Frequently Asked Questions by Patients about Adcirca®
For answers to common questions about Adcirca, click the links below:
What is the most important information I should know about Adcirca?
What is Adcirca?
Who should not take Adcirca?
What should I tell my healthcare provider before taking Adcirca?
Does Adcirca react with other medicines?
How should I take Adcirca?
Can I drink alcohol while taking Adcirca?
What are the possible side effects of Adcirca?
How should I store Adcirca?
What are the ingredients in Adcirca?
What are the benefits of using Adcirca to treat PAH?
What stage(s) of PAH does Adcirca treat?
Can Adcirca be taken with other PAH medications?
How do I get Adcirca?
Are there any patient support programs for Adcirca?
Where can I get reimbursement help?
Never take Adcirca with any nitrate medicines:
- Your blood pressure could drop quickly to an unsafe level
- You could get dizzy, faint, and even have a heart attack or stroke
Nitrates include:
- Medicines that treat chest pain (angina)
- Nitroglycerin in any form, including tablets, patches, sprays, and ointments
- Other nitrate medicines (isosorbide mononitrate or dinitrate)
- Recreational drugs that are inhaled, called “poppers” (amyl nitrate, butyl nitrate, or nitrite)
Ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist if you are not sure if you take a nitrate medicine.
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Adcirca (pronounced Ad-sur-kuh) is a medicine that widens blood vessels in the lungs of people with PAH.
Adcirca is taken only once daily and requires no periodic laboratory testing.
Adcirca is the first once-daily phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE-5) inhibitor for the treatment of PAH, and is indicated to
improve exercise ability in World Health Organization pulmonary arterial hypertension (WHO Group 1) patients.
Adcirca treats PAH by widening blood vessels in the lungs. As a result, blood vessels can better carry oxygen-rich blood to
the rest of the body.
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Your healthcare provider will determine if Adcirca is right for you. You should not take Adcirca if you:
- Take any medicines called nitrates.
- Are allergic to tadalafil or any other ingredient in Adcirca
- Click here to see what ingredients are in Adcirca
- Click here to learn the most important information you should know about Adcirca
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You should tell your healthcare provider about all of your medical conditions, including if you:
- Are allergic to tadalafil, the active ingredient in Adcirca, or any other ingredients
- Are currently taking any type of nitrate, such as nitroglycerin
- Have pulmonary veno-occlusive disease (PVOD)
- Have heart problems such as angina (chest pain), heart failure, irregular heartbeats or have had a heart attack
- Are currently taking any other medications for PAH
- Are currently taking an alpha blocker
- Have low blood pressure or high blood pressure that is not controlled
- Have had a stroke
- Have liver problems
- Have kidney problems or get dialysis
- Have stomach ulcers
- Have retinitis pigmentosa or optic nerve problems
- Have ever had any sudden vision loss
- Have ever had hearing problems
- Have a deformed penis shape or Peyronie's disease
- Have had an erection that lasted more than 4 hours
- Have blood cell problems such as sickle cell anemia, multiple myeloma, or leukemia
- Are pregnant or planning to become pregnant
- Are breastfeeding or planning to breastfeed
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You should tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines (prescription and
nonprescription), vitamins, and herbal supplements you take. Adcirca and other medicines may affect each other.
Be sure to tell your healthcare provider if you take:
- Nitrates
- Antihypertensives
- Alpha blockers
- Protease inhibitors
- Ketoconazole
- Erythromycin
- Rifampin
- Bosentan
- Phenobarbital
- Phenytoin
- Carbamazepine
- Cialis (tadalafil) and other PDE-5 inhibitors
- Other medications to treat PAH
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The recommended dose for most patients consists of two 20-mg tablets that you swallow at the same time every day, one after the other. Do not bite, chew or cut Adcirca tablets. Adcirca can be taken with or without food. Patients should avoid drinking more than four alcoholic drinks in a short period of time while taking Adcirca. Drinking too much alcohol can lower your blood pressure causing you to feel dizzy or faint.
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Do not have more than 4 alcoholic drinks in a short period of time while you take Adcirca. Drinking too much alcohol can lower your blood pressure. You could get dizzy or faint.
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The most common side effects of Adcirca include:
- Headache (42%)
- Muscle pain (14%)
- Getting red or hot in the face (flushing) (13%)
- Nausea (11%)
- Pain in the arms, legs, or back (11%)
- Upset stomach (10%)
- Stuffy or congested nose (9%)
Seek immediate medical help if any of the following rare side effects happen to you:
- Decreased eyesight or loss of vision in one or both eyes
- Sudden decrease or loss of hearing, sometimes with ringing in the ears and dizziness
- An erection that lasts more than 4 hours.
You should tell your healthcare provider if you experience any of these or other side effects with Adcirca.
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Store Adcirca at room temperature between 59°F and 86°F (15°C and 30°C).
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Adcirca contains tadalafil, the same main ingredient in Cialis®:
- Active ingredient: tadalafil
- Inactive ingredients: croscarmellose sodium, hydroxypropyl cellulose, hypromellose, iron oxide, lactose monohydrate, magnesium stearate, microcrystalline cellulose, sodium lauryl sulfate, talc, titanium dioxide, and triacetin
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In a large, Phase III clinical trial, by 16 weeks, patients taking Adcirca once daily achieved
a mean (average) 33-meter improvement in 6 minute walk distance compared to those on placebo. In addition,
some patients taking Adcirca experienced less clinical worsening compared to the placebo group.
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Adcirca can be used in all functional classes of PAH.
However, this is something that you should discuss with your doctor to fully evaluate your treatment options and potential
risk of interactions with any medications you are taking.
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Adcirca has been studied in patients already taking a background of bosentan. However, this is
something that you should discuss with your doctor to fully evaluate your treatment options and potential risk
of interactions with any medications you are taking.
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Adcirca is available by prescription only. Once you have a prescription from your physician, Adcirca is available at retail and specialty pharmacies nationwide.
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United Therapeutics Corporation has recently launched a new support program called Living PAH for patients taking Adcirca. Living PAH provides access to peers who can offer emotional support as well as healthcare professionals who can answer non-medical questions and provide reimbursement assistance. For more information or to join, visit www.livingpah.com.
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If you need help with reimbursement for your Adcirca prescription, please call the Adcirca Patient Reimbursement Hotline at 1-877-948-9136. The hotline is staffed by medical insurance experts Monday through Friday, from 9 AM to 6 PM EST. They can answer coding and billing questions, verify insurance benefits, identify and assist with the submission of prior authorization documentation, determine program eligibility, and provide guidance regarding claims, denials, and appeals.
If you do not have insurance, the Adcirca Patient Reimbursement Hotline staff can investigate alternative sources of pharmaceutical insurance coverage or co-pay assistance for which you may be eligible. If you lack insurance coverage or alternative sources of pharmaceutical coverage, the hotline staff can refer you to the United Therapeutics Patient Assistance Program.
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