Liothyronine Sodium

Liothyronine Sodium

Liothyronine Sodium Recall

Get an alert when a recall is issued.

Questions & Answers

Side Effects & Adverse Reactions

Drugs with thyroid hormone activity, alone or together with other therapeutic agents, have been used for the treatment of obesity. In euthyroid patients, doses within the range of daily hormonal requirements are ineffective for weight reduction. Larger doses may produce serious or even life-threatening manifestations of toxicity, particularly when given in association with sympathomimetic amines such as those used for their anorectic effects.

The use of thyroid hormones in the therapy of obesity, alone or combined with other drugs, is unjustified and has been shown to be ineffective. Neither is their use justified for the treatment of male or female infertility unless this condition is accompanied by hypothyroidism.

Thyroid hormones should be used with great caution in a number of circumstances where the integrity of the cardiovascular system, particularly the coronary arteries, is suspected. These include patients with angina pectoris or the elderly, in whom there is a greater likelihood of occult cardiac disease. In these patients, liothyronine sodium therapy should be initiated with low doses, with due consideration for its relatively rapid onset of action. Starting dosage of liothyronine sodium tablets is 5 mcg daily, and should be increased by no more than 5 mcg increments at 2-week intervals. When, in such patients, a euthyroid state can only be reached at the expense of an aggravation of the cardiovascular disease, thyroid hormone dosage should be reduced.

Morphologic hypogonadism and nephrosis should be ruled out before the drug is administered. If hypopituitarism is present, the adrenal deficiency must be corrected prior to starting the drug.

Myxedematous patients are very sensitive to thyroid; dosage should be started at a very low level and increased gradually.

Severe and prolonged hypothyroidism can lead to a decreased level of adrenocortical activity commensurate with the lowered metabolic state. When thyroid-replacement therapy is administered, the metabolism increases at a greater rate than adrenocortical activity. This can precipitate adrenocortical insufficiency. Therefore, in severe and prolonged hypothyroidism, supplemental adrenocortical steroids may be necessary. In rare instances the administration of thyroid hormone may precipitate a hyperthyroid state or may aggravate existing hyperthyroidism.

Legal Issues

There is currently no legal information available for this drug.

FDA Safety Alerts

There are currently no FDA safety alerts available for this drug.

Manufacturer Warnings

There is currently no manufacturer warning information available for this drug.

FDA Labeling Changes

There are currently no FDA labeling changes available for this drug.

Uses

Thyroid hormone drugs are indicated:

  1. As replacement or supplemental therapy in patients with hypothyroidism of any etiology, except transient hypothyroidism during the recovery phase of subacute thyroiditis. This category includes cretinism, myxedema and ordinary hypothyroidism in patients of any age (pediatric patients, adults, the elderly), or state (including pregnancy); primary hypothyroidism resulting from functional deficiency, primary atrophy, partial or total absence of thyroid gland, or the effects of surgery, radiation, or drugs, with or without the presence of goiter; and secondary (pituitary) or tertiary (hypothalamic) hypothyroidism (see WARNINGS).
  2. As pituitary thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) suppressants, in the treatment or prevention of various types of euthyroid goiters, including thyroid nodules, subacute or chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis (Hashimoto’s) and multinodular goiter.
  3. As diagnostic agents in suppression tests to differentiate suspected mild hyperthyroidism or thyroid gland autonomy.

Liothyronine sodium tablets can be used in patients allergic to desiccated thyroid or thyroid extract derived from pork or beef.

History

There is currently no drug history available for this drug.

Other Information

Thyroid hormone drugs are natural or synthetic preparations containing tetraiodothyronine (T4, levothyroxine) sodium or triiodothyronine (T3, liothyronine) sodium or both. T4 and T3 are produced in the human thyroid gland by the iodination and coupling of the amino acid tyrosine. T4 contains four iodine atoms and is formed by the coupling of two molecules of diiodotyrosine (DIT). T3 contains three atoms of iodine and is formed by the coupling of one molecule of DIT with one molecule of monoiodotyrosine (MIT). Both hormones are stored in the thyroid colloid as thyroglobulin.

Thyroid hormone preparations belong to two categories: (1) natural hormonal preparations derived from animal thyroid, and (2) synthetic preparations. Natural preparations include desiccated thyroid and thyroglobulin. Desiccated thyroid is derived from domesticated animals that are used for food by man (either beef or hog thyroid), and thyroglobulin is derived from thyroid glands of the hog. The United States Pharmacopeia (USP) has standardized the total iodine content of natural preparations. Thyroid USP contains not less than (NLT) 0.17 percent and not more than (NMT) 0.23 percent iodine, and thyroglobulin contains not less than (NLT) 0.7 percent of organically bound iodine. Iodine content is only an indirect indicator of true hormonal biologic activity.

Liothyronine sodium tablets contain liothyronine (L-triiodothyronine or LT3), a synthetic form of a natural thyroid hormone, and is available as the sodium salt.

The structural and empirical formulas and molecular weight of liothyronine sodium are given below.

Liothyronine Sodium

image description

L-Tyrosine, O-(4-hydroxy-3-iodophenyl)-3,5-diiodo-,monosodium salt

Twenty-five mcg liothyronine is equivalent to approximately 1 grain of desiccated thyroid or thyroglobulin and 0.1 mg of L-thyroxine.

Inactive ingredients consist of calcium sulfate dihydrate, corn starch, gelatin, magnesium stearate and mannitol.

Liothyronine Sodium Manufacturers


  • Lake Erie Medical Dba Quality Care Products Llc
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Lake Erie Medical Dba Quality Care Products Llc]
  • Northwind Pharmaceuticals
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Northwind Pharmaceuticals]
  • Northwind Pharmaceuticals, Llc
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Northwind Pharmaceuticals, Llc]
  • Golden State Medical Supply, Inc.
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Golden State Medical Supply, Inc.]
  • Kaiser Foundation Hospitals
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Kaiser Foundation Hospitals]
  • Kaiser Foundation Hospitals
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Kaiser Foundation Hospitals]
  • Stat Rx Usa
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Stat Rx Usa]
  • Pd-rx Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Pd-rx Pharmaceuticals, Inc.]
  • Pd-rx Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Pd-rx Pharmaceuticals, Inc.]
  • Sigmapharm Laboratories, Llc
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Sigmapharm Laboratories, Llc]
  • Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc.
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc.]
  • Aidarex Pharmaceuticals Llc
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Aidarex Pharmaceuticals Llc]
  • Paddock Laboratories, Inc.
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Paddock Laboratories, Inc.]
  • Carilion Materials Management
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Carilion Materials Management]
  • Carilion Materials Management
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Carilion Materials Management]
  • X-gen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
    Liothyronine Sodium Injection, Solution [X-gen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.]
  • Medsource Pharmaceuticals
    Liothyronine Sodium Tablet [Medsource Pharmaceuticals]

Login To Your Free Account