Citicoline + Darunavir
Darunavir brand name: Prezista.
We found no known interaction between Citicoline and Darunavir in our sources. Absence of a documented interaction is not the same as proven safety, and does not guarantee one does not exist. Do not start, stop, or change a medication or supplement based on this page; confirm with your pharmacist or doctor first. Additionally, although there is no interaction, the label for Darunavir states a food rule worth keeping to, and the two are separately associated with some of the same side effects, which would make a new symptom harder to attribute to one or the other.
Citicoline and Darunavir
We checked these two against our interaction database. Here is what we found.
No Known Interaction Found
We did not find a documented interaction between Darunavir and Citicoline in our sources. This does not guarantee that the combination is completely free of risk — there is often limited research on supplements and herbal products, especially around drug interactions.
Worth understanding: our licensed dataset holds no drug-interaction record for Citicoline at all — not against Darunavir, and not against any other medication we track. This verdict therefore rests on the absence of any recorded data, not on research that looked at this combination and found nothing. We cannot rule an interaction out.
If you decide to take both, the practical routine is simple: add one new thing at a time and note the date you started it. If the combination is going to disagree with you, it usually shows in the first days to a couple of weeks — and a start date turns “I’ve been feeling off” into something a pharmacist can actually work with. Do not stop a prescribed medicine on your own.
Always talk with your pharmacist or doctor before making changes to your medications or supplements, particularly if you take several medications or have an ongoing health condition.
Citicoline safety at a glance
Safety guidance is general; always confirm with your pharmacist or doctor for your situation.
Some Darunavir Products Have a Food Rule — Citicoline Should Not Break It
At least one FDA label for a product containing Darunavir says to take it with food. If you take Citicoline on an empty stomach out of habit, keep them separate — and take Darunavir with a meal where the label says to.
This may not be true of your version. Food instructions belong to the product, not the ingredient: two Darunavir products can carry different directions, and extended-release forms often differ from immediate-release ones. The label we read is quoted below — check the directions on your own box or bottle, or ask your pharmacist, for how to take the exact product you were given.
( 2.1 , 2.2 , 5.2 ) Treatment-naïve adult patients and treatment-experienced adult patients with no darunavir resistance associated substitutions: 800 mg (one 800 mg tablet) taken with ritonavir 100 mg once daily and with food.
From the Dosage and Administration section of the FDA label we read for Darunavir — where that label names a specific product, the instruction is that product's. Read the label on DailyMed ›
A food rule is not an interaction — it is about how much of the medicine you absorb. The directions that came with your own product, and your pharmacist, outrank anything on this page.
Questions About Citicoline or Darunavir
These are real questions from readers, answered by the pharmacists at HelloPharmacist — written by a person, not generated from a database. Each one covers Citicoline or Darunavir, not necessarily both, but if one is close to what you were about to ask it will usually go further than a database entry can:
Not quite your question? Ask our pharmacists directly — it is free, there is no account required, and answers usually come back within 24 hours.
See Every Supplement That Interacts With Darunavir
This page covers Citicoline only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Darunavir page lists 145 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.
The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Grapefruit (major), St. John's Wort (major), Acacia Rigidula (moderate) and Adrafinil (moderate).
By severity: 3 major · 102 moderate · 40 minor.
From our pharmacist’s overview on the Darunavir page
“Someone on darunavir (Prezista) for HIV depends on steady drug levels to keep the virus suppressed, and this list of 145 interacting supplements calls for real caution before adding any of them. Most of the traffic runs through the CYP3A4 enzyme, in both directions.”
Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026
Taking Citicoline as Part of a Dietary Supplement Product? Check It for Interactions
We hold 464 real supplement products containing Citicoline, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Citicoline. Even though Citicoline itself has no known interaction with Darunavir, another ingredient on your label might. Find your product and we’ll check every ingredient on its label:
Where Citicoline and Darunavir Sit Against Everything Else
Out of every supplement and medication people look up on HelloPharmacist, here is where these two land this week — and which way each has been moving.
#292 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days
#2,512 of 2,830 medications looked up here in the last 7 days
Position among everything looked up on this site, not a measure of how commonly either one is used or how important it is. A supplement can climb this list because of a news story. It counts every request to the page, automated ones included, and nothing here identifies anyone.
Where does our data come from?
- Source: the Natural Medicines (TRC Healthcare) clinical database — the evidence-graded professional reference for herb & supplement interactions.
- Citation library: 103,510 references behind our interaction content, 65,311 of them resolved to verified PubMed/DOI sources. See every Citicoline reference on this page ↓
- Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 20, 2026. The Citicoline and Darunavir records this page draws on were last updated July 10, 2026.
- What “no known interaction” means: no documented interaction in the sources above — not a guarantee of safety. Supplements are studied far less than prescription drugs, so we say exactly what the evidence supports, and nothing more.
About Citicoline
What is Citicoline?
- Memory and thinking
- Brain health and aging
- Stroke recovery support
- Focus and attention
- Eye health (glaucoma)
Citicoline is a naturally occurring compound involved in making brain cell membranes and the messenger chemical acetylcholine. It is popularly taken for memory, focus, and brain aging, and some research is promising, but high-quality evidence is still limited for most uses. It is generally well tolerated, but you should talk with your pharmacist or doctor before starting it.
Not applicable (a compound the body makes naturally) · Capsules, tablets, powder, sometimes liquid
An interaction check asks whether these two react with each other — it does not ask whether Citicoline is a good idea for someone in your situation. Here is what our Citicoline record says about it on its own.
Citicoline: dosing
There is no official standard dose of citicoline for supplement use. Doses used in research have varied widely depending on the condition being studied.The safest approach is to follow the directions on the product label and not exceed the recommended amount.
From our Citicoline monograph — the full record covers uses, side effects and every documented interaction.
About Darunavir
What Is Darunavir Used For?
Brand name: Prezista
Darunavir treats HIV-1 infection in adults and in children who are at least 3 years old and weigh at least 10 kg (about 22 lbs). It is not a cure for HIV, but it is used as part of a combination antiretroviral regimen to control the virus.
Darunavir must always be taken together with ritonavir — that pairing is required for darunavir to work properly. Both Prezista (brand name) and generic darunavir tablets are approved for this use. Prezista is also available as an oral suspension, which is particularly useful for younger or smaller patients.
Most-Reported Side Effects for Darunavir
From FAERS, the FDA’s public side-effect reporting system (19,043 reports, all brands). Reports are voluntary and are not proof the drug caused the effect.
Other Drugs & Citicoline
Browse every other medication we’ve checked against Citicoline — both the ones with a known interaction and the ones without. Select any drug for the full detail.
No drugs match “”.
No interaction 2,829 drugs checked — show the list
We also checked Citicoline against these medications and found no known interaction in our sources. Open any page to confirm.
- Apixaban ›
- Levothyroxine ›
- Amlodipine ›
- Methylphenidate ›
- Warfarin ›
- Sertraline ›
- Testosterone ›
- Losartan Potassium ›
- Ivermectin ›
- Abemaciclib ›
- Aspirin ›
- Acetaminophen ›
- Metoprolol ›
- Rosuvastatin ›
- Rivaroxaban ›
- Escitalopram ›
- Clopidogrel ›
- Atorvastatin ›
- Tadalafil ›
- Docusate ›
- Tirzepatide ›
- Ibuprofen ›
- Methamphetamine ›
- Hydroxyurea ›
- Warfarin Sodium ›
- Valacyclovir ›
- Sumatriptan ›
- Semaglutide ›
- Prednisone ›
- Lisdexamfetamine ›
- Propranolol ›
- Metformin ›
- Amitriptyline ›
- Amoxicillin ›
- Lisinopril ›
- Isotretinoin ›
- Amlodipine Besylate ›
- Methotrexate ›
- Bendamustine ›
- Bupropion ›
- Amphetamine ›
- Doxycycline ›
- Fluoxetine ›
- Acyclovir ›
- Azithromycin ›
- Lamotrigine ›
- Pregabalin ›
- Dextroamphetamine ›
- Gabapentin ›
- Acetaminophen, Codeine ›
- Clonazepam ›
- Quetiapine ›
- Levothyroxine, Liothyronine ›
- Naproxen ›
- Omeprazole ›
- Letrozole ›
- Methylene Blue ›
- Duloxetine ›
- Buspirone ›
- Citalopram ›
Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,829 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Citicoline list.
Citicoline References
The 11 references that drive our Citicoline monograph and interaction data, from the evidence-graded Natural Medicines (TRC Healthcare) database. Citations with a link open the study on PubMed or the publisher’s site.
- Spiers PA, Myers D, Hochanadel GS, et al. Citicoline improves verbal memory in aging. Arch Neurol 1996;53:441-8. PubMed
- Fioravanti M, Yanagi M. Cytidinediphosphocholine (CDP-choline) for cognitive and behavioural disturbances associated with chronic cerebral disorders in the elderly. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2005;(2):CD000269. PubMed
- Conant R, Schauss AG. Therapeutic applications of citicoline for stroke and cognitive function in the elderly: A review of the literature. Altern Med Rev 2004;9:17-31.
- Warach, S., Pettigrew, L. C., Dashe, J. F., Pullicino, P., Lefkowitz, D. M., Sabounjian, L., Harnett, K., Schwiderski, U., and Gammans, R. Effect of citicoline on ischemic lesions as measured by diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging. Citicoline 0 DOI
- Lukas, S. E., Kouri, E. M., Rhee, C., Madrid, A., and Renshaw, P. F. Effects of short-term citicoline treatment on acute cocaine intoxication and cardiovascular effects. Psychopharmacology.(Berl.) 2001;157(2):163-167. PubMed
- Dinsdale, J. R., Griffiths, G. K., Castello, J., Maddock, J., Ortiz, J. A., and Aylward, M. CDP-choline: repeated oral dose tolerance studies in adult healthy volunteers. Arzneimittelforschung. 1983;33(7A):1061-1065.
- Clark BC, Georgekutty J, Berul CI. Myocardial ischemia secondary to synthetic cannabinoid (K2) use in pediatric patients. J Pediatr 2015;167(3):757-61.e1. PubMed
- Ghajar A, Gholamian F, Tabatabei-Motlagh M, et al. Citicoline (CDP-choline) add-on therapy to risperidone for treatment of negative symptoms in patients with stable schizophrenia: a double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled trial. Hum Psychopharmacol. 2
- Castagna A, Manzo C, Fabbo A, Lacava R, Ruberto C, Ruotolo G. The CITIMERIVA Study: CITIcoline plus MEmantina plus RIVAstigmine in Older Patients Affected with Alzheimer's Disease. Clin Drug Investig. 2021 Feb;41(2):177-182. PubMed
- Jeong H, Yoon S, Sung YH, et al. Effects of cytidine-5'-diphosphate choline on gray matter volumes in methamphetamine-dependent patients: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. J Psychiatr Res 2021;143:215-221. PubMed
- Nakazaki E, Mah E, Sanoshy K, Citrolo D, Watanabe F. Citicoline and Memory Function in Healthy Older Adults: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial. J Nutr 2021;151(8):2153-2160. PubMed
Medication overviews come from MedlinePlus (NIH); supplement label data from the NIH Dietary Supplement Label Database. Content is written and reviewed by licensed HelloPharmacist pharmacists — see our data sources and editorial standards.
Taking Citicoline and Darunavir Together: Common Questions
Is it safe to take Citicoline with Darunavir?
Do Citicoline and Darunavir have any of the same side effects?
Should I take Citicoline and Darunavir at the same time of day?
Does Darunavir interact with any supplements?
Written and reviewed by the HelloPharmacist editorial staff. Our editorial policy
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Still Have a Question About Darunavir and Citicoline?
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This information is for education only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always check with your pharmacist or doctor before starting, stopping, or combining supplements and medications.