Health Library Logo

Health Library

Indinavir (oral route)

Available brands

Crixivan

About this medication

Indinavir is used alone or in combination with other anti-HIV medicines to treat infection caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). HIV is the virus that causes acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). Indinavir will not cure or prevent HIV infection or AIDS. It helps keep HIV from reproducing and appears to slow down the destruction of the immune system. This may help delay problems that are usually related to AIDS or HIV disease from occurring. Indinavir will not keep you from spreading HIV to other people. People who receive this medicine may continue to have other problems usually related to AIDS or HIV disease. This medicine is available only with your doctor's prescription.

Before using this medication

In deciding to use a medicine, the risks of taking the medicine must be weighed against the good it will do. This is a decision you and your doctor will make. For this medicine, the following should be considered: Tell your doctor if you have ever had any unusual or allergic reaction to this medicine or any other medicines. Also tell your health care professional if you have any other types of allergies, such as to foods, dyes, preservatives, or animals. For non-prescription products, read the label or package ingredients carefully. Appropriate studies have not been performed on the relationship of age to the effects of indinavir in the pediatric population. Safety and efficacy have not been established. Appropriate studies performed to date have not demonstrated geriatric-specific problems that would limit the usefulness of indinavir in the elderly. However, elderly patients are more likely to have age-related kidney, liver, or heart problems, which may require caution in patients receiving indinavir. There are no adequate studies in women for determining infant risk when using this medication during breastfeeding. Weigh the potential benefits against the potential risks before taking this medication while breastfeeding. Although certain medicines should not be used together at all, in other cases two different medicines may be used together even if an interaction might occur. In these cases, your doctor may want to change the dose, or other precautions may be necessary. When you are taking this medicine, it is especially important that your healthcare professional know if you are taking any of the medicines listed below. The following interactions have been selected on the basis of their potential significance and are not necessarily all-inclusive. Using this medicine with any of the following medicines is not recommended. Your doctor may decide not to treat you with this medication or change some of the other medicines you take. Using this medicine with any of the following medicines is usually not recommended, but may be required in some cases. If both medicines are prescribed together, your doctor may change the dose or how often you use one or both of the medicines. Using this medicine with any of the following medicines may cause an increased risk of certain side effects, but using both drugs may be the best treatment for you. If both medicines are prescribed together, your doctor may change the dose or how often you use one or both of the medicines. Certain medicines should not be used at or around the time of eating food or eating certain types of food since interactions may occur. Using alcohol or tobacco with certain medicines may also cause interactions to occur. The following interactions have been selected on the basis of their potential significance and are not necessarily all-inclusive. The presence of other medical problems may affect the use of this medicine. Make sure you tell your doctor if you have any other medical problems, especially:

How to use this medication

Take this medicine exactly as directed by your doctor. Do not take more of it, do not take it more often, and do not take it for a longer time than your doctor ordered. Also, do not stop taking this medicine without checking first with your doctor. Indinavir is used with other medicines to treat HIV infection. Takeallother medicines your doctor has prescribed as part of your combination treatment. Your dose of indinavir may depend on the other medicines you are using. This medicine comes with a patient information insert. Read and follow the instructions in the insert carefully. Ask your doctor if you have any questions. This medicine should be taken with water on an empty stomach (1 hour before or 2 hours after a meal) or with a light meal. Indinavir may also be taken with other liquids (eg, skim milk, juice, coffee, or tea) or with a light meal (eg, dry toast with jelly, juice, coffee with skim milk and sugar, or corn flakes with skim milk and sugar). While you are taking indinavir, it is important that you drink extra fluids so that you will pass more urine. This will help prevent possible kidney stones. Follow your doctor's instructions carefully about how much fluid to drink. Usually you will need to drink at least 48 ounces (1.5 liters or 6 full glasses) of fluids every day during your treatment. Keep taking indinavir for the full time of treatment, even if you begin to feel better. This medicine works best when there is a constant amount in the blood. To help keep the amount constant, do not miss any doses. Also, it is best to take the doses at evenly spaced times, day and night. For example, if you are to take three doses a day, the doses should be spaced about 8 hours apart. If you need help in planning the best times to take your medicine, check with your doctor. Only take medicine that your doctor has prescribed specially for you. Do not share your medicine with others. If you miss a dose or forget to use your medicineless than 2 hours, use it as soon as you can. If your next regular dose ismore than 2 hours, wait until then to use the medicine and skip the missed dose. The dose of this medicine will be different for different patients. Follow your doctor's orders or the directions on the label. The following information includes only the average doses of this medicine. If your dose is different, do not change it unless your doctor tells you to do so. The amount of medicine that you take depends on the strength of the medicine. Also, the number of doses you take each day, the time allowed between doses, and the length of time you take the medicine depend on the medical problem for which you are using the medicine. Keep out of the reach of children. Do not keep outdated medicine or medicine no longer needed. Ask your healthcare professional how you should dispose of any medicine you do not use. Store the medicine in a closed container at room temperature, away from heat, moisture, and direct light. Keep from freezing. Indinavir capsules are very sensitive to moisture. Keep them in their original container and leave the drying packet in the container.

footer.address

footer.talkToAugust

footer.disclaimer

footer.madeInIndia