Carbidopa-Levodopa (Sinemet) Uses

Carbidopa and levodopa are used to treat patients with Parkinson’s disease, a neurological condition in which there is slowness of movements, rigidity, and tremors due to the lack of a naturally occurring substance called dopamine in the brain. Carbidopa-levodopa is also used to treat symptomatic parkinsonism (symptoms similar to Parkinson’s disease) that can develop in people with encephalitis (brain inflammation), manganese intoxication, and carbon monoxide intoxication. 

There may be other uses of carbidopa-levodopa—your doctor or pharmacist can give you further drug information.

Carbidopa-Levodopa (Sinemet) Mechanism of Action

Levodopa is a precursor of dopamine. It gets converted to dopamine and relieves Parkinson’s disease symptoms by restoring dopamine in the brain. Carbidopa prevents levodopa from being metabolized in the peripheral tissues before it crosses the blood-brain barrier and reaches the brain. Therefore, carbidopa allows treatment with a lower dose of levodopa, thus decreasing gastrointestinal side effects.

Carbidopa-Levodopa (Sinemet) Doses

Carbidopa and levodopa are available as 10 mg/100 mg, 25 mg/100 mg, and 25 mg/250 mg tablets for oral administration.

The dose of carbidopa and levodopa varies from person to person, depending on their response to the medicine. The typical starting dose of carbidopa-levodopa is 25 mg/100 mg 3 times a day. The dose can be increased every 1-3 days until the maximum recommended daily dose of 8 tablets of 25 mg/100 mg is reached.