What Duphalac is and what it is used for

Duphalac contains a medicine called lactulose. This belongs to a group of medicines called laxatives. It is commonly used to treat chronic constipation.

Duphalac is used to treat constipation. It is also sometimes used to treat a liver problem called ‘hepatic encephalopathy’.

This is also known as a ‘hepatic coma’.

Before you take Duphalac

Do not take Duphalac if:

You are allergic (hypersensitive) to lactulose or any of the other ingredients of Duphalac (listed in Section 6).

You have a rare problem called ‘galactosaemia’.

You have a blockage caused by anything else but normal constipation

Do not take Duphalac if any of the above apply to you. If you are not sure, talk to your doctor or pharmacist before taking Duphalac.

Pregnancy and breast-feeding

Talk to your doctor before taking this medicine if you are pregnant, might become pregnant or are breast-feeding.

Ask your doctor or pharmacist for advice before taking any medicine, if you are pregnant or breast-feeding. Duphalac is safe to take in normal doses during pregnancy and when breast-feeding.

Important information about some of the ingredients of Duphalac

Duphalac contains fructose, galactose and lactose (all are types of sugar). If you have been told by your doctor that you cannot tolerate or digest some sugars (have an intolerance to some sugars), talk to your doctor before taking this medicine.

How to take Duphalac

If this medicine is from your doctor or pharmacist, do exactly as they have told you. Otherwise follow the instructions below. If you do not understand the instructions, or you are not sure, ask your doctor or pharmacist.

Taking this medicine

Take Duphalac from a spoon or measuring cup.

You can mix it with fruit juice or water.

Duphalac takes 2 to 3 days to start working.

After this time you may be able to reduce the dose you take according to your needs.

Constipation

Adults: The usual starting dose is 15 ml twice a day.

Children 5 to 10 years: The usual starting dose is 10 ml twice a day.

Children under 5 years: The usual starting dose is 5 ml twice a day

Babies under 1 year: The usual starting dose is 2.5 ml twice a day.

Hepatic encephalophathy

Adults: The usual starting dose is 30 to 50ml three times a day.

If you take more Duphalac than you should

If you take more Duphalac than you should, talk to a doctor. You may have diarrhoea.

If you forget to take Duphalac

If you forget a dose, take it as soon as you remember it. However, if it is nearly time for the next dose, skip the missed dose.

Do not take a double dose to make up for a forgotten dose.

Duphalac 200ml Side Effects

Like all medicines, Duphalac can cause side effects, although not everybody gets them. The following side effects may happen with this medicine:

Increased wind and feeling bloated. This may happen during the first few days of treatment. These effects usually disappear after a few days.

Diarrhoea. This may happen if you take high doses of Duphalac. If this happens, lower your dose.

If any of the side effects become serious, or if you notice any side effects not listed in this leaflet, please tell your doctor or pharmacist.

Further information

What Duphalac contains

The active substance is lactulose. Each 5ml of Duphalac contains 3.35g of lactulose.

The other ingredients are water, lactose, galactose, epilactose, fructose, tagatose, hydrogen peroxide and sodium hydroxide.