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Armodafinil

Armodafinil is a medicine that is often prescribed to help people with certain sleep disorders stay awake and alert. Specifically, it is used to treat excessive sleepiness due to narcolepsy, shift work sleep disorder, and sleep apnea. Armodafinil comes in tablet form and is typically taken once daily. While most people tolerate the drug well, side effects can include insomnia, headache, and nausea.

 

What Is Armodafinil?

Armodafinil (Nuvigil™) is a prescription medication used to help people stay awake and alert. More specifically, the drug is approved to treat people with excessive sleepiness due to the following sleep disorders:
 
  • Sleep apnea (known medically as obstructive sleep apnea/hypopnea syndrome or OSAHS)
  • Narcolepsy
  • Shift work sleep disorder (SWSD), a problem in people who work night shifts or who frequently change between day and night work shifts.
     
(Click What Is Armodafinil Used For? for more information, including possible off-label uses.)
 

Armodafinil Side Effects

As with any medicine, side effects are possible with armodafinil. However, not everyone who takes the drug will experience side effects. In fact, most people tolerate it quite well. If side effects do occur, in most cases, they are minor and either require no treatment or can easily be treated by you or your healthcare provider. Serious side effects are less common.
 
Common side effects of armodafinil include but are not limited to:
 
(Click Side Effects of Armodafinil to learn more, including potentially serious side effects that you should report immediately to your healthcare provider.)
 
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Written by/reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD; Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD;