hydroxychloroquine_dosing: Hydroxychloroquine (Plaquenil) Dosing Calculator

In cliot: Clinical Indices and Outcomes Tools

Hydroxychloroquine (Plaquenil) Dosing Calculator

Description

Calculates recommended hydroxychloroquine dosing based on patient weight and indication. Incorporates the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) guidelines recommending a maximum daily dose of < 5 mg/kg actual body weight to minimize the risk of retinal toxicity for chronic use (Lupus/RA).

Usage

hydroxychloroquine_dosing(weight_kg, indication)

Arguments

weight_kg	Numeric. Patient actual body weight in kilograms.
indication	String. Indication for treatment. Options: "lupus", "rheumatoid_arthritis", "malaria_prophylaxis", "malaria_treatment".

Value

A list containing:

Recommended_Dosing	The calculated dose based on weight and indication guidelines.
Safety_Guidance	Warnings regarding maximum safe dosage, particularly for retinal safety.

References

Marmor MF, Kellner U, Lai TY, et al. Recommendations on Screening for Chloroquine and Hydroxychloroquine Retinopathy (2016 Revision). Ophthalmology. 2016;123(6):1386-1394. doi:10.1016/j.ophtha.2016.01.058

Examples

# Example 1: Lupus Dosing (Chronic)
# 60kg patient (Max 5mg/kg = 300mg)
hydroxychloroquine_dosing(60, "lupus")

# Example 2: Malaria Treatment (Acute)
# 50kg patient
hydroxychloroquine_dosing(50, "malaria_treatment")

cliot documentation built on Dec. 1, 2025, 1:06 a.m.