Sucralfate is best taken with water on an empty stomach 1 hour before meals and at bedtime, unless otherwise directed by your doctor.

Take this medicine for the full time of treatment, even if you begin to feel better. Also, it is important that you keep your doctor's appointments for check-ups so that your doctor will be better able to tell you when to stop taking this medicine.

Dosing

The dose of sucralfate will be different for different patients. Follow your doctor's orders or the directions on the label. The following information includes only the average doses of sucralfate. If your dose is different, do not change it unless your doctor tells you to do so.

The number of tablets or teaspoonfuls of suspension that you take depends on the strength of the medicine. Also, the number of doses you take each day, the time allowed between doses, and the length of time you take the medicine depend on the medical problem for which you are taking sucralfate.

• For oral dosage form (suspension):
  • To treat duodenal ulcers:
    • Adults and teenagers One gram four times a day, one hour before each meal and at bedtime. Some people may take two grams two times a day, when they wake up and at bedtime on an empty stomach.
    • Children Dose must be determined by your doctor.
• For oral dosage form (tablets):
  • To treat duodenal ulcers:
    • Adults and teenagers One gram four times a day, one hour before each meal and at bedtime.
    • Children Dose must be determined by your doctor.
  • To prevent duodenal ulcers:
    • Adults and teenagers One gram two times a day on an empty stomach.
    • Children Dose must be determined by your doctor.

Missed dose

If you miss a dose of this medicine, take it as soon as possible. However, if it is almost time for your next dose, skip the missed dose and go back to your regular dosing schedule. Do not double doses.

Storage

To store this medicine:

• Keep out of the reach of children.
• Store away from heat and direct light.
• Do not store in the bathroom, near the kitchen sink, or in other damp places. Heat or moisture may cause the medicine to break down.
• Keep the liquid form of this medicine from freezing. Do not refrigerate.
• Do not keep outdated medicine or medicine no longer needed. Be sure that any discarded medicine is out of the reach of children.

In deciding to use a medicine, the risks of taking the medicine must be weighed against the good it will do. This is a decision you and your doctor will make. For sucralfate, the following should be considered:

Allergies Tell your doctor if you have ever had any unusual or allergic reaction to sucralfate. Also, tell your health care professional if you are allergic to any other substances, such as foods, preservatives, or dyes.

Pregnancy Studies have not been done in humans. However, sucralfate has not been shown to cause birth defects or other problems in animal studies.

Breast-feeding Sucralfate has not been shown to cause problems in nursing babies.

Children This medicine has been tested in a limited number of children. In effective doses, the medicine has not been shown to cause different side effects or problems than it does in adults.

Older adults Many medicines have not been studied specifically in older people. Therefore, it may not be known whether they work exactly the same way they do in younger adults. Although there is no specific information comparing the use of sucralfate in the elderly with use in other age groups, this medicine is not expected to cause different side effects or problems in older people than it does in younger adults.

Other medicines Although certain medicines should not be used together at all, in other cases two different medicines may be used together even if an interaction might occur. In these cases, your doctor may want to change the dose, or other precautions may be necessary. When you are taking sucralfate, it is especially important that your health care professional know if you are taking the following:

• Ciprofloxacin or
• Digoxin or
• Norfloxacin or
• Ofloxacin or
• Phenytoin or
• Theophylline Sucralfate may prevent these medicines from working properly

• Gastrointestinal tract obstruction disease Sucralfate may bind with other foods and drugs and cause obstruction of the gastrointestinal tract

• Kidney failure Use may lead to a toxic increase of aluminum blood levels