Nevirapine Dosage: An Introduction
The dose of
nevirapine (
Viramune®) that your healthcare provider recommends will vary depending on a number of factors, including:
- Other medical conditions you may have
- Other medications you may be currently taking
- Your age
- Your weight and height (for children).
As always, do not adjust your nevirapine dose unless your healthcare provider specifically instructs you to do so.
Nevirapine Dosing for Adults
The recommended nevirapine dose for treating adults with
HIV or
AIDS is 200 mg once daily for the first 14 days, then 200 mg twice daily thereafter. Nevirapine should be used in combination with other HIV medications, as part of an HIV "cocktail" (this is known as highly active antiretroviral therapy, or HAART).
If you are undergoing dialysis, you will need an extra nevirapine dose after each dialysis session.
Nevirapine Dosing for Children
For children age 15 days and older, your child's healthcare provider will calculate an appropriate nevirapine dosage based on your child's body surface area (which is calculated using height and weight measurements).
General Information on Dosing With Nevirapine
Considerations for people taking nevirapine include the following:
- Nevirapine comes in tablet and oral suspension (liquid) form. It is usually taken by mouth twice a day.
- For the first two weeks, it is usually recommended to take nevirapine just once a day (this decreases the risk of dangerous side effects of nevirapine).
- It does not matter if you take nevirapine with food or on an empty stomach. If the drug bothers your stomach, try taking it with food.
- Be sure to shake nevirapine oral suspension well before each dose.
- Try to take nevirapine at the same time(s) every day to maintain an even level of the medication in your blood.
- For the medication to work properly, it must be taken as prescribed. It is very important that you closely follow your healthcare provider's instructions about taking nevirapine. Missing doses can increase the chance of the virus developing resistance to nevirapine (making it less effective).
- If you are unsure about anything related to your nevirapine dosage, please talk to your doctor, nurse, or pharmacist.
