are no alternatives and benefit outweighs risk.

Population-based data from the Hungarian Case-Control Surveillance of Congenital Abnormalities revealed that of 32,804 women who had infants with no defects, 63 (0.19%) were treated with doxycycline during pregnancy. 18,515 women had infants with congenital abnormalities, and 56 of these (0.3%) were treated with doxycycline. Data were based on retrospective recall and did not include alcohol or tobacco usage. In mass casualty settings after release of biological weapons, the Working Group on Civilian Biodefense has recommended doxycycline as an alternative drug for prophylaxis and treatment of anthrax, tularemia, and plague. The risk is outweighed by the high fatality rates from these infections.

Doxycycline is excreted into human milk. Theoretical risks of dental staining and inhibition of bone growth exist although they are unlikely. Tetracycline, a related drug, is considered compatible with breast-feeding by the American Academy of Pediatrics. However, the manufacturer recommends that because of the risk of serious potential adverse reactions in nursing infants, a decision should be made whether to continue nursing or discontinue the drug, taking into account the importance of the drug to the mother.

Back to Top

Who should NOT use this medication?

• Known hypersensitivity to doxycycline or other tetracyclines.

Back to Top

What happens if I overdose?
Seek emergency medical attention if you think you have used too much of this medicine. Overdose symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.

Back to Top

What should I discuss with my healthcare provider before taking doxycycline?
Do not use this medication if you are allergic to doxycycline, or to similar medicines such as demeclocycline (Declomycin), minocycline (Dynacin, Minocin, Solodyn, Vectrin), or tetracycline (Brodspec, Panmycin, Sumycin, Tetracap). Before taking doxycycline, tell your doctor if you have liver or kidney disease. You may not be able to take doxycycline, or you may need a dose adjustment or special tests during treatment. If you are using doxycycline to treat gonorrhea, your doctor may test you to make sure you do not also have syphilis, another sexually transmitted disease.

Back to Top

Can I stop taking the medication if I feel better?
If you have been diagnosed with a disease for which an antibiotic is needed, you must complete the prescribed course of treatment. Even if you start to feel better, do not skip any doses and remember to take the medication until it is all gone.

Back to Top

I am on so many medications; do I have to take them all?
This is called polypharmacy—many different medications being used at the same time by one person. Sometimes, being on multiple medications is acceptable and appropriate but at other times it may be problematic. If you are receiving your medications from multiple physicians you need to ensure that they all know what medications you are taking. The best way to do this is to make a list of all the medications you are currently using, including all nutritional supplements, homeopathic remedies, vitamins and over-the-counter drugs (if possible, also include all the diseases you have been diagnosed with). Give a copy to every doctor who takes care of you so they have it on file, this way they can avoid duplicating medications and perhaps even try to consolidate some. After every doctor's visit remember to update the list accordingly. Also, as much as you possibly can, try to use the same pharmacy to fill all your prescriptions, this way any potential drug interactions can be caught and averted.

Back to Top

Where can I get more information?
More Information

Back to Top