RiteMED Atorvastatin Dosage/Direction for Use

General: Before instituting therapy with atorvastatin, an attempt should be made to control hypercholesterolemia with appropriate diet, exercise and weight reduction in obese patients, and to treat underlying medical problems. The patient should continue on a standard cholesterol-lowering diet during treatment with atorvastatin. The dosage range is 10 to 80 mg once daily. Doses may be given any time of the day, with or without food. Starting and maintenance dosage should be individualized according to baseline LDL-C levels, the goal of therapy, and patient response. After initiation and/or upon titration of atorvastatin, lipid levels should be analyzed within 2 to 4 weeks, and dosage adjusted accordingly.
Primary Hypercholesterolemia and Combined (Mixed) Hyperlipidemia: The majority of patients are controlled with 10 mg atorvastatin once a day. A therapeutic response is evident within two weeks, and the maximum response is usually achieved within four weeks. The response is maintained during chronic therapy.
Homozygous Familial Hypercholesterolemia: In a compassionate-use study of patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia, most patients responded to 80 mg of atorvastatin with a greater than 15% reduction in LDL-C (18%-45%).
Use in Patients with Renal Insufficiency: Renal disease has no influence on the plasma concentrations or on the LDL-C reduction with atorvastatin. Thus, no adjustment of the dose is required.
Use in the Elderly: No differences in safety, efficacy or lipid treatment goal attainment were observed between elderly patients and the overall population.
Use in Children: Treatment experience in a pediatric population is limited to doses of atorvastatin up to 80 mg/day for one year in 8 patients with homozygous FH. No clinical or biochemical abnormalities were reported in these patients.