Current fluconazole dosing regimens in critically ill adults result in
under-exposure during early therapy
Abstract
Aim: To evaluate current fluconazole dosing regimens against established
pharmacodynamic targets in critically ill adults. Methods: Data from
critically ill adults treated with fluconazole (n=30) were used to
develop a population pharmacokinetic model. Probability of target
attainment (PTA) (fAUC24/MIC >100) was determined from
simulations for four previously proposed dosing regimens; (i) 400 mg
once daily (ii) a 800 mg loading dose followed by 400 mg once daily,
(iii) 400 mg twice daily and (iv) a 12 mg/kg loading dose followed by 6
mg/kg once daily. The effect of body weight (40, 70, 120 kg) and renal
function (continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT), 20, 60, 120, 180
mL/min glomerular filtration rates) on PTA was assessed. Results: Early
(0-48 h) fluconazole target attainment for patients with Minimum
Inhibitory Concentrations (MIC) of 2 mg/L was highly variable. PTA was
highest with an 800 mg loading dose for underweight (40 kg) patients and
with a 12 mg/kg loading dose for the remainder. End-of-treatment PTA was
highest with 400 mg twice daily maintenance dosing for patients who were
under- or normal- weight and 6 mg/kg maintenance dosing for overweight
(120 kg) patients. None of the fluconazole regimens reliably attained
early targets for MICs of ≥4 mg/L. Conclusion: Current fluconazole
dosing regimens do not achieve adequate early target attainment in
critically ill adults, particularly in those who are overweight, have
higher renal function or are undergoing CRRT. Current fluconazole dosing
strategies are generally inadequate to treat organisms with an MIC of ≥4
mg/L.