Q: Why Tacrolimus  (FK/prograf) level should always be drawn peripherally, if patient is on intravenous Tacrolimus?

Answer:   The IV prograf seems to “stick” to the IV line and can falsely elevate any levels that are drawn from the same IV line.  Patients on IV Prograf really need to have the levels drawn from a peripheral venous stick or from an A-line.

Reference:

Jain AB, Pinna A, Fung JJ, Warty V, Singhal AK, Lever J, Venkataramanan R.- Capillary blood versus arterial or venous blood for tacrolimus monitoring in liver transplantation. - Transplantation. 1995 Sep 15;60(5):512-4.