Rimantadine Dosage: An Introduction
The dose of
rimantadine hydrochloride (
Flumadine®) that your healthcare provider recommends will vary depending on a number of factors, including:
- Whether you are treating or preventing the flu
- Your age
- Your kidney and liver function
- Other medications you may currently be taking.
As always, do not adjust your rimantadine dose unless your healthcare provider specifically instructs you to do so.
Rimantadine Dosing for Adults
The recommended rimantadine dose for treating or preventing the flu in adults is 100 mg twice daily. The same dose is recommended for
flu prevention in children age ten years and older. Rimantadine is not approved for treating the flu in children or for preventing the flu in children under ten years old.
A lower dose (rimantadine 100 mg once daily) is recommended for people with kidney failure or severe liver disease and for elderly nursing home residents. For
flu treatment, rimantadine should be started as soon as possible within 48 hours of the start of
flu symptoms. It should be continued for about seven days after the first symptoms. For flu prevention, it is not clear how long rimantadine should be continued.
General Information on Dosing for Rimantadine
Considerations for people taking rimantadine include the following:
- Rimantadine comes in tablet form. It is usually taken by mouth once or twice a day.
- You can take rimantadine with food or on an empty stomach. If the drug seems to bother your stomach, try taking it with food.
- For treating the flu, rimantadine works better the earlier it is started. Ideally, it should be started 48 hours of the onset of flu symptoms.
- For the medication to work properly, it must be taken as prescribed.
- If you are unsure about anything related to your rimantadine dosage, please talk to your doctor, nurse, or pharmacist.
