Can You Cut Or Split Fluconazole In Half?
In our latest question and answer, the pharmacist discusses whether or not fluconazole can safely be cut or split in half.
I pay out of pocket for my medication my insurance won't cover certain medications. Can I split a 200mg fluconazole pill so I can take half in the morning and a half at night?
Oct 14, 2022- Fluconazole tablets can be safely cut in half without losing effectiveness, but you should follow your doctor's specific directions for how to take it.
- Use a pill cutter rather than a knife to split the tablet evenly, since many fluconazole tablets have a trapezoid shape that makes cutting difficult.
- Use both halves of a split tablet as soon as possible and store any unused half in a moisture-resistant container, since the protective coating is removed when the tablet is cut.
Answer
Yes, fluconazole can be safely cut or split in half without any reduced effectiveness of the medication. However, you should not change the directions your doctor has given you for your prescription. Splitting the 200 mg fluconazole tablet, to take 100 mg in the morning and evening, is perfectly acceptable if that is how your doctor has prescribed it.
As mentioned, cutting/splitting fluconazole (and other strengths) will not negatively affect the medication. Cutting medication is often necessary for patients who have difficulty swallowing large tablets or need to take 'half' doses.
Some Fluconazole Tablets Have An Odd Shape
Cutting fluconazole can sometimes be difficult however based on the tablet shape. Most manufacturers make the tablet in a trapezoid-type shape (example below).
This type of shape can make it difficult to perfectly split the medication into two equal halves. Due to this, careful use of a pill cutter is recommended versus using a knife. Be sure to situate the tablet appropriately in the pill cutter so it will cut the tablet into two equal halves.
Lastly, it is important that you take both halves of the medication as soon as possible and not store cut tablets for extended periods of time. Although fluconazole can be cut as mentioned above, split tablets no longer have the protective outer coating that most intact tablets have. This could make them more susceptible to moisture. Be sure to use split tablets as soon as you can and store the unused half in a moisture-resistant container.
Fluconazole tablets, regardless of their shape, can be cut/split from all manufacturers including:
- Aurobindo
- Barr
- Dr. Reddy
- Citron
- Glenmark
- Greenstone
- Mylan
- Northstar
- Sandoz
- Teva
- Ranbaxy
If you are having difficulty cutting the medication, fluconazole is also available in liquid formulations but those may not be as cost-effective.
Final Words
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References & sources
Glossary — Terms in This Answer
- Fluconazole
- An antifungal medication used to treat fungal infections.
- Tablet
- A solid form of medication that is compressed into a small pill shape for swallowing.
- Mg
- Milligrams, a unit of measurement for the amount of medication in a dose.
- Pill cutter
- A small tool designed to safely split tablets in half into equal portions.
- Protective outer coating
- A layer on the outside of a tablet that shields the medication inside from air and moisture.
- Moisture-resistant container
- A storage container designed to keep moisture and humidity away from medications.
- Liquid formulations
- Medications that are dissolved in a liquid rather than pressed into a solid tablet form.
- Cost-effective
- Providing good value for money or being less expensive than other options.
Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD
Doctor of Pharmacy, board certified clinical pharmacist (BCPS), American Herbalist Guild, Medication Therapy Management certified
Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS, is a licensed pharmacist with more than 13 years of experience across retail pharmacy, clinical pharmacy, medication safety, pharmacy program development, and healthcare administration. He is the founder of HelloPharmacist.com, where he helps patients...
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