Drug interactions
Tacrolimus + Yellow fever vaccine
Severity: Contraindicated
Tacrolimus and Yellow fever vaccine: contraindicated interaction.
Last updated
For healthcare professionals — reference only. This page is a brief summary, not medical advice and not a substitute for official labeling or clinical judgement. Always verify before prescribing or dispensing.
Summary
Yellow fever vaccine is live attenuated and can cause serious vaccine-associated viscerotropic or neurotropic disease in immunosuppressed patients. Tacrolimus raises that risk and lowers the response.
What this interaction means in plain words
Tacrolimus and Yellow fever vaccine are not normally used together. Taking them at the same time is expected to cause harm or make one of them unsafe, so a different medicine is usually chosen for one of the two.
Why it happens
Calcineurin inhibitor-induced immunosuppression permits uncontrolled replication of the live vaccine virus.
What to do
Avoid vaccination in patients on tacrolimus. Advise them to avoid travel to endemic areas, or provide a medical exemption letter if the risk is justified.
What to ask your pharmacist
- Is there an alternative to one of these two medicines for me?
- If both are essential, who is monitoring me and how often?
- Which symptoms mean I should stop and seek help straight away?
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Other interactions of Tacrolimus
- Adenovirus types 4 and 7 live + Tacrolimus Contraindicated
- Bcg vaccine live + Tacrolimus Contraindicated
- Cidofovir + Tacrolimus Contraindicated
- Cyclosporin + Tacrolimus Contraindicated
- Influenza virus vaccine quadrivalent intranasal + Tacrolimus Contraindicated
- Measles mumps and rubella vaccine live + Tacrolimus Contraindicated
Frequently asked questions
Can I take Tacrolimus with Yellow fever vaccine?
MediHelp rates the interaction as contraindicated. Tacrolimus and Yellow fever vaccine are not normally used together. Taking them at the same time is expected to cause harm or make one of them unsafe, so a different medicine is usually chosen for one of the two. Yellow fever vaccine is live attenuated and can cause serious vaccine-associated viscerotropic or neurotropic disease in immunosuppressed patients. Tacrolimus raises that risk and lowers the response.
How serious is the interaction between Tacrolimus and Yellow fever vaccine?
MediHelp rates it contraindicated, on a four-level scale (minor, moderate, major, contraindicated) based on published labels and references. What to do, in brief: Avoid vaccination in patients on tacrolimus. Advise them to avoid travel to endemic areas, or provide a medical exemption letter if the risk is justified.
What other medicines interact with Tacrolimus?
MediHelp also lists interactions of Tacrolimus with, for example, Adenovirus types 4 and 7 live, Bcg vaccine live, Cidofovir. The full list is on the Tacrolimus page.
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