Dosage
About 1 to 10 mg every 12 hours. Dosage is based on the level drawn in the hospital. The blood test to check for the FK level must be drawn 11 to 11.5 hours after the last dose. It is very important that the level be drawn precisely or it will be inaccurate.
Action
An immunosuppressive drug which blocks the action of the immune cells in your blood known as the T-lymphocytes. These immune cells normally take part in the rejection process.
Side effects
- headaches
- tremors
- diarrhea
- nausea
- high blood pressure
- abdominal pain
- impaired kidney function
- low blood count
- high blood
Caution
Some medications may affect drug concentrations. Your dose will be adjusted on an individual basis.
Getting the right medications or Tacrolimus level for you
While you are in the hospital, your medication levels will be drawn daily for some time after transplant. You must wait to take your morning dose of medication until after the blood level has been drawn. The reason for this careful planning is that we want to know the lowest level of medication in your blood during a 24 hour period. This lowest level, or "trough" blood level, occurs just before you take your next dose of medication. Based on the trough levels of medication in your blood, we will either raise, lower, or keep the same medication dosage. Once your blood has been drawn, you may take your morning dose of Tacrolimus.
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