Survey Highlights the Hazards of Alternate Dosing and Pill Splitting

Availability of new dosages for hydroxychloroquine-a first-line therapy for systemic lupus-may be best for patients, shows a survey conducted by the Lupus Foundation of America.The survey, which was conducted by the Lupus Foundation of American and published earlier this year in BMJ Lupus Science and Medicine, showed that 26 percent of 2,863 surveyed patients exceeded the recommended maximum dosage of  hydroxychloroquine by more than 5 percent. This could be potentially dangerous as hydroxychloroquine is associated with retinopathy. In 2016, the American Academy of Ophthalmology suggested that hydroxychloroquine retinopathy is more common than previously thought. The survey results suggest a possible correlation since over one-quarter of respondents to the survey were taking more hydroxychloroquine than recommended.Hydroxychloroquine is currently available in 200 mg tablets only, but creating other dosages may provide greater flexibility to more accurately tailor doses for individual patients, as well as potentially alleviate adherence issues associated with complex hydroxychloroquine regimens.In this slideshow, we summarize the results from the survey.

References:

Daniel Wallace, Karin Tse, Leslie Hanrahan, et al. Hydroxychloroquine usage in US patients, their experiences of tolerability and adherence, and implications for treatment: survey results from 3127 patients with SLE conducted by the Lupus Foundation of America. Lupus Science & Medicine 2019;6:e000317. doi:10.1136/ lupus-2019-000317