Fluconazole - used with caution

Fluconazole - is an antifungal drug that is used to treat infections of the mouth, throat, esophagus, lungs, intestines, genitals and the blood. It is also used to prevent fungal infections in people whose immune system is weakened by cancer treatment, organ transplant, or diseases such as AIDS.

Contraindications

This drug is contraindicated in case of allergy to fluconazole, clotrimazole (Lotrimin), econazole, ketoconazole (Nizoral), miconazole (Monistat, Oravig), sertaconazole sulkonazol, terconazole (Terazol), tioconazole or voriconazole. Flukozanol can not be taken simultaneously with cisapride (Propulsid).

Be sure to tell your doctor if you have the following violations:

• Liver disease;
• Kidney disease;
• Cardiac arrhythmias;
• Long QT syndrome in a personal or family history.

During pregnancy should not take more than one dose of fluconazole. Long-term use of the drug in pregnant women may harm the unborn child, including - lead to the development of certain congenital disorders. It is believed that a single dose of fluconazole for the treatment of vaginal yeast infection is safe for the child. Below, we talk more about the dangers associated with taking fluconazole during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

If you suspect that you might get pregnant while taking this drug, notify your doctor.

How to take fluconazole

Take fluconazole exactly as directed by your doctor. Do not reduce or increase the dose on their own initiative, even if it seems that the drug is too strong or too weak effect.

The dosage depends on fluconazole for the treatment of diseases of the preparation is used - for example, vaginal infections are often treated with just a single tablet, sometimes it requires a very long course of treatment. Tell your doctor if you notice improvement within a few days after the start of treatment.

Wash down fluconazole tablets whole glass of water.

If you are taking fluconazole oral suspension in the form of how to shake the bottle before each dose of medicine. To measure the exact dose using a special measuring spoon rather than a conventional teaspoon.

Symptoms may be less pronounced and even disappear pretty quickly, but that does not mean that the infection is completely cured. If you stop the treatment too soon, or will often miss a dose, fungi cause infections can become resistant to fluconazole.

Note that fluconazole not treat viral infections such as common cold or influenza. If, after the end of treatment you will have a few pills, do not use them to treat any disease without first consulting with your doctor.

Fluconazole Store at room temperature in a dry place away from heat sources. The suspension can be stored in the refrigerator, but it should not freeze. Open bottle with the slurry can be stored for two weeks.

If you forget to take fluconazole, take the missed dose as soon as you remember about it. However, this should not be done if soon you need to take another dose of fluconazole. No need to take two doses in a short period of time, as this may lead to an overdose. Symptoms of overdose of fluconazole - confusion, unusual behavior, incoordination. If you suspect overdose, immediately seek medical help.

Drug Interactions

Before you start taking fluconazole, be sure to tell your doctor if you are taking the following drugs:

• Medicines, blood thinners such as warfarin Warfarin - indirect anticoagulants ;
• Alfentanil, fentanyl and other opioids;
• Clopidogrel (Plavix);
• Cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan, Neosar);
• Cyclosporine (Sandimmune, Neoral);
• Methadone;
• Pimozide;
• Prednisolone;
• Saquinavir (Invirase) or zidovudine (Retrovir);
• Sirolimus or tacrolimus;
• theophylline (Elixophyllin, Theochron, Uniphyl, and others);
• Voriconazole;
• Antidepressants, such as amitriptyline (Vanatrip, Limbitrol) or nortriptyline;
• Drugs used in the treatment of cancer Cancer Treatment - difficult, but necessary For example, vinorelbine (Navelbine), Vincristine (Oncovin, Vincasar) or vinblastine (Velban);
• Medications assigned to lower cholesterol such as atorvastatin (Lipitor), fluvastatin, lovastatin (Mevacor, Altoprev, Advicor), pravastatin, rosuvastatin (Crestor), and simvastatin (Zocor, Simcor, Vytorin);
• Medicines from heart disease and high blood pressure, for example, amlodipine, felodipine (Plendil), isradipine (Dynacirc), losartan and nifedipine;
• NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) such as ibuprofen, naproxen, celecoxib, diclofenac (Arthrotec, Voltaren), Indomethacin (Indocin), meloxicam (Mobic), and others;
• Oral drugs for the treatment of diabetes, such as glipizide, glyburide, tolbutamide, tolazamide, chlorpropamide and the like;
• Rifabutin or rifampicin;
• Sedatives, such as diazepam (Valium), lorazepam (Ativan), alprazolam (Xanax), midazolam, or triazolam;
• Antiepileptic drugs such as carbamazepine (Equetro, Tegretol), phenytoin (Dilantin) or valproic acid (Depakene).

Doctors also need to know about any other medications you are currently taking - including non-prescription medicines and herbal remedies.

Fluconazole and pregnancy

When exposed to high doses of fluconazole (400 to 800 mg per day), in many cases, there are rare congenital abnormality (in most cases patients took fluconazole during the third trimester or during the greater part of it). These include congenital abnormalities were brachycephaly, abnormal facies, malformations of the cranial vault, cleft palate, arthrogryposis, and congenital heart disease. Similar side effects of fluconazole caused in the course of experiments on animals. If the patient becomes pregnant while taking fluconazole, it is necessary to inform all the potential risks to the fetus. If she decides to have a baby, you need to carefully monitor the progress of pregnancy.

Was recorded case when women take a daily 400 mg fluconazole for the treatment of disseminated coccidioidomycosis, the girl was born prematurely. The infant had multiple congenital disorders, including - hypoplasia Hypoplasia - a congenital malformation of the fetus   nasal bones, cleft palate, bilateral femur fractures, contractures of the upper and lower extremities, and defects of the fingers and toes. The child died shortly after birth.

We also know two cases of children born in two women who took fluconazole during the first trimester of pregnancy. Both children were congenital malformations of the heart and skeleton; Only one of them survived.

However, there are other examples. Twenty-four women at 16 weeks' gestation appointed administration of fluconazole for the treatment of Candida sepsis. She received 10 mg per kilogram of body weight for 50 days. After completing the course of treatment her pregnancy is proceeding normally. At 39 weeks' gestation, she gave birth to a healthy baby girl, with no signs of any congenital anomalies. Conduct research activities fluconazole doctors regularly examined the girl for two years, during which time she developed quite normally.

In one retrospective study reviewed the records of doctors in 1079 women who took fluconazole during the first trimester of pregnancy. 797 of them (74%) received a total of 150 mg of fluconazole, 235 (22%) - 300 mg 24 (2%) - 350 mg, and 23 (2%) - 600 mg. These women were born 44 children (4.1% of total births) with congenital malformations. By comparison, 170,453 women, taking fluconazole during pregnancy, the baby was born 6152 (3.6%) with developmental disabilities. Thus, the scientists could not find that short-term treatment with fluconazole greatly increases the birth of a child with severe disabilities. It is now considered a safe single dose of 150 mg of fluconazole during pregnancy to treat vaginal candidiasis Vaginal candidiasis - Treatment: in the fight against the fungus . In all other diseases fluconazole is contraindicated in pregnant women.

Fluconazole during breastfeeding

Fluconazole is excreted in breast milk but is not known exactly how dangerous it is for a child. It is estimated that a one-time intake of 150 mg of fluconazole mother is completely safe for the baby. Receiving this medication in large doses and for a long time to nursing mothers, as well as pregnant women, appointed only in case of emergency.