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Valganciclovir

 
Drug Info: Valganciclovir
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Brand names: Valcyte™

Chemical formula:



Valganciclovir Hydrochloride Oral tablet

What is this medicine?

VALGANCICLOVIR is an antiviral medicine. It is used to treat or prevent infections caused by certain kinds of viruses. It is commonly used to treat and prevent cytomegalovirus (CMV) infections of the eye and body.

This medicine may be used for other purposes; ask your health care provider or pharmacist if you have questions.

What should I tell my health care provider before I take this medicine?

They need to know if you have any of these conditions:
•kidney disease
•low blood counts, like low white cell, platelet, or red cell counts
•an unusual or allergic reaction to ganciclovir, valganciclovir, other medicines, foods, dyes, or preservatives
•pregnant or trying to get pregnant
•breast-feeding

How should I use this medicine?

Take this medicine by mouth with a full glass of water. Follow the directions on the prescription label. Take with food. Do not chew or crush. Do not touch broken tablets with bare hands. Wash skin with soap and water if broken tablets touch your skin. Take your medicine at regular intervals. Do not take your medicine more often than directed. Take all of your medicine as directed even if you think you are better. Do not skip doses or stop your medicine early.

Talk to your pediatrician regarding the use of this medicine in children. Special care may be needed.

Overdosage: If you think you have taken too much of this medicine contact a poison control center or emergency room at once.
NOTE: This medicine is only for you. Do not share this medicine with others.

What may interact with this medicine?

•adriamycin
•amphotericin B
•certain medicines for HIV like didanosine, zidovudine
•dapsone
•flucytosine
•imipenem; cilastatin
•pentamidine
•probenecid
•sulfamethoxazole; trimethoprim

This list may not describe all possible interactions. Give your health care provider a list of all the medicines, herbs, non-prescription drugs, or dietary supplements you use. Also tell them if you smoke, drink alcohol, or use illegal drugs. Some items may interact with your medicine.

What should I watch for while using this medicine?

Visit your doctor or health care professional for regular check ups. Discuss any new symptoms with your doctor. You will need to have important blood work done while on this medicine. If you have a CMV eye infection have your eyes checked every 4 to 6 weeks.

Drink 6 to 8 glasses of water or fluids daily while taking this medicine to help prevent side effects.

This medicine may cause birth defects to the unborn child if taken during pregnancy. Use contraception while taking this medicine. If you think you may have become pregnant and are taking this medicine, contact your doctor right away. Males must use barrier contraception during therapy and for 90 days after stopping this medicine.

You may get drowsy or dizzy. Do not drive, use machinery, or do anything that needs mental alertness until you know how this medicine affects you. Do not stand or sit up quickly, especially if you are an older patient. This reduces the risk of dizzy or fainting spells.

What side effects may I notice from receiving this medicine?

Side effects that you should report to your doctor or health care professional as soon as possible:
•allergic reactions like skin rash, itching or hives, swelling of the face, lips, or tongue
•breathing problems
•changes in vision
•dizziness, lightheaded
•fever or chills, sore throat
•mouth sores
•pain, tingling, numbness in the hands or feet
•trouble passing urine or change in the amount of urine
•unusual bleeding or bruising
•unusually weak or tired

Side effects that usually do not require medical attention (report to your doctor or health care professional if they continue or are bothersome):
•constipation
•diarrhea
•loss of appetite
•nausea
•stomach pain

This list may not describe all possible side effects. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

Where should I keep my medicine?

Keep out of the reach of children.

Store at room temperature between 15 to 30 degrees C (59 to 86 degrees F). Throw away any unused medicine after the expiration date.

Last updated: 7/1/2002

Important Disclaimer: The drug information provided here is for educational purposes only. It is intended to supplement, not substitute for, the diagnosis, treatment and advice of a medical professional. This drug information does not cover all possible uses, precautions, side effects and interactions. It should not be construed to indicate that this or any drug is safe for you. Consult your medical professional for guidance before using any prescription or over the counter drugs.

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Wikipedia: Valganciclovir
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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
1 : 1 mixture (racemate)
Valganciclovir
Systematic (IUPAC) name
2-[(2-amino-6-oxo-6,9-dihydro-3H-purin-9-yl)methoxy]-3-hydroxypropyl (2S)-2-amino-3-methylbutanoate
Identifiers
CAS number 175865-59-5
ATC code J05AB14
PubChem 64147
Chemical data
Formula C14H22N6O5 
Mol. mass 354.362 g/mol
Pharmacokinetic data
Bioavailability 60%
Protein binding 1-2%
Metabolism Hydrolysed to ganciclovir
Half life 4 hours
Excretion Renal
Therapeutic considerations
Pregnancy cat.

C(US)
Legal status

POM(UK) ℞-only(US)
Routes Oral


Valganciclovir hydrochloride (Valcyte, manufactured by Roche) is an antiviral medication used to treat cytomegalovirus infections. As the L-valyl ester of ganciclovir, it is actually a prodrug for ganciclovir.[1] After oral administration, it is rapidly converted to ganciclovir by intestinal and hepatic esterases.

Contents

Administration

Orally, available in 450 mg pink tablets. For patients who have received a transplant, the recommended dose is 900 mg once daily, starting within 10 days of transplantation and continuing until 100 days post transplantation. HIV patients might initially need to take the dose 900 mg twice daily for the first 3 weeks. [2]

Pharmacokinetics

  1. Oral bioavailability is approximately 60%. Fatty foods significantly increase the bioavailability and the peak level in the serum.
  2. It takes about 2 hours to reach maximum concentrations in the serum.
  3. Valganciclovir is eliminated as ganciclovir in the urine, with a half-life of about 4 hours in people with normal kidney function.
  4. The mechanism of this drug is activation via thymidine kinsase enzyme. The phosphotransferase enzyme can likewase activate valganciclovir.

Side effects

Alternative uses

It has been proposed that valganciclovir could be used in the treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome. Following some reported success in 9 out of 12 patients at Stanford University in California, a follow-up double-blind, controlled study of 30 patients was completed, and although data has not yet been released, according to the Virus Induced CNS Dysfunction Association, "the data Dr. Montoya presented at the 2008 International Conference on HHV-6&7 indicated that patients on Valcyte experienced significant cognitive improvement.", especially for those with elevated antibody levels to HHV-6 and EBV (VCA and EA) [3][4]

References

  1. ^ Sugawara M, Huang W, Fei YJ, et al. Transport of valganciclovir, a ganciclovir prodrug, via peptide transporters PEPT1 and PEPT2. J Pharm Sci. 2000;89(6):781-9.
  2. ^ electronic Medicines Compendium
  3. ^ http://www.vicd.info/clinicaltrial.html
  4. ^ http://www.scivee.tv/node/7026
  • Kogelnik AM et al. Use of valganciclovir in patients with elevated antibody titers against Human Herpesvirus-6 (HHV-6) and Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) who were experiencing central nervous system dysfunction including long-standing fatigue. J Clin Virol. 2006;37(S1):S33-S38.
  • Paltiel AD et al. Preevaluation of clinical trial data: the case of preemptive cytomegalovirus therapy in patients with human immunodeficiency virus. Clin Infect Dis. 2001;32(5):783-93.
  • Pescovitz MD et al. Valganciclovir results in improved oral absorption of ganciclovir in liver transplant recipients. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2000;44(10):2811-5.
  • Reusser P. Antiviral therapy: current options and challenges. Schweiz Med Wochenschr. 2000;130(4):101-12.
v • d • e
DNA virus Antivirals (primarily J05, also S01AD and D06BB)
Baltimore I
DNA synthesis
inhibitor
TK activated
Not TK activated
Other
Hepatitis B (VII)
Multiple/general
Nucleic acid inhibitors
Multiple/unknown
ErbB2/PI3K Pathway
NOV-205§ · NOV-002†
#WHO-EM. ‡Withdrawn from market. CLINICAL TRIALS: †Phase III. §Never to phase III

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 
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