Lofepramine: Difference between revisions
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'''Warnings''' |
'''Warnings''' |
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(These are standard cautions but may not be applicable to your case)<br> |
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To be used with caution for epileptic patients or those with glaucoma or psychosis. Lofepramine should not be given to people who have suffered liver failure or heart disease. Not advisable for use in pregnant women. |
To be used with caution for epileptic patients or those with glaucoma or psychosis. Lofepramine should not be given to people who have suffered liver failure or heart disease. Not advisable for use in pregnant women. |
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Revision as of 01:40, 21 September 2007
| File:Lofepramine.png | |
| Clinical data | |
|---|---|
| Routes of administration | Oral |
| ATC code | |
| Identifiers | |
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| CAS Number | |
| PubChem CID | |
| CompTox Dashboard (EPA) | |
| ECHA InfoCard | 100.041.254 |
| Chemical and physical data | |
| Formula | C26H27ClN2O |
| Molar mass | 418.958 g/mol g·mol−1 |
Lofepramine (trademarked Gamanil) is a third generation tricyclic antidepressant used in the treatment of depressive disorders. It has both antidepressant and anxiolytic properties. Lofepramine is metabolized in vivo into desipramine; hence its pharmacological profile is extremely similar.
Indications
In the United Kingdom, lofepramine is licensed for the treatment of depression.
Description: An antidepressant administered orally (as tablets). It has fewer sedative properties than many of the products used to treat depressive illnesses and is suited to patients whose symptoms tend towards withdrawal and apathy, rather than restlessness and agitation.
Side effects
Drowsiness, dry mouth, heartbeat irregularities, sweating, low blood pressure, constipation, blurred vision palpatations, and urinary retention. Can cause confusion in elderly patients or behavioural disturbance in the young. May produce weight gain or cause changes in the levels of blood sugar. Some patients report muscular discomfort, particularly in the shoulders. However, lofepramine is less sedating than, for instance, amitryptaline, and is safer in overdose than older tricyclics.
Warnings
To be used with caution for epileptic patients or those with glaucoma or psychosis. Lofepramine should not be given to people who have suffered liver failure or heart disease. Not advisable for use in pregnant women.
Availability
In the United Kingdom, lofepramine is marketed generically (as the hydrochloride salt) in the form of 70mg tablets.
Dosage
140-210mg daily in divided doses.
Before dispensing medication on a set course, the first prescribed dosage to a patient must be 70mg (one tablet) to be taken at NIGHT only. If no adverse side effects have been reported then the next course would be 140mg (2 tablets to be taken at NIGHT) for a period of 2-3 weeks.
Then again, if no adverse side effects have been reported, the patient must undergo the full dosage of 210mg per DAY for a period of 3 WEEKS.
If the patient is using the maximum daily dosage of 210mg, then the dosage must be divided into THREE SEPARATE time slots, preferably one in the morning, one in the afternoon and one at night; or alternatively one in the morning and two at night (two 140mg tablets is safe to take at the same time).