Entacapone 200 mg Tablet, Film Coated, 100-count
🆔 Identity & classification
Where does this data come from?
🏷️ RxNorm drug class
This medicine belongs to the Catechol-O-Methyltransferase Inhibitor class.
Where does this data come from?
🏭 Manufacturer & labeler
Where does this data come from?
🩺 Clinical
- Entacapone works by blocking an enzyme that breaks down levodopa in your body, but its effect only lasts a few hours. That's why you take one tablet with each levodopa dose — so it...
- Why do I have to take entacapone every time I take my levodopa? Can't I just take it once a day?
- That's actually a well-known and harmless side effect of entacapone — it can turn your urine an orange-brown color. It doesn't mean anything is wrong with your kidneys or liver. Th...
- My urine looks orange or brownish since I started entacapone. Should I be worried?
Patient education
Supplement & herbal interactions
Some supplements/herbs that may interact with Entacapone — tap one for details:
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💊 What it looks like
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🧪 Inactive Ingredients / Excipients
Inactive ingredients, also called excipients, are components of the drug product other than the active ingredient. They may include fillers, dyes, coatings, preservatives, flavors, or other formulation ingredients.
💡 Tap an ingredient (hover on desktop) to see what it is and why it’s used.
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UNII M28OL1HH48
Croscarmellose sodium is a plant-based substance derived from cellulose. It acts as a disintegrant, helping tablets and capsules break down quickly in the digestive system so the medicine can be absorbed.
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UNII 1K09F3G675
Ferric oxide red is an inorganic iron compound used as a colorant in medicines. It gives tablets, capsules, or other dosage forms a red or reddish tint for identification and appearance.
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UNII EX438O2MRT
Ferric oxide yellow is a naturally occurring iron compound used as a colorant in medications. It gives tablets, capsules, and other forms a yellow or golden hue for identification and appearance.
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UNII PDC6A3C0OX
Glycerin is a clear, thick liquid derived from plant oils or fats. It acts as a humectant to retain moisture, a sweetener, and a solvent in medications.
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UNII Z82Y2C65EA
Hydrogenated cottonseed oil is a solid fat made by adding hydrogen to cottonseed oil. It's used in medicines as a binder and lubricant to help hold ingredients together and make tablets easier to compress and release.
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UNII 3NXW29V3WO
Hypromellose is a plant-based thickener made from cellulose. It's used in medicines as a binder to hold ingredients together, a coating for tablets, and a thickener for liquids.
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UNII 70097M6I30
Magnesium stearate is a salt made from magnesium and stearic acid, a fatty substance. It's used in tablets and capsules as a lubricant and glidant to help ingredients flow smoothly during manufacturing and prevent sticking.
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UNII 3OWL53L36A
A natural sugar alcohol derived from seaweed or synthesized in the lab. It's used as a filler to add bulk, a sweetener in sugar-free formulas, and a disintegrant to help tablets break apart in the stomach.
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UNII OP1R32D61U
Microcrystalline cellulose is a purified form of cellulose, a natural fiber from plant sources. It acts as a binder and filler in tablets and capsules, helping hold ingredients together and give the medicine its shape and size.
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UNII 6OZP39ZG8H
Polysorbate 80 is a synthetic emulsifier derived from sorbitol and oleic acid. It helps mix oil and water-based ingredients together in medications and improves how the product disperses in the body.
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UNII C151H8M554
A natural sugar derived from sugar cane or sugar beets. It's used as a sweetener, filler, and binder to improve taste, add bulk, and help hold tablet or capsule ingredients together.
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UNII 15FIX9V2JP
Titanium dioxide is a bright white mineral powder commonly used as a colorant and opacifying agent. It makes pills and tablets white or lighter in color and helps make coatings non-transparent.
12 inactive ingredients listed in the exact product block matched to this NDC.
Where does this data come from?
ingredient classCode="IACT" elements from the exact product block matched by this NDC. Label-section narrative from DailyMed / the openFDA label index is shown separately when available.Inactive ingredient FAQ
Are inactive ingredients the same for every manufacturer?
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💲 Pricing
A drug doesn't have one price. Each row is a different public payment system, and none is what you'd pay at the counter — that depends on your insurance. The ⓘ on each row explains what it measures.
| Price system | Per ea | Per package |
|---|---|---|
| Retail pharmacies payNADAC · weekly | $0.335 | $33.54 / 100 tablets |
| Medicaid paysCMS SDUD · 12 mo | No recent Medicaid claims on file for this NDC — rare and low-volume NDCs are suppressed in the public data. | |
| Medicare drug plans payPart D · Q2 2026 | $0.5524 | $55.24 / 100 tablets |
Where does this data come from?
🔁 Therapeutic equivalents
| Product | Labeler | Pack | NADAC/unit | TE | Status | Price vs. this |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entacapone 200 mg 00527-1830-37 | Lannett | 100 tablets | $0.335 | AB | Availability likely | — |
| Entacapone 200 mgthis 00781-5578-01 | Sandoz | 100 tablets | $0.335 | AB | Availability likely | — |
| Entacapone 200 mg 00904-6822-07 | Major | 1 tablet | $0.335 | AB | Availability likely | — |
| Entacapone 200 mg 27241-0049-10 | Ajanta | 100 tablets | $0.335 | AB | Availability likely | — |
| Entacapone 200 mg 33342-0260-11 | Macleods | 100 tablets | $0.335 | AB | Availability likely | — |
| Entacapone 200 mg 50268-0295-15 | AvPAK | 1 tablet | $0.335 | AB | Availability likely | — |
| Entacapone 200 mg 60687-0188-21 | American | 1 tablet | $0.335 | AB | Availability likely | — |
| Entacapone 200 mg 62332-0478-31 | Alembic | 100 tablets | $0.335 | AB | Availability likely | — |
| Entacapone 200 mg 65862-0654-01 | Aurobindo | 100 tablets | $0.335 | AB | Availability likely | — |
| Entacapone 200 mg 47335-0007-88 | Sun | 100 tablets | $0.411 | AB | FDA listed | +23% |
| Entacapone 200 mg 00615-8298-39 | NCS | 30 tablets | — | AB | FDA listed | — |
| Entacapone 200 mg 46708-0478-31 | Alembic | 100 tablets | — | AB | FDA listed | — |
| Entacapone 200 mg 64980-0722-01 | Rising | 100 tablets | — | AB | FDA listed | — |
| Entacapone 200 mg 71610-0247-83 | Aphena | 3600 tablets | — | AB | FDA listed | — |
Where does this data come from?
⏳ Availability & generic status
FDA-approved generic versions are listed, and recent pricing/market data suggests they may be available — see Therapeutic equivalents.
Where does this data come from?
📊 Medicare Part D spend CMS · PART D · 2026 (Q1)
📦 Packaging — all sizes for this product
| Package NDC | Description | Marketing start | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 00781-5578-01 You're viewing this | 100 TABLET, FILM COATED in 1 BOTTLE (0781-5578-01) | 2014-06-04 | Active |
📄 Full prescribing information FDA SPL
🎯 Indications and Usage ▾
INDICATIONS Entacapone tablets are indicated as an adjunct to levodopa and carbidopa to treat end-of-dose “wearing-off” in patients with Parkinson’s disease (see CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, Clinical Studies). Entacapone tablet’s effectiveness has not been systematically evaluated in patients with Parkinson’s disease who do not experience end-of-dose “wearing-off”.
⏱️ Dosage and Administration ▾
DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION The recommended dose of entacapone is one 200 mg tablet administered concomitantly with each levodopa and carbidopa dose to a maximum of 8 times daily (200 mg x 8 = 1,600 mg per day). Clinical experience with daily doses above 1,600 mg is limited. Entacapone tablets should always be administered in association with levodopa and carbidopa.
Entacapone tablets have no antiparkinsonian effect of its own. In clinical studies, the majority of patients required a decrease in daily levodopa dose if their daily dose of levodopa had been greater than or equal to 800 mg or if patients had moderate or severe dyskinesia before beginning treatment. To optimize an individual patient’s response, reductions in daily levodopa dose or extending the interval between doses may be necessary.
In clinical studies, the average reduction in daily levodopa dose was about 25% in those patients requiring a levodopa dose reduction (more than 58% of patients with levodopa doses above 800 mg daily required such a reduction). Entacapone tablets can be combined with both the immediate and sustained-release formulations of levodopa and carbidopa. Entacapone tablets may be taken with or without food (see CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY).
Patients With Impaired Hepatic Function: Patients with hepatic impairment should be treated with caution. The AUC and C max of entacapone approximately doubled in patients with documented liver disease, compared to controls. However, these studies were conducted with single-dose entacapone without levodopa and dopa decarboxylase inhibitor coadministration, and therefore the effects of liver disease on the kinetics of chronically administered entacapone have not been evaluated (see CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, Pharmacokinetics of Entacapone).
Withdrawing Patients from Entacapone Tablets: Rapid withdrawal or abrupt reduction in the entacapone tablets dose could lead to emergence of signs and symptoms of Parkinson’s disease (see CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, Clinical Studies), and may lead to hyperpyrexia and confusion, a symptom complex resembling NMS (see PRECAUTIONS, Other Events Reported With Dopaminergic Therapy). This syndrome should be considered in the differential diagnosis for any patient who develops a high fever or severe rigidity. If a decision is made to discontinue treatment with entacapone tablets, patients should be monitored closely and other dopaminergic treatments should be adjusted as needed.
Although tapering entacapone tablets have not been systematically evaluated, it seems prudent to withdraw patients slowly if the decision to discontinue treatment is made.
⛔ Contraindications ▾
CONTRAINDICATIONS Entacapone is contraindicated in patients who have demonstrated hypersensitivity to the drug or its ingredients.
⚠️ Warnings ▾
WARNINGS Monoamine oxidase (MAO) and COMT are the two major enzyme systems involved in the metabolism of catecholamines. It is theoretically possible, therefore, that the combination of entacapone and a non-selective MAO inhibitor (e.g., phenelzine and tranylcypromine) would result in inhibition of the majority of the pathways responsible for normal catecholamine metabolism. For this reason, patients should ordinarily not be treated concomitantly with entacapone and a non-selective MAO inhibitor.
Entacapone can be taken concomitantly with a selective MAO-B inhibitor (e.g., selegiline). Drugs Metabolized By Catechol-O-Methyltransferase (COMT) When a single 400 mg dose of entacapone was given with intravenous isoprenaline (isoproterenol) and epinephrine without coadministered levodopa and dopa decarboxylase inhibitor, the overall mean maximal changes in heart rate during infusion were about 50% and 80% higher than with placebo, for isoprenaline and epinephrine, respectively. Therefore, drugs known to be metabolized by COMT, such as isoproterenol, epinephrine, norepinephrine, dopamine, dobutamine, alpha-methyldopa, apomorphine, isoetherine and bitolterol should be administered with caution in patients receiving entacapone regardless of the route of administration (including inhalation), as their interaction may result in increased heart rates, possible arrhythmias and excessive changes in blood pressure.
Ventricular tachycardia was noted in one 32-year-old healthy male volunteer in an interaction study after epinephrine infusion and oral entacapone administration. Treatment with propranolol was required. A causal relationship to entacapone administration appears probable but cannot be attributed with certainty.
Falling Asleep During Activities of Daily Living and Somnolence Patients with Parkinson’s disease treated with entacapone, which increases plasma levodopa levels, or with levodopa have reported suddenly falling asleep without prior warning of sleepiness while engaged in ADL (including the operation of motor vehicles). Some of these episodes resulted in accidents. Although many of these patients reported somnolence while on entacapone, some did not perceive warning signs, such as excessive drowsiness, and believed that they were alert immediately prior to the event.
Some of these events have been reported as late as one year after initiation of treatment. The risk of somnolence was increased (entacapone 2% and placebo 0%) in controlled studies. It has been reported that falling asleep while engaged in ADL always occurs in a setting of preexisting somnolence, although patients may not give such a history.
For this reason, prescribers should reassess patients for drowsiness or sleepiness especially since some of the events occur well after the start of treatment. Prescribers should also be aware that patients may not acknowledge drowsiness or sleepiness until directly questioned about drowsiness or sleepiness during specific activities. Patients should be advised to exercise caution while driving, operating machines or working at heights during treatment with entacapone.
Patients who have already experienced somnolence and/or an episode of sudden sleep onset should not participate in these activities during treatment with entacapone. Before initiating treatment with entacapone, advise patients of the potential to develop drowsiness and specifically ask about factors that may increase this risk such as concomitant use of sedating medications and the presence of sleep disorders. If a patient develops daytime sleepiness or episodes of falling asleep during activities that require active participation (e.g., conversations, eating, etc.), entacapone should ordinarily be discontinued (see DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION for guidance on discontinuing entacapone).
If the decision is made to continue entacapone, patients should be advised not to drive and to avoid other potentially dangerous activities. There is insufficient information to…
🤒 Adverse Reactions ▾
ADVERSE REACTIONS Because clinical studies are conducted under widely varying conditions, the incidence of adverse reactions (number of unique patients experiencing an adverse reaction associated with treatment per total number of patients treated) observed in the clinical studies of a drug cannot be directly compared to the incidence of adverse reactions in the clinical studies of another drug and may not reflect the incidence of adverse reactions observed in practice. A total of 1,450 patients with Parkinson’s disease were treated with entacapone in premarketing clinical studies.
Included were patients with fluctuating symptoms, as well as those with stable responses to levodopa therapy. All patients received concomitant treatment with levodopa preparations, however, and were similar in other clinical aspects. The most commonly observed adverse reactions (incidence at least 3% greater than placebo) in double-blind, placebo-controlled studies (N=1,003) associated with the use of entacapone were: dyskinesia, urine discoloration, diarrhea, nausea, hyperkinesia, abdominal pain, vomiting and dry mouth.
Approximately 14% of the 603 patients given entacapone in the double-blind, placebo-controlled studies discontinued treatment due to adverse reactions, compared to 9% of the 400 patients who received placebo. The most frequent causes of discontinuation in decreasing order were: psychiatric disorders (2% vs. 1%), diarrhea (2% vs.
0%), dyskinesia and hyperkinesia (2% vs. 1%), nausea (2% vs. 1%) and abdominal pain (1% vs.
0%). Adverse Event Incidence in Controlled Clinical Studies Table 4 lists treatment-emergent adverse events that occurred in at least 1% of patients treated with entacapone participating in the double-blind, placebo-controlled studies and that were numerically more common in the entacapone group, compared to placebo. In these studies, either entacapone or placebo was added to levodopa and carbidopa (or levodopa and benserazide).
Table 4: Summary of Patients with Adverse Events after Start of Trial Drug Administration at least 1% in Entacapone Group and Greater Than Placebo SYSTEM ORGAN CLASS Entacapone Placebo Preferred Term (n = 603) % of patients (n = 400) % of patients SKIN AND APPENDAGES DISORDERS Sweating increased 2 1 MUSCULOSKELETAL SYSTEM DISORDERS Back pain 2 1 CENTRAL AND PERIPHERAL NERVOUS SYSTEM DISORDERS Dyskinesia 25 15 Hyperkinesia 10 5 Hypokinesia 9 8 Dizziness 8 6 SPECIAL SENSES, OTHER DISORDERS Taste perversion 1 0 PSYCHIATRIC DISORDERS Anxiety 2 1 Somnolence 2 0 Agitation 1 0 GASTROINTESTINAL SYSTEM DISORDERS Nausea 14 8 Diarrhea 10 4 Abdominal pain 8 4 Constipation 6 4 Vomiting 4 1 Mouth dry 3 0 Dyspepsia 2 1 Flatulence 2 0 Gastritis 1 0 Gastrointestinal disorders 1 0 RESPIRATORY SYSTEM DISORDERS Dyspnea 3 1 PLATELET, BLEEDING AND CLOTTING DISORDERS Purpura 2 1 URINARY SYSTEM DISORDERS Urine discoloration 10 0 BODY AS A WHOLE – GENERAL DISORDERS Back pain 4 2 Fatigue 6 4 Asthenia 2 1 RESISTANCE MECHANISM DISORDERS Infection bacterial 1 0 Effects of Gender and Age on Adverse Reactions No differences were noted in the rate of adverse events attributable to entacapone by age or gender.
Postmarketing Reports The following spontaneous reports of adverse events temporally associated with entacapone have been identified since market introduction and are not listed in Table 4. Because these reactions are reported voluntarily from a population of unknown size, it is not always possible to reliably estimate their frequency or establish causal relationship to entacapone exposure. Hepatitis with mainly cholestatic features has been reported.
🆘 Overdosage ▾
OVERDOSAGE The postmarketing data include several cases of overdose. The highest reported dose of entacapone was at least 40,000 mg. The acute symptoms and signs commonly seen in these cases included somnolence and decreased activity, states related to depressed level of consciousness (e.g., coma, confusion and disorientation) and discolorations of skin, tongue and urine, as well as restlessness, agitation and aggression.
COMT inhibition by entacapone treatment is dose-dependent. A massive overdose of entacapone may theoretically produce a 100% inhibition of the COMT enzyme in humans, thereby preventing the metabolism of endogenous and exogenous catechols. The highest daily dose given to humans was 2,400 mg, administered in one study as 400 mg six times daily with levodopa and carbidopa for 14 days in 15 Parkinson’s disease patients, and in another study as 800 mg three times daily for 7 days in 8 healthy volunteers.
At this daily dose, the peak plasma concentrations of entacapone averaged 2.0 mcg per mL (at 45 minutes, compared to 1.0 mcg per mL and 1.2 mcg per mL with 200 mg entacapone at 45 minutes). Abdominal pain and loose stools were the most commonly observed adverse events during this study. Daily doses as high as 2,000 mg entacapone have been administered as 200 mg 10 times daily with levodopa and carbidopa or levodopa and benserazide for at least 1 year in 10 patients, for at least 2 years in 8 patients and for at least 3 years in 7 patients.
Overall, however, clinical experience with daily doses above 1,600 mg is limited. The range of lethal plasma concentrations of entacapone based on animal data was 80 mcg per mL to 130 mcg per mL in mice. Respiratory difficulties, ataxia, hypoactivity and convulsions were observed in mice after high oral (gavage) doses.
Management of Overdose Management of entacapone overdose is symptomatic; there is no known antidote to entacapone. Hospitalization is advised, and general supportive care is indicated. There is no experience with hemodialysis or hemoperfusion, but these procedures are unlikely to be of benefit, because entacapone is highly bound to plasma proteins.
An immediate gastric lavage and repeated doses of charcoal over time may hasten the elimination of entacapone by decreasing its absorption and reabsorption from the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. The adequacy of the respiratory and circulatory systems should be carefully monitored and appropriate supportive measures employed. The possibility of drug interactions, especially with catechol-structured drugs, should be borne in mind.
🧬 Clinical Pharmacology ▾
CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY Mechanism of Action Entacapone is a selective and reversible inhibitor of COMT. In mammals, COMT is distributed throughout various organs with the highest activities in the liver and kidney. COMT also occurs in the heart, lung, smooth and skeletal muscles, intestinal tract, reproductive organs, various glands, adipose tissue, skin, blood cells and neuronal tissues, especially in glial cells.
COMT catalyzes the transfer of the methyl group of S-adenosyl-L-methionine to the phenolic group of substrates that contain a catechol structure. Physiological substrates of COMT include dopa, catecholamines (dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine) and their hydroxylated metabolites. The function of COMT is the elimination of biologically active catechols and some other hydroxylated metabolites.
In the presence of a decarboxylase inhibitor, COMT becomes the major metabolizing enzyme for levodopa, catalyzing the metabolism to 3-methoxy-4-hydroxy-L-phenylalanine (3-OMD) in the brain and periphery. The mechanism of action of entacapone is believed to be through its ability to inhibit COMT and alter the plasma pharmacokinetics of levodopa. When entacapone is given in conjunction with levodopa and an aromatic amino acid decarboxylase inhibitor, such as carbidopa, plasma levels of levodopa are greater and more sustained than after administration of levodopa and an aromatic amino acid decarboxylase inhibitor alone.
It is believed that at a given frequency of levodopa administration, these more sustained plasma levels of levodopa result in more constant dopaminergic stimulation in the brain, leading to greater effects on the signs and symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. The higher levodopa levels also lead to increased levodopa adverse effects, sometimes requiring a decrease in the dose of levodopa. In animals, while entacapone enters the central nervous system (CNS) to a minimal extent, it has been shown to inhibit central COMT activity.
In humans, entacapone inhibits the COMT enzyme in peripheral tissues. The effects of entacapone on central COMT activity in humans have not been studied. Pharmacodynamics COMT Activity in Erythrocytes: Studies in healthy volunteers have shown that entacapone reversibly inhibits human erythrocyte COMT activity after oral administration.
There was a linear correlation between entacapone dose and erythrocyte COMT inhibition, the maximum inhibition being 82% following an 800 mg single dose. With a 200 mg single dose of entacapone, maximum inhibition of erythrocyte COMT activity is on average 65% with a return to baseline level within 8 hours. Effect on the Pharmacokinetics of Levodopa and its Metabolites When 200 mg entacapone is administered together with levodopa and carbidopa, it increases the area under the curve (AUC) of levodopa by approximately 35%, and the elimination half-life of levodopa is prolonged from 1.3 hours to 2.4 hours.
In general, the average peak levodopa plasma concentration and the time of its occurrence (T max of 1 hour) are unaffected. The onset of effect occurs after the first administration and is maintained during long-term treatment. Studies in Parkinson’s disease patients suggest that the maximal effect occurs with 200 mg entacapone.
Plasma levels of 3-OMD are markedly and dose-dependently decreased by entacapone when given with levodopa and carbidopa. Pharmacokinetics of Entacapone Entacapone pharmacokinetics are linear over the dose range of 5 mg to 800 mg, and are independent of levodopa and carbidopa coadministration. The elimination of entacapone is biphasic, with an elimination half-life of 0.4 hour to 0.7 hour based on the β-phase and 2.4 hours based on the γ-phase.
The γ-phase accounts for approximately 10% of the total AUC. The total body clearance after intravenous administration is 850 mL per min. After a single 200 mg dose of entacapone, the C max is approximately 1.2 mcg per mL.
Absorption: Entacapone is rapidly absorbed, with a T max of approximately 1…
📦 How Supplied / Storage and Handling ▾
HOW SUPPLIED Entacapone is supplied as 200 mg film-coated tablets for oral administration. The oval-shaped tablets are brownish-orange, unscored and embossed “Comtan” on one side. Tablets are provided in HDPE containers as follows: Bottles of 100 tablets NDC 0781-5578-01 Store at 25°C (77°F); excursions permitted to 15°C to 30°C (59°F to 86°F) [see USP Controlled Room Temperature].
Manufactured by Orion Corporation Orion Pharma, 02200 Espoo, Finland for Sandoz Inc., Princeton, NJ 08540 70016586-00 Rev. 11/2023
📋 Description ▾
DESCRIPTION Entacapone is available as tablets containing 200 mg entacapone. Entacapone is an inhibitor of catechol- O -methyltransferase (COMT), used in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease as an adjunct to levodopa and carbidopa therapy. It is a nitrocatechol-structured compound with a relative molecular mass of 305.29.
The chemical name of entacapone is (E)-2-cyano-3-(3,4-dihydroxy-5-nitrophenyl)-N,N-diethyl-2-propenamide. Its empirical formula is C 14 H 15 N 3 O 5 and its structural formula is: The inactive ingredients of the entacapone tablets are microcrystalline cellulose, mannitol, croscarmellose sodium, hydrogenated vegetable oil, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, polysorbate 80, glycerol 85%, sucrose, magnesium stearate, yellow iron oxide, red iron oxide and titanium dioxide. Entacapone Chemical Structure