Before using dorzolamide and timolol eye drops,
tell your doctor and pharmacist if you are allergic to dorzolamide (Trusopt), timolol (Timoptic), sulfa drugs, or any other medications.
tell your doctor and pharmacist what prescription and nonprescription medications, vitamins, nutritional supplements, and herbal products you are taking. Be sure to mention any of the following: beta blockers such as atenolol (Tenormin), labetalol (Normodyne), metoprolol (Lopressor, Toprol XL), nadolol (Corgard), and propranolol (Inderal); calcium channel blockers such as amlodipine (Norvasc), diltiazem (Cardizem, Dilacor, Tiazac, others), felodipine (Plendil), isradipine (DynaCirc), nicardipine (Cardene), nifedipine (Adalat, Procardia), nimodipine (Nimotop), nisoldipine (Sular), and verapamil (Calan, Isoptin, Verelan); carbonic anhydrase inhibitors such as acetazolamide (Diamox), dichlorphenamide (Danaride), and methazolamide (GlaucTabs, Neptazane); clonidine (Catapres, Catapres-TTS); digoxin (Lanoxin); diuretics ('water pills'); quinidine (Quinidex); reserpine (Serpalan, Serpasil, Serpatabs); and salicylate pain relievers such as aspirin, choline magnesium trisalicylate, choline salicylate (Arthropan), diflunisal (Dolobid), magnesium salicylate (Doan's, others), and salsalate (Argesic, Disalcid, Salgesic). Your doctor may need to change the doses of your medications or monitor you carefully for side effects.
if you are using another topical eye medication, instill it at least 10 minutes before or after you instill dorzolamide and timolol.
tell your doctor if you have or have ever had asthma, lung disease (including chronic bronchitis and emphysema), heart disease, diabetes, an overactive thyroid gland (hyperthyroidism), severe allergic reactions, myasthenia gravis, and kidney or liver disease.
tell your doctor if you are pregnant, plan to become pregnant, or are breast-feeding. If you become pregnant while using dorzolamide and timolol, call your doctor.
if you are having surgery, including dental surgery, tell the doctor or dentist that you are using dorzolamide and timolol.
you should know that dorzolamide and timolol solution contains benzalkonium chloride, which can be absorbed by soft contact lenses. If you wear contact lenses, remove them before applying dorzolamide and timolol and put them back in 15 minutes later.
if you have an eye injury, infection, or surgery while using dorzolamide and timolol, ask your doctor if you should continue using the same eye drops container.
you should know that if you have allergic reactions to different substances, your reactions may be worse while you are using dorzolamide and timolol, and your allergic reactions may not respond to the usual doses of injectable epinephrine.