ribavirin twice a day?

[runsincircles]

My meds just arrived and the riba says take 400mg in the morning and at night.  I was under the impression it HAD to be taken 3x a day to be effective.  I have the genotype that's easier to treat (2b I think, but can't remember right now).  Does anybody know if this is right?  Should I call the dr just to be sure?  I also need to know if I should keep the riba in the fridge with the pegasys?

[HaveFaith4Me]

My boyfriend is geno 2A. He was proscribed Rib twice a day. Once in the morning and once in the eviening. 3 bills a dose

[hrsepwrguy]

FULL PRESCRIBING INFORMATION: CONTENTS*
WARNING: RISK OF SERIOUS DISORDERS AND RIBAVIRIN ASSOCIATED EFFECTS

2 DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION
COPEGUS should be taken with food. COPEGUS should be given in combination with PEGASYS; it is important to note that COPEGUS should never be given as monotherapy. See PEGASYS Package Insert for all instructions regarding PEGASYS dosing and administration.

2.1 Chronic Hepatitis C Monoinfection
Adult Patients
The recommended dose of COPEGUS tablets is provided in Table 1. The recommended duration of treatment for patients previously untreated with ribavirin and interferon is 24 to 48 weeks.

The daily dose of COPEGUS is 800 mg to 1200 mg administered orally in two divided doses. The dose should be individualized to the patient depending on baseline disease characteristics (e.g., genotype), response to therapy, and tolerability of the regimen (see Table 1).

Table 1
Genotypes 2, 3 COPEGUS Dose (daily) 800 mg

http://www.gene.com/gene/products/information/pegasys/pdf/copegus_pi.pdf

Twice daily dosing (every 12 hrs) is the makers recommendation for all genotypes

How should I store COPEGUS?
• Store COPEGUS tablets between 59°F and 86°F (15°C and 30°C).
• Keep the bottle tightly closed.

http://www.gene.com/gene/products/information/pegasys/pdf/copegus_mg.pdf

[orphanedhawk]

You do not need to keep riba in the fridge though you do need to keep interferon refrigerated. Keep it out of extreme heat or cold but room temperature is fine. Look at the label, it doesn't say to refrigerate it.

As a genotype two, I took riba twice daily. Since it was keeping me awake at night, my hepatologist said I could take it with breakfast and lunch.I was told 5 hours apart was fine. That worked for me.
It has such a long half life, that you probably could take it once daily but it's probably best to take it as directed, twice with meals.
It's important to take it with a substantial meal so as not to cause nausea.

[rk2761]

I"m G3 and take 400 mg of riba twice a day (so a total of 800).

I was told by my nurse I did not need to take my doses 12 hours apart (I thought they should be evenly spaced in order to maintain levels of Riba in my system.) But she also said I should take them at least 6 hours apart.

[runsincircles]

Thanks to everyone for your quick responses.  I'm gonna keep it in the fridge for now, but I need to put it in my med box or I won't remember to put it in when I set up my meds for the week.  I'm on disability so I don't have to worry about work, but that just means I have all day to think about how crappy I feel.

[maybe368]

I agree with all but the throw away part, we really don't want this stuff in our water supply. In Phoenix, they have safe med return events, where they are correctly destroyed...Mark

[trolleater]

Keep this medication in the container it came in, tightly closed, and out of reach of children. Store ribavirin tablets and capsules at room temperature and away from excess heat and moisture (not in the bathroom). Store ribavirin oral solution in the refrigerator or at room temperature. Throw away any medication that is outdated or no longer needed. Talk to your pharmacist about the proper disposal of your medication. It seems like my other two friends have you covered on anything else, good luck and Hi Advocate and B.

[BoceprevirGal]

   Yes, for genotype 2, 800 mgs IS the standard dosage. It is to be taken twice a day.  It could be taken once a day, as it stays in the system for a very long time, but then it may cause stomach upset.
   So it is best to take it twice a day. Some people find it causes insomnia, so you could take 2 in the morning and 2 pills at 6 pm,  etc.
    The "every 8 hr" dosage is only for us genotype 1's...because we take our riba pills withour protease inhibiotor pills, which have to be every 8 hrs, or we may develope a tolerance or resistance, to the third med we have to take, which we refer to as either "victrleis" or "incivek" (aka as boceprevir or teleprivir"
     I never had any side effects fromthe ribaviran pills, but I always made
sure that I took them with a full meal, and they are absorbed better when eaten with some calories that include fat.  I got my "fat" calories from peanut-butter and whole milk mostly, during the daytime.

[Advocate1955]

We'll wait for someone else to chime in, but to my recollection, Riba is twice a day.  800 mg per day is a very low dose though, most people are on 1200 mg per day, but perhaps that is the standard dose for G2, not sure.  Also, your Riba does not need to go in the fridge.
Advocate1955

[Doofus_jones]

this is a good question. I'm geno 2 and was told by my dr who is a professor to take it ONCE a day. I was taking 4 pills at night. I phone his nurse who said it didn't matter. I'm just completing my third week and had a horrible attack of the sweats yesterday morning. I have changed my routine to 2 about 4pm and last 2 at 9:30 at night. Taking 2 in the morning might prove too heavy to go to work on. Please let me know if you find out different,

Good luck to you, and me

Pete