There is currently insufficient information on the pharmacokinetics of complementary medicines to enable a judgement on whether they are likely to interact with conventional medicines and whether dosage reduction is necessary in renal impairment. Due to a lack of regulation, adverse effects such as nephrotoxicity may be attributable to impurities rather than the active principle.
Below is an extremely limited list of information on complementary medicines - for specific queries the Welsh Drug Information Centre specialist file and Micromedex may be consulted via pharmacy.
| Complementary Medicine | Issue |
| St John’s Wort | CyA levels reported due to CYP450 3A4 induction. May therefore tacrolimus levels |
| Garlic Papaya Danshen Dong quai Ginger |
↑ INR therefore avoid peri-operatively |
| Xaiochai hutang | ↑ Prednisolone levels |
| Chinese herb (Aristolochia) Juniper Pennyroyal |
Renal damage |
| Ginko | Cyclo-oxygenase inhibitor and PAF antagonist |
| Echinaecea | ‘Immunostimulant’ - stimulates TNF secretion in vitro |
Up to top
| Vaccinations << | >> Anaesthetic Protocol |
