Fluconazole
- Class: Antifungal (azole)
- Used for: a fungal infection
- Say it: floo-KON-uh-zole
- Forms: tablet, oral liquid, injection
Remember the name – CONAZOLE → conquers the fungus
FluCONAZOLE CONQUERS the fungus — it strips the fungal cell of the sterol its membrane is built from.
Careful with the FLU at the front: it is the fluorine in the molecule and has nothing to do with influenza. The CONAZOLE is the part that carries the meaning — every -azole is an antifungal.
FluCONAZOLE CONQUERS the fungus — it strips the fungal cell of the sterol its membrane is built from.
Careful with the FLU at the front: it is the fluorine in the molecule and has nothing to do with influenza. The CONAZOLE is the part that carries the meaning — every -azole is an antifungal.
Mnemonic: An -AZOLE attacks ergosterol
Ergosterol is the fungal version of cholesterol. The enzyme that makes it belongs to the same family that clears our own drugs — which is why azoles interact with so much.
Ergosterol is the fungal version of cholesterol. The enzyme that makes it belongs to the same family that clears our own drugs — which is why azoles interact with so much.
Side effects
Common: headache, nausea, stomach pain
Serious: liver injury, QT prolongation
Typical dose
150 mg as a single dose for thrush; 50–400 mg daily for systemic infection
Inhibits CYP enzymes even as a single dose — check interactions, especially with warfarin.
Check yourself
Why does Fluconazole interact with so many other drugs?
- It inhibits the liver CYP enzymes that clear them
- It binds them in the gut so they cannot be absorbed
- It damages the liver, so nothing is metabolised
- It speeds up their excretion by the kidney
Show answer
A. It inhibits the liver CYP enzymes that clear them
The antifungal target and the human drug-clearing enzymes come from the same superfamily, so the selectivity is imperfect. Blocked clearance means the other drug accumulates.
See it, don't memorize it
The app has the mechanism comic and a patient case for Fluconazole – plus the name link, the class mnemonic, pronunciation you can hear, and a self-check, for the top 100 drugs. One purchase, no subscription, no account.