Terazosin instructions for administration

Instructions for administration
Overview Benign prostatic hyperplasia Hypertension Use with other drugs
 * Initial dose (BPH)
 * Subsequent doses (BPH)
 * Initial dose
 * Subsequent doses

Overview
If Terazosin hydrochloride administration is discontinued for several days, therapy should be reinstituted using the initial dosing regimen. Return to top

Initial dose (BPH)
1 mg at bedtime is the starting dose for all patients, and this dose should not be exceeded as an initial dose. Patients should be closely followed during initial administration in order to minimize the risk of severe hypotensive response. Return to top

Subsequent doses (BPH)
The dose should be increased in a stepwise fashion to 2 mg, 5 mg, or 10 mg once daily to achieve the desired improvement of symptoms and/or flow rates. Doses of 10 mg once daily are generally required for the clinical response. Therefore, treatment with 10 mg for a minimum of 4 to 6 weeks may be required to assess whether a beneficial response has been achieved. Some patients may not achieve a clinical response despite appropriate titration. Although some additional patients responded at a 20 mg daily dose, there was an insufficient number of patients studied to draw definitive conclusions about this dose. There are insufficient data to support the use of higher doses for those patients who show inadequate or no response to 20 mg daily. If Terazosin hydrochloride administration is discontinued for several days or longer, therapy should be reinstituted using the initial dosing regimen. Return to top

Hypertension
The dose of Terazosin hydrochloride and the dose interval (12 or 24 hours) should be adjusted according to the patient's individual blood pressure response. The following is a guide to its administration: Return to top

Initial dose
1 mg at bedtime is the starting dose for all patients, and this dose should not be exceeded. This initial dosing regimen should be strictly observed to minimize the potential for severe hypotensive effects. Return to top

Subsequent doses
The dose may be slowly increased to achieve the desired blood pressure response. The usual recommended dose range is 1 mg to 5 mg administered once a day; however, some patients may benefit from doses as high as 20 mg per day. Doses over 20 mg do not appear to provide further blood pressure effect and doses over 40 mg have not been studied. Blood pressure should be monitored at the end of the dosing interval to be sure control is maintained throughout the interval. It may also be helpful to measure blood pressure 2 to 3 hours after dosing to see if the maximum and minimum responses are similar, and to evaluate symptoms such as dizziness or palpitations which can result from excessive hypotensive response. If response is substantially diminished at 24 hours an increased dose or use of a twice daily regimen can be considered. If Terazosin hydrochloride administration is discontinued for several days or longer, therapy should be reinstituted using the initial dosing regimen. In clinical trials, except for the initial dose, the dose was given in the morning. Return to top

Use with other drugs
Caution should be observed when Terazosin hydrochloride is administered concomitantly with other antihypertensive agents, especially the calcium channel blocker verapamil, to avoid the possibility of developing significant hypotension. When using Terazosin hydrochloride and other antihypertensive agents concomitantly, dosage reduction and retitration of either agent may be necessary. Return to top