A key part of managing your Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is maintaining a healthy routine. A major part of this routine is attending dialysis regularly. Dialysis removes waste products, including excess phosphorus from your blood when your kidneys aren’t functioning properly. However, dialysis does not remove all the extra phosphorus from your blood.
Diet
Part of your treatment will include a low phosphorus diet. Dietitians prescribe a diet low in phosphorus to limit the amount of phosphorus entering your body. They can also help you choose lower-phosphorus alternatives to the foods you like.
Phosphate binders
Even with dialysis treatment and a proper diet, most patients with CKD need extra help controlling phosphorus in the body. Renvela® (sevelamer carbonate), a phosphate binder, is taken with meals and snacks to help clear away the phosphorus that is found in food before it can enter the blood. Just as a sponge soaks up water, Renvela combines with food in your stomach to soak up phosphorus before it can be absorbed into your body. The phosphorus that is absorbed by Renvela moves through the digestive tract until it is eliminated.
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Important Treatment Considerations
Renvela® (sevelamer carbonate) is used to control phosphorus levels in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) on dialysis
Do not use Renvela if you have a history of bowel obstruction
Talk to your doctor if you have had digestive tract surgery or other digestive disorders, including severe constipation
Uncommon cases of bowel obstruction and perforation have been reported
Your doctor should monitor bicarbonate and chloride blood levels • Vitamins D, E, K (clotting factors), and folic acid blood levels should also be monitored by your doctor
The most frequently occurring side effects observed with sevelamer carbonate tablets were nausea and vomiting
Side effects with sevelamer carbonate powder taken three times a day were similar to those reported for sevelamer carbonate tablets
The most common side effects with sevelamer hydrochloride, which contains the same active ingredient as sevelamer carbonate, included: vomiting, nausea, diarrhea, dyspepsia, abdominal pain, flatulence, and constipation
Cases of fecal impaction and, less commonly, ileus, bowel obstruction, and bowel perforation have been reported
Take Renvela with meals and adhere to your prescribed diet
Talk to your doctor when taking Renvela with other medications • Promptly contact your doctor if you experience severe abdominal pain, new or worsening constipation, or other severe intestinal symptoms while on Renvela
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your body. They can also help you choose lower-phosphorus alternatives to the foods you like.
