Drug Interactions between fluconazole and ropivacaine / sufentanil

MONITOR: Coadministration with fluconazole may increase the plasma concentrations of drugs that are substrates of CYP450 3A4. The mechanism is decreased clearance due to inhibition of CYP450 3A4-mediated metabolism by fluconazole, a moderate inhibitor of the isoenzyme. A 30% increase in serum carbamazepine has been observed during coadministration with fluconazole according to the product labeling. There have also been a few isolated case reports in the medical literature describing an approximate doubling of carbamazepine levels following the addition of fluconazole, resulting in toxicity. Other drugs metabolized by CYP450 3A4 whose plasma levels reportedly are increased by fluconazole include oral contraceptives (ethinyl estradiol and levonorgestrel), cyclosporine, tacrolimus, and cisapride. These interactions have usually been observed with higher dosages of fluconazole (200 mg/day or more).

MANAGEMENT: Caution is advised when fluconazole is used with medications that undergo metabolism by CYP450 3A4, particularly those with a narrow therapeutic range. Dosage adjustments as well as clinical and laboratory monitoring may be appropriate for some drugs whenever fluconazole is added to or withdrawn from therapy.

Coadministration with inhibitors of CYP450 3A4 may modestly increase the plasma concentrations of ropivacaine. Although ropivacaine is primarily metabolized by CYP450 1A2, it has been shown to undergo some metabolism via CYP450 3A4. In eight healthy volunteers, pretreatment with the 3A4 inhibitor erythromycin (500 mg three times a day for 6 days) was found to have only minor effects on the pharmacokinetics of a single dose of ropivacaine (0.6 mg/kg IV over 30 minutes) compared to placebo. However, in combination with the potent 1A2 inhibitor fluvoxamine (100 mg daily), erythromycin further increased the area under the plasma concentration-time curve (AUC) of ropivacaine by 50% compared to fluvoxamine alone, which increased the ropivacaine AUC by 3.7-fold. Fluvoxamine alone prolonged the elimination half-life of ropivacaine from 2.3 to 7.4 hours, while the addition of erythromycin further increased the half-life to 11.9 hours. In another study, pretreatment with the potent 3A4 inhibitor ketoconazole (100 mg twice daily for 2 days) decreased the mean total plasma clearance of ropivacaine (40 mg IV over 20 minutes) by just 15% in 12 healthy volunteers. Thus, it appears that CYP450 3A4 inhibitors may only have a significant effect on the pharmacokinetics of ropivacaine in the presence of a CYP450 1A2 inhibitor such as fluvoxamine, ciprofloxacin, or mexiletine.