What is the MOA and half-life for Rinvoq?

Rinvoq is an oral medicine that works by blocking intracellular Janus kinase (JAK) enzymes to help reduce inflammation and pain in conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis. The half-life ranges from 8 to 14 hours and is the time it takes for half (50%) of the drug to be eliminated.

Most drugs are cleared from the body within 5 to 6 half-lives, which means it will take about 40 to 84 hours for a dose of Rinvoq to be out of your system.

But other patient-specific factors can affect the elimination time of a drug and include your age, weight, general health, if you have kidney or liver disease, if you smoke and other medicines you take.

Learn More: Drug Half-life Explained

How quickly does Rinvoq work?

You may feel the effects of Rinvoq oral tablet after one or two weeks, but most people with rheumatoid arthritis who respond have significant improvement in about 3 months. The results have lasted for up to 5 years for some people.

What is Rinvoq prescribed for?

Rinvoq (upadacitinib) is available as an extended-release oral tablet or as an oral solution. The tablet is taken by mouth once a day and is approved to treat:

• rheumatoid arthritis
• psoriatic arthritis
• atopic dermatitis (eczema)
• ulcerative colitis
• Crohn's disease
• ankylosing spondylitis
• non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis.

Rinvoq tablet is used to treat adults, but may also be used to treat children 12 years of age and older with moderate to severe eczema (atopic dermatitis). It is used when other treatments did not work well or were not well-tolerated.

The oral solution is called Rinvoq LQ and it is taken twice a day. It is used in:

• patients 2 years of age and older with active polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis who have had a poor response or intolerable side effects to one or more tumor necrosis factor (TNF) blockers
• patients 2 years of age and older with active psoriatic arthritis who have had an a poor response or intolerable side effects to one or more TNF blockers.

Rinvoq LQ is not approved for all of the same uses as the Rinvoq oral pill and is not a substitute for Rinvoq extended-release tablets. Changes between Rinvoq LQ oral solution and Rinvoq extended-release tablets should only be made by your healthcare provider.

Rinvoq and Rivoq LQ are in a class of medications called Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors.

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Can I drink grapefruit juice with Rinvoq?

No, you should avoid foods or drinks that contain grapefruit while you are being treated with Rinvoq. Consuming grapefruit or the juice may increase the risk of side effects because blood levels of Rinvoq may increase. Check the labels of foods you eat or drink to see if grapefruit is an ingredient.

Rinvoq is broken down in the body for excretion (or metabolized) by an enzyme called CYP3A4. Grapefruit is considered a strong CYP3A4 inhibitor and may interfere with the metabolism and excretion of Rinvoq. This can increase blood levels and side effects from the drug.

Learn More: What side effects can occur when I take RInvoq?

This is not all the information you need to know about Rivoq (upadacitinib extended release tablet) or Rinvoq LQ (upadacitinib oral solution) for safe and effective use and does not take the place of your healthcare provider's directions. Review the full product information and discuss any questions you have with your doctor or other health care provider.