furosemide instructionsWhen you hear about Lasix, you should understand that this medication belongs to diuretics, its active ingredient is furosemide, and it’s prescribed by doctors to treat swelling or excessive accumulation of fluid in the body. This medical condition can be caused by heart or kidney failure, cirrhosis and some other diseases. Sometimes Lasix is used with other drugs to treat hypertension and alone to treat high levels of calcium, potassium and magnesium. This medication comes in different forms and strengths, so make sure that you know the most suitable one for your medical needs. It’s advisable to discuss this subject with a doctor and decide whether you should take regular tablets that come in 20-80 mg, injections (10 mg) or oral solutions (8-10 mg).

Its Drug Class and Mechanism of Action

Lasix is a powerful water pill that is often taken by patients to eliminate excess salt and water from their bodies. In your kidneys, water, salt and other substances are filtered out in a natural way, and this fluid is the urine that is normally eliminated from your body. How does Lasix work? As a patient you need to understand that this medication works by blocking the absorption of chloride, sodium and water from this kind of filtered fluid in kidneys, thus, resulting in the increase of the output of your urine or diuresis. When using tablets they become active one hour after taking them orally, and their positive effect lasts up to eight hours. If you prefer the injection form of Lasix, its action starts 5 minutes after injecting it, and the length of your diuresis is about 2 hours. Take into account that the diuretic effect of this drug may lead to depletion of chloride, sodium and other minerals so that you need to take it under some medical supervision. Make sure that Lasix is stored at a room temperature away from light and moisture.

furosemide actionHow to Decide on the Right Dose

Remember that only qualified doctors can help you determine the right dosage because overdosing is not a good idea. For those patients who need to treat edema, their standard starting dose is 20-80 mg taken at once if they are adults. However, the same or a bit increased dose can be taken, but not earlier than eight hours later. It’s possible to take regular doses each 8 hours until you achieve the necessary effect, but your effective dosage should be taken not more than twice a day. In rare cases some patients may need to take up to 600 mg per day to get better.

For children, their starting oral dosage is based on their weight, and it shouldn’t be more than 2 mg per kilo. This dose can be increased according to their health condition and taken until the desirable effect is achieved, but it can be increased only twice. If you want to treat hypertension, take 40 mg of Lasix twice a day, but make sure that other meds are decreased.