Does candesartan cilexetil expire?
The printed date covers the sealed pack. Once candesartan cilexetil is opened, mixed or diluted, its label sets a second and usually much shorter limit — quoted below, per product.
Shortest limit on any candesartan cilexetil label: 30 days
“Use within 30 days after first opening.”
That applies to the product it is printed on, not to every form of candesartan cilexetil — check which one you have against the list below.
What the labels say
“Use within 30 days after first opening.”
On the label for CANDESARTAN CILEXETIL · DailyMed
How the label says to keep candesartan cilexetil
Storage is the other half of the question: the stability behind any date assumes these conditions, and a medicine kept outside them ages faster than the calendar says.
- “16 HOW SUPPLIED/STORAGE AND HANDLING Candesartan cilexetil tablets USP, 32 mg are light pink, round, biconvex, uncoated mottled tablets debossed with ‘L171’on one side and scoring on other side.”
- “Store at 25°C (77°F); excursions permitted to 15° to 30°C (59° to 86°F) [see USP Controlled Room Temperature].”
- “Store at room temperature (below 30°C/86°F).”
- “Store at 20° to 25°C (68° to 77°F); excursions permitted at 15° to 30°C (59° to 86°F) [see USP Controlled Room Temperature] .”
- “16 HOW SUPPLIED/STORAGE AND HANDLING Candesartan cilexetil tablets USP, 4 mg are white to off-white, round, biconvex, uncoated tablets debossed with ‘L168’ on one side and scoring on other side.”
- “16 HOW SUPPLIED/STORAGE AND HANDLING Candesartan Cilexetil Tablets, USP are available containing 4 mg, 8 mg, 16 mg or 32 mg of candesartan cilexetil, USP.”
- “Store at 20° to 25°C (68° to 77°F).”
- “16 HOW SUPPLIED/STORAGE AND HANDLING ATACAND Tablets, 4 mg, are white to off-white, circular/biconvex-shaped, non-film-coated scored tablets, coded ACF on one side and 004 on the other.”
Frequently asked questions
Does candesartan cilexetil expire?
Two different clocks apply and only one of them is the printed date. The date on a sealed pack is the manufacturer's guarantee for the unopened product. Once it is opened, mixed or diluted, the label imposes its own limit — as tight as 30 days on some candesartan cilexetil products, and that is the number quoted on this page.
Can I still use candesartan cilexetil after the date on the box?
This page cannot tell you that, and nor can any page. The FDA's own shelf-life programme found 88% of tested lots stayed within specification at least a year past expiry — and concluded in the same breath that lot-to-lot variation means this can only be confirmed by testing each lot. What you can check at home is the in-use limit above and whether the product has been stored as the label requires. Ask a pharmacist about a specific pack; they will also dispose of what you no longer need.
Why do different candesartan cilexetil products have different limits?
Because they are different formulations. A suspension that gets mixed with water, a pen that gets carried at room temperature, and a sealed tablet do not behave alike, so each manufacturer's label sets its own limit and each is shown here with the product it belongs to. We never merge them into one number for the molecule.
More on candesartan cilexetil
Quoted from FDA labels for reference, not medical advice, and not a suggestion to use anything past its limit. If you are unsure whether a pack is still good, a pharmacist can tell you and can dispose of it safely.