Nifedipine and Theophylline Interaction
Drug interaction information between Nifedipine and Theophylline.
Nifedipine and Theophylline have a documented major interaction in FDA labeling.
FDA drug labeling documents a major-severity interaction between Nifedipine and Theophylline. Major interactions are generally avoided, moderate ones may need monitoring or a dose adjustment, and minor ones are usually low-risk. This page shows the documented mechanism and guidance. Label-documented interactions are not a complete safety review, so always confirm your own medications with a pharmacist or doctor. Educational information, not medical advice.
How They Interact
Nifedipine can change how your body processes theophylline, which may lead to an increase in the amount of theophylline in your bloodstream.
What To Do
Your healthcare provider should monitor your theophylline levels more frequently. Report any side effects like severe headaches or trouble sleeping to your doctor.
FDA Label Information
albuterol, systemic and inhaled mebendazole amoxicillin medroxyprogesterone ampicillin, with or without sulbactam methylprednisolone atenolol metronidazole azithromycin metoprolol caffeine, dietary ingestion nadolol cefaclor nifedipine co-trimoxazole (trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole) nizatidine diltiazem norfloxacin dirithromycin ofloxacin enflurane omeprazole famotidine prednisone, prednisolone felodipine ranitidine finasteride rifabutin hydrocortisone roxithromycin isoflurane Sorbitol (purgative doses do not inhibit theophylline absorption) isoniazid sucralfate isradipine terbutaline,...
Nifedipine Also Interacts With
- Phenytoin moderate
- Nirmatrelvir/Ritonavir moderate
- Tacrolimus Topical moderate
- Fluoxetine minor
- Fluconazole minor
Theophylline Also Interacts With
- Metoprolol major
- Albuterol major
- Omeprazole major
- Amoxicillin major
- Famotidine major
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I take Nifedipine and Theophylline together?
This is a major interaction. Your healthcare provider should monitor your theophylline levels more frequently. Report any side effects like severe headaches or trouble sleeping to your doctor.
How serious is the interaction between Nifedipine and Theophylline?
This interaction is classified as "major" severity by the FDA. Major interactions may be life-threatening or cause serious side effects.
Why do Nifedipine and Theophylline interact?
Nifedipine can change how your body processes theophylline, which may lead to an increase in the amount of theophylline in your bloodstream.
Understanding the Nifedipine and Theophylline Interaction
FDA-approved prescribing information for these two drugs flags their combination as a major-severity interaction. Nifedipine belongs to the Calcium Channel Blocker class and Theophylline belongs to the Methylxanthine Bronchodilator class - two categories that can collide when co-prescribed. The mechanism described in FDA labeling is: Nifedipine can change how your body processes theophylline, which may lead to an increase in the amount of theophylline in your bloodstream. Severity tiers matter: major flags generally advise avoidance, moderate flags often require monitoring or dose adjustment, and minor flags may only call for awareness.
Context around a specific patient determines real-world impact. Nifedipine has 26 total documented interactions on file in this dataset, and Theophylline has 86. Each additional medication compounds the interaction surface, which is why pharmacists run full-profile checks rather than evaluating one pair at a time. FDA-derived guidance for this pair is: Your healthcare provider should monitor your theophylline levels more frequently. Timing of doses, renal and hepatic function, age, and other concurrent prescriptions all shape whether a labeled interaction matters clinically.
An interaction flag is not a verdict. A large share of labeled interactions are managed routinely in clinical practice, the fix may be as simple as spacing doses or adding a monitoring test. Others require the prescriber to choose a different medication entirely. This page surfaces FDA-sourced labeling and openFDA data for educational purposes only; it is not medical advice and cannot account for your full clinical picture. Never start, stop, or adjust either Nifedipine or Theophylline based on a web page, speak with your prescriber or pharmacist before making any change.
Sources: FDA Drug Labels (SPL) via openFDA (2026). This is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider about drug interactions.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.