Inderal (Propranolol)
Inderal Information
Propranolol is the generic name of a medication that has been sold under various brand names including: inderal, inderide, innopran, avlocardyl, bedranol, deralin, inderalici, sumial.
It is part of a class of medications known as beta-blockers. When consumed at therapeutic dose levels, it binds to beta-receptor sites in the human body and:
--- reduces heart rate
--- reduces contraction of blood vessels
--- reduces the strength of heart muscle contractions
Propranolol is most often prescribed
--- to treat hypertension (high blood pressure)
--- to prevent angina (severe chest pain)
--- to prevent migraine headaches
--- to treat hypertrophic subaortic stenosis (a heart disease)
In addition to the uses listed above, propranolol has been employed to: prevent cluster headaches, prevent tension headaches, reduce risk of death in heart attack patients, reduce tremors, reduce physical symptoms of anxiety, reduce physical symptoms of performance anxiety (stage fright), treat abnormal heart rhythm.
For some people, propranolol has been effective at preventing or lessening the number (and severity) of migraine headaches. It is not effective for everyone, but a significant number of people who have been on other migraine medications find propranolol works best for them.
Propranolol must be taken prior to having a migraine rather than being consumed while experiencing a migraine headache. If it is taken by someone who is in the midst of a migraine attack, it will most likely not help at all.
Inderal (Propranolol) Dosage
Prior to starting a treatment program with inderal, it would be to your benefit if you read the prescribing information for this medication. To do so, you can visit either the Akrimax website or the Pfizer website and preform a search for inderal.
All forms of inderal (propranolol) can be taken with or without food. Inderal is an immediate release formulation of propranolol, the active ingredient becomes available to the human body soon after it is ingested. Immediate release formulations can be taken 2-4 times a day.
Inderal-la (long acting) is an extended release formulation usually prescribed to be taken once a day. Don't crush, chew, or split inderal long acting capsules. Doing so may defeat the time release function of this medication, and cause concentrations in the body to reach harmful levels.
--- Angina Pectoris : The recommended starting oral dose is 80 milligrams inderal-la once daily. Wait for 3-7 days and if a larger dose is required, the dose size may be gradually increased until optimal response is obtained. Although individual patients may respond at any dosage level, the average optimal dosage appears to be 160 mg once daily.
In treating angina pectoris, the value and safety of dosage exceeding 320 mg per day have not been established. If a satisfactory response is not obtained within 4-6 weeks after reaching the maximum dose, inderal-la therapy should be discontinued. It is necessary to withdraw the drug gradually over a period of several weeks.
--- Hypertension : The recommended starting oral dose is 80 milligrams inderal-la once daily. If a larger dose is required, the dose size may be increased to 120 mg (or more) once daily. The usual effective dose range is 120-160 mg once daily. In some cases 640 mg doses may be required.
When changing dose size, the time needed to achieve the maximum effect of a given dosage level of this medication (in treating high blood pressure) is variable. It may range from a few days to several weeks, so don't change dose sizes again until you are sure your body has had a chance to adjust.
--- Hypertrophic Subaortic Stenosis : The usual dosage is 80 to 160 mg inderal-la once daily.
--- Migraine : The recommended starting oral dose is 80 milligrams inderal-la once daily. Wait for a week or more and if a larger dose is required, the dose size may be gradually increased to a maximum of 240 mg once daily.
The usual effective dose range is 160-240 mg once daily. If doses of 240 mg are not strong enough, it is best to contact your doctor rather than increasing the dose size.
If a satisfactory response is not obtained within 4-6 weeks after reaching the maximum dose, inderal-la therapy should be discontinued. It may be advisable to withdraw the drug gradually over a period of several weeks depending on the patient's age, comorbidity, and dose of inderal-la.
In most countries a prescription is required to obtain propranolol. However, depending on what part of the world you live in, it may be available over the counter (or behind the counter) without a prescription. To save money you can buy generic inderal (propranolol), it costs less than the brand name product and produces the same results.
Inderal-la delivers propranolol hydrochloride in a long acting (extended release) capsule for administration once daily. If patients are switched from inderal tablets (immediate release) to inderal-la capsules, care should be taken to assure that the desired therapeutic effect is maintained.
Inderal-la should not be considered a simple milligram for milligram substitute for inderal. The long acting formulation has different kinetics and produces lower blood levels. You may have to adjust the dose size, especially to maintain effectiveness at the end of the 24 hour dosing interval.
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last update: november 2010