The nurse should withhold cyclobenzaprine if the client is concurrently taking which medication?

The nurse should withhold cyclobenzaprine if the client is concurrently taking which medication?

• A. Sertraline
• B. Tranylcypromine
• C. Acetaminophen
• D. Metoprolol

Answer: (B)

When a patient is taking a monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI), adding a central muscle relaxant like cyclobenzaprine can cause dangerous increases in neurotransmitters, leading to hypertensive crisis or serotonin syndrome. MAOIs like tranylcypromine inhibit the breakdown of norepinephrine and serotonin, so combining them with cyclobenzaprine greatly raises the risk of severe cardiovascular and neurologic events. For safety, cyclobenzaprine should be withheld if the client is on an MAOI, and typically there’s a washout period before starting one another. Sertraline (an SSRI) can also raise the risk of serotonin syndrome with cyclobenzaprine, but the strongest contraindication in this scenario is the MAOI, which makes the combination with tranylcypromine particularly dangerous. Acetaminophen and metoprolol don’t have the same high-risk interaction with cyclobenzaprine.

When a patient is taking a monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI), adding a central muscle relaxant like cyclobenzaprine can cause dangerous increases in neurotransmitters, leading to hypertensive crisis or serotonin syndrome. MAOIs like tranylcypromine inhibit the breakdown of norepinephrine and serotonin, so combining them with cyclobenzaprine greatly raises the risk of severe cardiovascular and neurologic events. For safety, cyclobenzaprine should be withheld if the client is on an MAOI, and typically there’s a washout period before starting one another.

Sertraline (an SSRI) can also raise the risk of serotonin syndrome with cyclobenzaprine, but the strongest contraindication in this scenario is the MAOI, which makes the combination with tranylcypromine particularly dangerous. Acetaminophen and metoprolol don’t have the same high-risk interaction with cyclobenzaprine.