Short answer: The usual Trental dose on the label is one 400 mg extended-release tablet three times a day with meals. Effects may show within 2 to 4 weeks, and treatment is continued for at least 8 weeks. If digestive or nervous system side effects occur, the dose is lowered to twice a day; in severe kidney impairment it is 400 mg once a day. The label gives no missed-dose rule.
This is what the FDA label says. Follow your prescriber. Your prescriber may use a different dose or pace than the label's standard schedule.
What Trental is approved for: Trental is a xanthine-type medicine that lowers blood viscosity (thickness), approved for intermittent claudication (leg pain when walking) caused by chronic occlusive arterial disease of the limbs. The label says it can improve function and symptoms but is not meant to replace more definitive treatment such as bypass surgery or removal of artery blockages (Indications and Usage).
Source
TRENTAL (pentoxifylline) extended-release tablets, prescribing information. Validus Pharmaceuticals. DailyMed, version published October 1, 2026. DailyMed setid b0d1d50f-9023-4e2f-889f-a5febba70fa5
Trental is a 400 mg pink, film-coated, oblong extended-release tablet taken by mouth (Description and How Supplied).
The usual dosage is one tablet three times a day with meals (Dosage and Administration).
The extended-release tablet keeps blood levels steady for an extended time, which the label says is for better stomach tolerance (Clinical Pharmacology).
The table below is the label's schedule, from the Dosage and Administration section. Numbers are copied exactly; the section is in brackets.
| Situation | Dose |
|---|---|
| Usual dosage | One tablet (400 mg) three times a day with meals |
| Digestive or nervous system side effects | One tablet twice a day (800 mg/day) |
| Side effects persist at the lower dose | Trental is discontinued |
| Severe renal impairment (creatinine clearance below 30 mL/min) | 400 mg once a day |
| Hepatic impairment | Dosing information cannot be provided |
The effect may be seen within 2 to 4 weeks, but treatment is recommended for at least 8 weeks. Efficacy was shown in double-blind studies lasting 6 months.
Dose selection in older adults is cautious, usually starting at the low end of the range, and kidney function may be monitored because the active Metabolite V is mainly cleared by the kidneys.
Taking the tablet with meals raised average pentoxifylline exposure (AUC) about 1.1-fold and peak level about 1.3-fold. Peak levels come 2 to 4 hours after a dose.
Theophylline levels are monitored when Trental is started or its dose changed, and anticoagulant activity is monitored in people on vitamin K antagonists such as warfarin.
Tablets are stored at 20 to 25 C (68 to 77 F), with excursions from 15 to 30 C (59 to 86 F) allowed.
The Trental label gives no missed-dose rule. It has no patient leaflet, and the prescribing information does not say what to do if a dose is missed.
In Dose Track you set up Trental as a protocol with the dose and schedule your prescriber gave you. A protocol can hold dose steps, each with its own dose and length in days or weeks, so a step-up plan like the one on the label can be entered once and the app moves to the next step on its own. Reminders follow the schedule, and every dose is logged with the date and time, so you can see which step you are on and when your last dose was. The app follows what you enter; it does not choose or change a dose.
This page is what the FDA label says, in plain words. It is not medical advice. Follow your prescriber, and ask them or your pharmacist about anything here.