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Safe To Take 200mg Azathioprine All At Once?

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 7/4/2008 10:59 PM (GMT 0)
Okay,so my med instructions say 100mg twice a day,but I've been taking it all at once,to make my "regime" easier!I'm pretty sure the only intention of a divided dose is to avoid nausea,but I don't suffer from this.Can anyone back me up on this?

Also,I take 2 x 500mg of Pentasa four times daily.Could I maybe take 4 x 500mg twice a day,or would that cut down it's effectiveness?I don't see my GI for a couple of months yet,and given the wealth of experience on this board,I'm pretty sure one or more of you can help me out here!

I'm just trying to make it as easy as possible to be "med compliant",I've gone astray with this in the past,with dire consequences.
Posted 7/4/2008 11:24 PM (GMT 0)
The longer between doses of a medication, often the more time the body has to flush it out. As such, its action happens in larger "waves".

Also, remember Azathioprine is a bone marrow poison. It is intended to interfere with white cell creation in the bone marrow. The more you take at once, the harder you are hitting your bone marrow, not to mention your kidneys and liver. As an analogy, you could carry 10kg of weight in two goes without too much difficulty. You find it much harder when asked to carry the full 20kg all in one go.

By splitting doses up, the size and duration of the medication "waves" is reduced, and the stress on your body is also levelled out over the course of the day.
Posted 7/4/2008 11:37 PM (GMT 0)
I'm taking 175mg once per day, no problems. Asked my GI about it, he said it's fine.
Posted 7/4/2008 11:42 PM (GMT 0)
I fully understand what you're saying Severin,the Liver thing did already occur to me.Thing is,I've been on Azathioprine twice before and always took 150mg in one go.I can't see the extra 50mg having too much more impact.However,I'm willing to admit I may be wrong,which is why I asked the question originally.

I'll see if anyone else has some input on this,but your words have definitely made me think it may be best to go back to dividing the doses.
Thanks for replying,all comments are appreciated.
Posted 7/5/2008 3:39 AM (GMT 0)
Usually Azathioprine is taken in one dose. The Pentasa needs to be spread out because it actually is a topical medication, working by direct contact with the colon wall. The more frequent dosing allows the colon to be receiving the medication more consistently, and allows it to be more effective.
Posted 7/7/2008 7:08 PM (GMT 0)
I take my 75mg in one dose in the morning. My GI says this is a low dose for me. I was just wondering what the common dosage is for mild/moderate UC.

I found this on http://www.healthline.com/multumcontent/azathioprine/2

"Take this medication exactly as it was prescribed for you. Do not take the medication in larger amounts, or take it for longer than recommended by your doctor. Follow the directions on your prescription label."

You can always call your GI and ask if taking 200mg is okay.


UChick
Posted 7/7/2008 8:12 PM (GMT 0)
one dose at 7:30 each night. I had nausea the first month or so on it, but it went away (boo hoo, b/c I was hoping that would help me lose the pred weight).
Posted 7/7/2008 9:52 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for the comments.Based on the way Beth is taking hers,I'm going to stick with the single dose of 200mg.If my GI is against it when I see him,which I don't think he will be,I'll switch back to a divided dose.

Judilyn,I agree with you on the Pentasa thing,I'm going to stick with the four daily doses,even though some days my forgetfulness means it's actually only three doses!
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