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Non-Steroidal Mineralocorticoid Receptor Antagonist (Diabetic CKD) Pregnancy: SPC §4.6, verbatim. CONTRACEPTION: 'Women of childbearing potential should use effective contraception during finerenone treatment.' PREGNANCY: 'There are no data from the use of finerenone in pregnant women. Studies in animals have shown reproductive toxicity. Kerendia should not be used during pregnancy unless the clinical condition of the woman requires treatment with finerenone. If the woman becomes pregnant while taking finerenone, she should be informed of potential risks to the foetus.' BREAST-FEEDING: 'It is unknown whether finerenone/metabolites are excreted in human milk. Available pharmacokinetic/toxicological data in animals have shown excretion of finerenone and its metabolites in milk. Rat pups exposed via this route showed adverse reactions. A risk to the newborns/infants cannot be excluded. A decision must be made whether to discontinue breast-feeding or to discontinue/abstain from Kerendia therapy taking into account the benefit of breast-feeding for the child and the benefit of therapy for the woman.' FERTILITY: 'There are no data on the effect of finerenone on human fertility. Animal studies have shown impaired female fertility at exposures considered in excess to the maximum human exposure, indicating low clinical relevance.' US §8.1 adds: 'There are no available data on Kerendia use in pregnancy to evaluate for a drug-associated risk of major birth defects, miscarriage, or adverse maternal or fetal outcomes. Animal studies have shown developmental toxicity at exposures about 2 times those expected in humans.' This summary may be incomplete — check the full SPC.

Finerenone

Brand names: Kerendia

Finerenone is a non-steroidal selective mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist used in chronic kidney disease associated with type 2 diabetes to slow renal progression and reduce cardiovascular events alongside an ACE inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker.

Adult dose

Dose: Starting dose by eGFR — 20 mg once daily if eGFR ≥ 60 mL/min/1.73 m2 (US FDA label Table 1); 10 mg once daily if eGFR ≥ 25 to < 60 mL/min/1.73 m2 (UK SPC Table 1); not recommended if eGFR < 25. Do not initiate if serum potassium is > 5.0 mmol/L. Target dose 20 mg once daily: increase from 10 mg after 4 weeks if serum potassium is ≤ 4.8 mmol/L, staying on 10 mg if eGFR has fallen by more than 30% since the previous measurement. Indication: chronic kidney disease associated with type 2 diabetes
Route: Oral — film-coated tablets, taken with a glass of water, with or without food; not with grapefruit or grapefruit juice. May be crushed and mixed with water or soft food (e.g. apple sauce) directly before use if the patient cannot swallow tablets whole
Frequency: Once daily
Max: Maximum 20 mg once daily for chronic kidney disease associated with type 2 diabetes — SPC §4.2 verbatim: 'The maximum recommended dose is 20 mg finerenone once daily.'
SCOPE: this draft covers ONLY the page's indication — chronic kidney disease associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D). The same SPC also carries a heart failure (LVEF ≥ 40%) indication with a HIGHER target and maximum (up to 40 mg once daily); none of those figures are used here. || SPC §4.2 verbatim (CKD with T2D): 'The recommended target dose is 20 mg finerenone once daily. The maximum recommended dose is 20 mg finerenone once daily.' INITIATION: 'Serum potassium and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) have to be measured to determine if finerenone treatment can be initiated ... and to determine the starting dose. If serum potassium ≤ 4.8 mmol/L, finerenone treatment can be initiated. If serum potassium > 4.8 to 5.0 mmol/L, initiation of finerenone treatment may be considered with additional serum potassium monitoring within the first 4 weeks based on patient characteristics and serum potassium levels. If serum potassium > 5.0 mmol/L, finerenone treatment should not be initiated.' STARTING DOSE — Table 1 exactly as fetched: 'eGFR (mL/min/1.73 m2) ≥ 25 to < 60 → 10 mg once daily; < 25 → Not recommended'. ⚠ PROVENANCE OF THE eGFR ≥ 60 BAND: the fetched UK Table 1 for the CKD-with-T2D indication contains NO row for eGFR ≥ 60 — it lists only the two rows above. The eGFR ≥ 60 starting dose in the dose field is taken from the US FDA label's Table 1, which reads '≥ 60 → 20 mg orally once daily'. It is included because omitting it would leave 10 mg as the only starting dose on the page and would under-dose the commonest eligible group by half; it is attributed to the US label in the dose line rather than presented as UK text. Confirm Table 1 against the full UK SPC before release. CONTINUATION — Table 2 (CKD with T2D), verbatim: on 10 mg once daily, potassium ≤ 4.8 mmol/L 'Increase to 20 mg finerenone once daily' (table footnote: 'maintain 10 mg once daily, if eGFR has decreased > 30% compared to the previous measurement'); '> 4.8 to 5.5 → Maintain 10 mg once daily'; '> 5.5 → Withhold finerenone. Consider re-starting at 10 mg once daily when serum potassium ≤ 5.0 mmol/L.' On 20 mg once daily: '≤ 4.8 → Maintain 20 mg once daily'; '> 4.8 to 5.5 → Maintain 20 mg once daily'; '> 5.5 → Withhold finerenone. Re-start at 10 mg once daily when serum potassium ≤ 5.0 mmol/L.' MISSED DOSE: 'A missed dose should be taken as soon as the patient notices, but only on the same day. The patient should not take 2 doses to make up for a missed dose.' ELDERLY (≥ 65 years): 'No dose adjustment is necessary in elderly patients ... but regular monitoring of renal function is recommended.' BODY WEIGHT: 'No dose adjustment is necessary based on body weight.' CONCOMITANT MEDICINES: 'In patients taking finerenone concomitantly with moderate or weak CYP3A4 inhibitors, potassium supplements, trimethoprim, or trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole, additional serum potassium monitoring and adaptation of monitoring according to patient characteristics should be considered ... Temporary discontinuation of finerenone may be necessary, when patients have to take trimethoprim, or trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole.' PAEDIATRIC: 'The safety and efficacy of finerenone in children and adolescents aged under 18 years have not yet been established. No data are available.' (US §8.4: 'The safety and efficacy of Kerendia have not been established in patients below 18 years of age.') ADMINISTRATION: 'Oral use. Tablets may be taken with a glass of water and with or without food ... Tablets should not be taken with grapefruit or grapefruit juice ... For patients who are unable to swallow whole tablets, Kerendia tablets may be crushed and mixed with water or soft foods, such as apple sauce, directly before oral use.' FORMS (US §3): 'Tablets: 10 mg, 20 mg, and 40 mg'. PAGE CHECK (finerenone_renal, category 'Non-Steroidal Mineralocorticoid Receptor Antagonist (Diabetic CKD)', renal): the page's primary indication is type 2 diabetes with CKD, which is exactly what the quoted SPC posology doses, so the dose above is on-indication. Two existing-entry problems to fix on import: (1) its '20 mg once daily (eGFR ≥ 60)' starting dose is not in the fetched UK Table 1 (see the eGFR ≥ 60 caveat above); (2) its paedDose.dosePerKg holds the STRING 'Not licensed under 18 years', which the weight calculator would multiply by weight — this draft sets paedDose to null instead.

Dose adjustments

Renal

SPC §4.2, Renal impairment, verbatim. INITIATION: 'In patients with eGFR < 25 mL/min/1.73 m2, finerenone treatment should not be initiated due to limited clinical data.' Table 1 (CKD with T2D) gives a 10 mg once-daily starting dose for eGFR ≥ 25 to < 60 mL/min/1.73 m2 and 'Not recommended' below 25; the fetched Table 1 has no eGFR ≥ 60 row (the US label gives 20 mg once daily there). CONTINUATION: 'In patients with eGFR ≥ 15 mL/min/1.73 m2, finerenone treatment can be continued with dose adjustment based on serum potassium. eGFR should be measured 4 weeks after initiation to determine whether the starting dose can be increased.' 'Due to limited clinical data, finerenone treatment should be discontinued in patients who have progressed to end-stage renal disease (eGFR < 15 mL/min/1.73 m2).' Table 2 footnote: maintain 10 mg once daily rather than increasing to 20 mg 'if eGFR has decreased > 30% compared to the previous measurement'. §4.4 adds that hyperkalaemia risk factors include low eGFR, higher serum potassium and previous episodes of hyperkalaemia, in whom more frequent monitoring has to be considered.

Hepatic

SPC §4.2, Hepatic impairment, verbatim: severe hepatic impairment — 'Finerenone should not be initiated ... No data are available.'; moderate hepatic impairment — 'No initial dose adjustment is required. Consider additional serum potassium monitoring and adapt monitoring according to patient characteristics.'; mild hepatic impairment — 'No initial dose adjustment is required.' No hepatic-impairment dosing statement was present in the fetched US sections.

Dose independently re-sourced from UK Summary of Product Characteristics (SPC) via the eMC; US FDA prescribing information (openFDA / DailyMed) — cross-check; US labelling may differ from UK — clinician-reviewed. Always confirm against the product SmPC and your local formulary before prescribing.

Contraindications

  • Hypersensitivity to the active substance or to any of the excipients listed in section 6.1 (SPC §4.3)
  • Concomitant treatment with strong inhibitors of CYP3A4 (SPC §4.3), e.g. itraconazole, ketoconazole, ritonavir, nelfinavir, cobicistat, clarithromycin, telithromycin, nefazodone
  • Addison's disease (SPC §4.3). The US label §4 words this more broadly as 'With adrenal insufficiency'
  • Not in §4.3 but an initiation bar in §4.2/§4.4: 'If serum potassium > 5.0 mmol/L, finerenone treatment should not be initiated.'
  • Not in §4.3 but a §4.4 prohibition: 'Finerenone should not be given concomitantly with potassium-sparing diuretics (e.g., amiloride, triamterene) and other mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (MRAs), e.g., eplerenone, esaxerenone, spironolactone, canrenone.'
  • Not in §4.3 but a §4.2 bar on starting: eGFR < 25 mL/min/1.73 m2 — 'finerenone treatment should not be initiated due to limited clinical data'; and severe hepatic impairment — 'Finerenone should not be initiated'
  • Not a contraindication but a §4.5/§4.2 avoidance: 'Tablets should not be taken with grapefruit or grapefruit juice' (US §7.1: 'Grapefruit or grapefruit juice: Avoid concomitant use'; 'Strong or moderate CYP3A4 Inducers: Avoid concomitant use')

Side effects

  • Hyperkalaemia — VERY COMMON (≥ 1/10) in CKD with T2D and the most frequently reported adverse reaction overall (12.6%) (SPC §4.8)
  • Hyponatraemia — common (≥ 1/100 to < 1/10) in CKD with T2D (SPC §4.8)
  • Hyperuricaemia — common in CKD with T2D (SPC §4.8)
  • Hypotension — common in CKD with T2D (SPC §4.8)
  • Pruritus — common in CKD with T2D (SPC §4.8)
  • Blood creatinine increased / glomerular filtration rate decreased — common in CKD with T2D (SPC §4.8)
  • Haemoglobin decreased — uncommon (≥ 1/1,000 to < 1/100) in CKD with T2D (SPC §4.8)
  • Hyperkalaemia detail (SPC §4.8): 'An increase from baseline in mean serum potassium in the first month of treatment of up to 0.2 mmol/L was observed in the finerenone group compared to placebo, which remained stable thereafter. In the pooled data of FIDELIO-DKD and FIGARO-DKD studies, hyperkalaemia events were reported in 14.0% of finerenone-treated patients compared with 6.9% of placebo-treated patients. Serious events of hyperkalaemia were reported more frequently for finerenone (1.1%) than for placebo (0.2%). Serum potassium concentrations > 5.5 mmol/L and > 6.0 mmol/L were reported in 16.8% and 3.3% of finerenone-treated patients and in 7.4% and 1.3% of placebo-treated patients, respectively. Hyperkalaemia leading to permanent discontinuation in patients who received finerenone was 1.7% versus 0.6% in the placebo group.'
  • Reported in the heart failure (LVEF ≥ 40%) column of SPC Table 5 but NOT in the CKD-with-T2D column, so not attributable to this page's indication: diarrhoea, constipation, renal impairment and acute kidney injury (common). §4.4 also describes worsening of renal function specifically in the heart failure population
  • US label §6.1 summary: 'Adverse reactions occurring in ≥ 1% of patients on Kerendia and more frequently than placebo are hyperkalemia, hypotension, and hyponatremia.'

Monitoring

  • Before initiation (§4.2/§4.4): measure serum potassium and eGFR — they determine both whether treatment can start and the starting dose. Do not initiate if serum potassium > 5.0 mmol/L
  • If serum potassium > 4.8 to 5.0 mmol/L at baseline, initiation 'may be considered with additional serum potassium monitoring within the first 4 weeks based on patient characteristics and serum potassium levels' (§4.4)
  • Re-measure serum potassium and eGFR 4 weeks after initiation, after re-start, and after every dose increase; 'thereafter, serum potassium has to be remeasured periodically and as needed based on patient characteristics and serum potassium levels' (§4.2)
  • In CKD with T2D: withhold finerenone if serum potassium > 5.5 mmol/L, follow local guidelines for hyperkalaemia, and restart at 10 mg once daily once serum potassium ≤ 5.0 mmol/L (§4.4)
  • Monitor more frequently in patients at higher risk of hyperkalaemia — 'Risk factors include low eGFR, higher serum potassium and previous episodes of hyperkalaemia' (§4.4)
  • Additional serum potassium monitoring with moderate or weak CYP3A4 inhibitors, potassium supplements or potassium-enriched salt substitutes, and trimethoprim or trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (§4.2/§4.4); temporary discontinuation may be necessary during trimethoprim courses
  • Elderly (≥ 65 years): no dose adjustment, but 'regular monitoring of renal function is recommended' (§4.2)
  • eGFR fall of > 30% from the previous measurement changes the dose decision (Table 2 footnote: maintain 10 mg rather than increasing to 20 mg) (§4.2)

Clinical monograph

How it works

It selectively antagonises the mineralocorticoid receptor to attenuate aldosterone-mediated inflammation and fibrosis in renal and cardiac tissue, with a lower impact on serum electrolytes than steroidal MRAs.

Prescribing in practice

  • Serum potassium must be checked before starting and monitored throughout, with initiation withheld if potassium exceeds the SPC limit because of hyperkalaemia risk.
  • Co-administration with strong CYP3A4 inhibitors is contraindicated due to markedly increased drug levels.
  • Do not use in Addison's disease, and avoid combining with potassium supplements or other potassium-sparing diuretics without careful review.

Monitoring

Check potassium and renal function before treatment and periodically thereafter, modifying dose or pausing therapy based on potassium levels.

Counselling the patient

  • You will need ongoing blood tests to keep potassium and kidney function safe.
  • Avoid salt substitutes containing potassium and disclose all concurrent medicines and supplements.
  • Seek advice if you develop weakness, an irregular heartbeat or unusual tiredness.

Evidence & guidelines

FIDELIO-DKD and FIGARO-DKD established the renal and cardiovascular benefits of finerenone in diabetic CKD.

Reference: Bakris et al. NEJM 2020 (FIDELIO-DKD); Filippatos et al. NEJM 2021 (FIGARO-DKD); MHRA SPC Kerendia; NICE in development; Drug verified in RxNorm (NLM); confirm dosing against the manufacturer SPC (eMC). Verify against your local formulary and current prescribing references before prescribing. The structured dose values shown have been reviewed by a clinician. Monograph status: clinician-reviewed (2026-07-04).

Related

Curated clinical cross-links plus same-class fallbacks.