Formulary
Arginine: Indications, Dosing, Side Effects and Interactions
Arginine clinical drug profile including indications, dosing, side effects, cautions and interactions.
MedNext Academy | 3 min read
Arginine: Indications, Dosing, Side Effects and Interactions
Arginine clinical drug profile including indications, dosing, side effects, cautions and interactions.
Indications and dose
**Acute hyperammonaemia in carbamylphosphate synthetase deficiency (specialist use only), Acute hyperammonaemia in ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency (specialist use only) for arginine**
- **Neonate** (By intravenous infusion): 6 mg/kg/hour.
- **Child (body-weight up to 40 kg)** (By intravenous infusion): 6 mg/kg/hour.
- **Child (body-weight 40 kg and above)** (By intravenous infusion): 4 mg/kg/hour.
**Maintenance treatment of hyperammonaemia in carbamylphosphate synthetase deficiency (specialist use only), Maintenance treatment of hyperammonaemia in ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency (specialist use only) for arginine**
- **Neonate** (By mouth): 100-200 mg/kg daily in 3-4 divided doses, dose to be taken with feeds.
- **Child (body-weight up to 20 kg)** (By mouth): 100-200 mg/kg daily in 3-4 divided doses, dose to be given with feeds or meals.
- **Child (body-weight 20 kg and above)** (By mouth): 2.5-6 g/m2 daily in 3-4 divided doses, dose to be taken with meals; maximum 6 g per day.
**Acute hyperammonaemia in citrullinaemia (specialist use only), Acute hyperammonaemia in arginosuccinic aciduria (specialist use only) for arginine**
- **Neonate** (By intravenous infusion): Initially 300 mg/kg, to be administered over 90 minutes, followed by 12.5 mg/kg/hour, to be administered over 24 hours (maximum 25 mg/kg/hour thereafter).
- **Child (body-weight up to 40 kg)** (By intravenous infusion): Initially 300 mg/kg, to be administered over 90 minutes, followed by 12.5 mg/kg/hour, to be administered over 24 hours (maximum 25 mg/kg/hour thereafter).
- **Child (body-weight 40 kg and above)** (By intravenous infusion): 21 mg/kg/hour.
**Maintenance treatment of hyperammonaemia in citrullinaemia (specialist use only), Maintenance treatment of hyperammonaemia in arginosuccinic aciduria (specialist use only) for arginine**
- **Neonate** (By mouth): 100-300 mg/kg daily in 3-4 divided doses, dose to be taken with feeds.
- **Child (body-weight up to 20 kg)** (By mouth): 100-300 mg/kg daily in 3-4 divided doses, dose to be taken with feed or meals.
- **Child (body-weight 20 kg and above)** (By mouth): 2.5-6 g/m2 daily in 3-4 divided doses, doses to be taken with meals; maximum 6 g per day.
Interactions
**Other interactions (2):**
- Drugs inducing hyperkalaemia Although serum potassium usually remains within normal limits, hyperkalaemia may occur in some patients treated with Coversyl Arginine.
- Therefore, the combination of Coversyl Arginine with the above-mentioned drugs is not recommended.
Clinical governance
**Author:** MedNext Clinical Team. **Clinical reviewer:** Dr Shameer Deen, MBBS, MS, MRCS. **Sources:** BNF, Indian Pharmacopoeia, CIMS India. **Correction:** Report errors at support@mednext.academy.
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