Neoral in liver transplantation.

In conclusion, Neoral gives more consistent drug absorption, achieving better pharmacokinetic predictability. Among other advantages, this results in a close correlation between trough blood levels and drug exposure (AUC) so that trough blood levels can be used as a more meaningful monitoring parameter when using the new formulation. Studies have also now confirmed that absorption of Neoral is bile independent, making it more useful in the early postoperative period and in the setting of cholestasis and rejection. Furthermore, studies have now demonstrated that in patients who have problems absorbing Sandimmune such as patients with cystic fibrosis, pancreatitis, or Crohn's disease, conversion to Neoral results in correction of malabsorption of CyA. Issues that need to be addressed in the future will include long-term toxicity associated with maintaining high Cmax and AUC; whether the introduction of Neoral can result in steroid sparing; and whether the introduction of Neoral will result in a reduced incidence of acute and chronic rejection.