Namenda Dosage: An Introduction
The dose of
Namenda® (
memantine hydrochloride) that your healthcare provider recommends will vary, depending on a number of factors, including:
- How well your kidneys are functioning
- How you respond to Namenda
- Other medications you may take
- Other medical conditions you may have.
As is always the case, do not adjust your dose unless your healthcare provider specifically instructs you to do so.
Namenda Dosage for Alzheimer's Disease
The full recommended Namenda dosage for
Alzheimer's treatment is 10 mg twice daily. However, the drug should be started at a lower dose and increased slowly up to the full dose.
The starting Namenda dose is 5 mg once daily. After at least a week, your healthcare provider can increase the dose to 5 mg twice daily. After another week, your healthcare provider can again increase the dose, to 15 mg of Namenda total per day (split into two doses per day, 5 mg and 10 mg). Finally, after one more week, your healthcare provider can increase you to the full recommended dose of 10 mg twice daily.
Your healthcare provider may prescribe a Namenda "titration pack," a special pack that contains enough of both strengths of Namenda (5-mg and 10-mg tablets) in a clearly labeled package to help you start the drug easily and conveniently. This pack is used only for the first month, when your dose is being increased.
For people with severe kidney problems, the full recommended Namenda dose is lower -- 5 mg twice a day.
