Budesonide extended-release

FDA label, Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc., oral, effective 2024-11-15. Full label on DailyMed

Other products: Budesonide

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From MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine

Specialty pharmacy: therapy management checklist, storage and cold chain, dosing calendar, Medicare Part D coverage.

Quoted from the FDA label. Product labels differ by manufacturer and change over time; confirm against the label for the product you are using.

Corticosteroid

Dosing in kidney impairment

Hypercorticism and adrenal suppression : May occur with treatment; monitor for signs and symptoms. Transferring patients from systemic glucocorticoids : Risk of impaired adrenal function when transferring from glucocorticoid treatment with higher systemic effects to glucocorticoid treatment with lower systemic effects, such as budesonide extended-release tablets.

Taper patients slowly from systemic corticosteroids if transferring to budesonide extended-release tablets. Kaposi’s Sarcoma : Reported to occur in patients receiving corticosteroid therapy, most often for chronic conditions. 5.1 Hypercorticism and Adrenal Axis Suppression Systemic effects such as hypercorticism and adrenal suppression may occur with use of corticosteroids, including budesonide extended-release tablets.

Monitor patients for signs and symptoms of hypercorticism and adrenal axis suppression during treatment with budesonide extended-release tablets. Patients with moderate to severe liver disease should be monitored for increased signs and/or symptoms of hypercorticism. Discontinuing the use of budesonide extended-release tablets should be considered in these patients [see Use in Specific Populations ] .

Glucocorticosteroids, including budesonide extended-release tablets, can reduce the response of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis to stress. In situations where patients are subject to surgery or other stress situations, supplementation with a systemic glucocorticosteroid is recommended. 5.2 Transferring Patients from Systemic Glucocorticosteroid Therapy Care is needed in patients who are transferred from glucocorticosteroid treatment with higher systemic effects to glucocorticosteroids with lower systemic effects, such as budesonide extended-release tablets, since symptoms attributed to withdrawal of steroid therapy, including those of acute adrenal suppression or benign intracranial hypertension, may develop.

Dosing in liver impairment

Hepatic Impairment Patients with moderate to severe liver disease should be monitored for increased signs and/or symptoms of hypercorticism. Discontinuing the use of budesonide extended-release tablets should be considered in these patients [see Warnings and Precautions ] .

Preparation and administration

CYP3A4 Inhibitors If concomitant administration with ketoconazole, or any other CYP3A4 inhibitor, is indicated, patients should be closely monitored for increased signs and/or symptoms of hypercorticism. Avoid grapefruit juice, which is known to inhibit CYP3A4, when taking budesonide extended-release tablets. In these cases, discontinuation of budesonide extended-release tablets or the CYP3A4 inhibitor should be considered [see Drug Interactions and Clinical Pharmacology ] .

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  • Budesonide extended-release
Label text (4 paragraphs)

7 DRUG INTERACTIONS • Avoid cytochrome P450 3A4 inhibitors (e.g., ketoconazole, grapefruit juice). May cause increased systemic corticosteroid effects. ( 2.2 , 7 , 12.3 )

7.1 Interaction with CYP3A4 Inhibitors Concomitant oral administration of ketoconazole (a known inhibitor of CYP3A4 activity in the liver and in the intestinal mucosa) caused an eight-fold increase of the systemic exposure to oral budesonide. If treatment with inhibitors of CYP3A4 activity (such as ketoconazole, itraconazole, ritonavir, indinavir, saquinavir, erythromycin) is indicated, discontinuation of budesonide extended-release tablets should be considered. After extensive intake of grapefruit juice (which inhibits CYP3A4 activity predominantly in the intestinal mucosa), the systemic exposure for oral budesonide increased about two times.

Ingestion of grapefruit or grapefruit juice should be avoided in connection with budesonide extended-release tablets administration [see Dosage and Administration (2) and Clinical Pharmacology (12.3) ] .

7.2 Inhibitors of Gastric Acid Secretion Since the dissolution of the coating of budesonide extended-release tablets is pH dependent, the release properties and uptake of the compound may be altered when budesonide extended-release tablets are used after treatment with gastric acid reducing agents (e.g., proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), H 2 blockers and antacids).

Contraindications

Budesonide extended-release tablets are contraindicated in patients with hypersensitivity to budesonide or any of the ingredients of budesonide extended-release tablets. Anaphylactic reactions have occurred with other budesonide formulations [see Adverse Reactions (6.2) ] . • Known hypersensitivity to budesonide or any of the ingredients in budesonide extended-release tablets ( 4 )

Safety data

Reported adverse events (FAERS)

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Source: FDA Adverse Event Reporting System via openFDA

Liver injury (LiverTox)

E

Likelihood score E: Unlikely cause of clinically apparent liver injury.

Budesonide is a corticosteroid that undergoes high first pass elimination by the liver so that systemic levels after oral administration are minimal. Budesonide has been used orally for several immune mediated gastrointestinal and liver diseases and as nasal spray or by inhalation for allergic rhinitis, asthma and chronic obstructive lung disease. Neither inhalant nor oral budesonide has been linked to serum enzyme elevations during therapy or to convincing instances of clinically apparent acute liver injury.

ABCDEA: well known cause; E: unlikely cause. [HD]: high doses only.

Source: LiverTox: Budesonide (NIDDK, public domain)Chapter updated Oct 30, 2020

Pregnancy and lactation

Pregnancy

8.1 Pregnancy Risk Summary Limited published studies report on the use of budesonide in pregnant women; however, the data are insufficient to inform a drug-associated risk for major birth defects and miscarriage. There are clinical considerations (see Clinical Considerations ). In animal reproduction studies with pregnant rats and rabbits, subcutaneous administration of budesonide during organogenesis at doses 0.5 times and 0.05 times, respectively, the maximum recommended human dose, resulted in increased fetal loss, decreased pup weights, and skeletal abnormalities. Maternal toxicity was observed in both rats and rabbits at these dose levels ( see Data ).

Based on animal data, advise pregnant women of the potential risk to a fetus. The estimated background risk of major birth defects and miscarriage of the indicated population is unknown. All pregnancies have a background risk of birth defect, loss, or other adverse outcomes. In the U.S. general population, the estimated background risk of major birth defects and miscarriage in clinically recognized pregnancies is 2% to 4%, and 15% to 20%, respectively. Clinical Considerations Disease-Associated Maternal and/or Embryofetal Risk Published data suggest that increased disease activity is associated with the risk of developing adverse pregnancy outcomes in women with ulcerative colitis.

Adverse pregnancy outcomes include preterm delivery (before 37 weeks of gestation), low birth weight (less than 2500 g) infants, and small for gestational age at birth. Fetal/Neonatal Adverse Reactions Hypoadrenalism may occur in infants born of mothers receiving corticosteroids during pregnancy. Infants should be carefully observed for signs of hypoadrenalism, such as poor feeding, irritability, weakness, and vomiting, and managed accordingly [see Warnings and Precautions (5.1) ] . Data Animal Data Budesonide was teratogenic and embryolethal in rabbits and rats.

In an embryofetal development study in pregnant rats dosed subcutaneously with budesonide during the period of organogenesis from gestation days 6-15 there were effects on fetal development and survival at subcutaneous doses up to approximately 500 mcg/kg in rats (approximately 0.5 times the maximum recommended human dose on a body surface area basis). In an embryofetal development study in pregnant rabbits dosed during the period of organogenesis from gestation days 6-18, there was an increase in maternal abortion, and effects on fetal development and reduction in litter weights at subcutaneous doses up to approximately 25 mcg/kg in rabbits (approximately 0.05…

Breastfeeding (LactMed)

The amounts of inhaled budesonide excreted into breastmilk are minute and infant exposure is negligible. When taken by mouth, budesonide is only about 9% bioavailable; bioavailability in the infant is likely to be similarly low for any budesonide that enters the breastmilk. Expert opinion considers inhaled, nasal, oral and rectal corticosteroids acceptable to use during breastfeeding.-

Alternatives LactMed suggests considering:
Source: LactMed: Budesonide (NICHD, public domain)Revised Jan 15, 2026

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