Diflucan Indications & Dosage

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Diflucan - Indications & Dosage [Fluconazole]

Dosage and Administration in Children:

The following dose equivalency scheme should generally provide equivalent exposure in pediatric and adult patients:
Pediatric Patients Adults 3 mg/ kg 100 mg
6 mg/ kg 200 mg 12* mg/ kg 400 mg

* Some older children may have clearances similar to that of adults. Absolute doses exceeding 600 mg/ day are not recommended. Experience with DIFLUCAN in neonates is limited to pharmacokinetic studies in premature newborns. (See CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY.) Based on the prolonged half-life seen in premature newborns (gestational age 26 to 29 weeks), these children, in the first two weeks of life, should receive the same dosage (mg/ kg) as in older children, but administered every 72 hours. After the first two weeks, these children should be dosed once daily. No information regarding DIFLUCAN pharmacokinetics in full-term newborns is available.

Oropharyngeal candidiasis

The recommended dosage of DIFLUCAN for oropharyngeal candidiasis in children is 6 mg/ kg on the first day, followed by 3 mg/ kg once daily. Treatment should be administered for at least 2 weeks to decrease the likelihood of relapse.

Esophageal candidiasis

For the treatment of esophageal candidiasis, the recommended dosage of DIFLUCAN in children is 6 mg/ kg on the first day, followed by 3 mg/ kg once daily. Doses up to 12 mg/ kg/ day may be used based on medical judgment of the patient's response to therapy. Patients with esophageal candidiasis should be treated for a minimum of three weeks and for at least 2 weeks following the resolution of symptoms.

Systemic Candida infections:

For the treatment of candidemia and disseminated Candida infections, daily doses of 6-12 mg/ kg/ day have been used in an open, noncomparative study of a small number of children.

Cryptococcal meningitis

For the treatment of acute cryptococcal meningitis, the recommended dosage is 12 mg/ kg on the first day, followed by 6 mg/ kg once daily. A dosage of 12 mg/ kg once daily may be used, based on medical judgment of the patient's response to therapy. The recommended duration of treatment for initial therapy of cryptococcal meningitis is 10-12 weeks after the cerebrospinal fluid becomes culture negative. For suppression of relapse of cryptococcal meningitis in children with AIDS, the recommended dose of DIFLUCAN is 6 mg/ kg once daily.