Renavel Tablets 800mg Tablets

Sevelamer hydrochloride is used to control high levels of phosphate (phosphorus) in the blood in adults with chronic kidney disease who are on dialysis.

It is a phosphate binder: it attaches to phosphate from food in the gut so less of it is absorbed into the body. Your doctor may also ask you to follow a low-phosphate diet.

Take sevelamer exactly as your doctor or pharmacist tells you.

• Take it with your meals.
• Swallow the tablets whole. Do not break, chew or crush them.
• Sevelamer can affect how some other medicines are absorbed. Ask your pharmacist how far apart to take them, for example levothyroxine, ciprofloxacin, ciclosporin, tacrolimus or mycophenolate.
• If you miss a dose, skip it and take the next one with your next meal. Never take a double dose.
• Keep your blood test appointments so your doctor can check your phosphate level.

Common side effects include:

• feeling or being sick
• diarrhoea or constipation
• stomach pain, wind or indigestion

Get medical help straight away if you have:

• black, tarry stools or red blood in your stools
• severe stomach pain or constipation that does not go away

Do not take it if you have a blockage in your stomach or bowel.

Check with your doctor or pharmacist before taking it if you:

• have difficulty swallowing
• have constipation, a stomach ulcer or inflammatory bowel disease
• have had stomach or bowel surgery
• are pregnant, planning a baby or breastfeeding

Keep it in the original, tightly closed container at room temperature, away from heat and moisture (not in the bathroom), and out of the reach of children. Do not flush unused medicine; ask your pharmacist how to dispose of it.

Sevelamer may lower the levels of some vitamins and folic acid in your body. Your doctor may advise a supplement.

Tell your doctor if you get new or worse constipation.