Talk:Alprazolam

How can one suggest a site to get listed as a "reference" or an "external link"? If I edit and add it to the page it automaticaly gets reverted?

I have been in touch with "Daniel" at wikipedia and he suggested I add the link to the page first and if the link is removed, then leave it that way and maybe mention the link on the discussion page. If others see value in having the link, it will eventually get put into the article?

May I suggest the link here in the discussion page so you can see the value of the site? The site list many books on alprazolam! Thanks. 8/29/06

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Could someone please include a history section? - 5/14/2006

This page lists "Irreversible (non repairable) cognitive deficits and lasting loss of personality" as a possible side effect. Nowhere else have I seen this described as a side effect of Xanax. Could someone please provide substantiation for this claim?

This page is a major target for spam. I just reverted some more. NSR (talk) 20:31, 31 July 2005 (UTC)

I've added a request to deal with this spam at [1]. Yelyos 07:41, August 8, 2005 (UTC)

Request has been dealt with - the spammer should not be able to operate any longer. Yelyos 07:54, August 8, 2005 (UTC)

I'm not a good writer, but I felt that I should make some changes. Alprazolam's uniqueness is in it's panic suppressant qualities, and this is what makes it different from other benzodiazipines. Other forms of anxiety disorders can often be treated equally well with other benzos. Someone may wish to "clean up" my writing style, though.

All benzodiazepines suppress anxiety but alprazolam is more useful in this role because of its short duration of effect. I've tried a little "cleaning up" but feel free to tinker more if you don't like it. I removed the SPEICAL RISK PATIENTS section because I think that it's misleading; benzodiazepines are popular in large part because they are safe on overdose - they don't suppress breathing and so deaths from BZD overdose alone is almost unheard of, and overdose with these agents is common (of course in combination they're more dangerous). ben

This page is beginning to look better, although all the other benzo pages still need a great deal of work. I organized the trade names into a list in an attempt to make them easier to read through. Let me know what you think. - Fuzzform 21:07, 13 December 2005 (UTC)

abuse by cocaine users

• I have it on (unfortunately) good authority that some habitual cocaine users sometimes use xanax to calm themselves when they're 'tweaking' (too high). Does anyone know where I can find a source for this?--PharmerJoe 17:54, 28 January 2006 (UTC)

Drug interaction

What about drug interaction? Does this drug interact with other prescription drugs or over the counter medications? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.80.43.119 (talk • contribs)

You can get that information from the prescribing info link on the article [2]. OhNoitsJamie^Talk 03:39, 23 March 2006 (UTC)

Dosage

Alprazolam is taken as needed (PRN); 4 to 6 doses per month are the acceptable limit.

This dosage information HAS to be incorrect. A lot of ppl take Alprazolam daily as directed.

This has now been corrected. It should have been 4 to 6 doses a day.

Availability

Alprazolam is generally sold in generic form in the United States. It is also sold under many other brand names, depending on the country:

Xanax is also sold as a liquid in the US.

fruity reactions?

I had a scrip for generic xanax several months ago. On the bottle were three warning stickers. The first two were the standard "don't drink alcohol" and "may cause intense dizziness/drowsiness" warnings. The third was a warning about possible interactions with citrus juices. Anyone know what that was about? ZekeMacNeil 21:01, 18 April 2006 (UTC)

Did it specifically mention grapefruit juice? See the grapefruit article, this blog: Drug Interactions—Grapefruit juice and Xanax but also PMID 10907671. Colin Harkness°^Talk 22:49, 18 April 2006 (UTC)

Absorbtion Through Mucous Membranes

Xanax can be absorbed through mucous membranes. People put xanax in the anuses.

[Skidoo here:] This is most likely inaccurate. Or rather, people may very well take alprazolam rectally, but it is not soluble in water, so the likelihood that anyone would experience an appreciable effect from this sort of administration is very slim.

Insufflation?

[Note: All comments below refer to "standard" alprazolam, not the extended-release pills being marketed under the name "Xanax XR."]

I have read in several sources that alprazolam is not water-soluble; ergo snorting it (isufflation) does not enhance its effectiveness. In fact, snorting alprazolam actually REDUCES its bioavailability, because the powder has to make the relatively circuitous journey through your sinuses and down the back of your throat into your stomach. So not only will it take you longer to feel the effects, but the effects will be diminished, as the dose will be absorbed over a greater length of time versus swallowing a pill.

Plus, alprazolam pills taste horrible. They're very, very bitter. They can leave a nasty bitter stripe on your tongue if you're not careful. And alprazolam is a potent drug. A 2MG dose is usually coveyed in a pill that itself can weigh an entire gram. Which means that the great bulk of what you snort if you crush an alprazolam pill is just filler.

My on-line sources are sparse, but I'll try to work this info into the article and remove the incorrect assertions.

"...Fillers can be bad for your nasal passages, and can do serious damage to the lungs when inhaled. Many pills contain cellulose and chalk, which pass through your intestines harmlessly when taken orally, but can be very destructive if they get into the lungs...since they are not water soluble." http://www.erowid.org/ask/ask.cgi?ID=2698

"Alprazolam is a white crystalline powder, which is soluble in methanol or ethanol but which has no appreciable solubility in water at physiological pH." http://www.xanax.com/xanax.pdf

Insufflation / Grapefruit Juice and Alprazolam

I also agree with the above poster: the effects of alprazolam are NOT increased by insufflation. If anything potency is reduced as described above. Only water soluble substances are absorbed through the nasal membranes, and as http://www.xanax.com/xanax.pdf and other sources show, alprazolam is only slightly soluble in water.

There are also no sources to back up the claim made in the recreational use area of the page regarding increased potency.

Also numerous sources have verified that the bioavalability of alprazolam is NOT increased in a statistically meaningful way by the consumption of grapefruit juice, however the decreased metabolic effects of grapefruit juice can cause a gradual increase in blood levels of alprazolam to toxic levels.

"Grapefruit juice altered neither the steady-state plasma concentration of alprazolam nor the clinical status in patients. The present study shows that grapefruit juice is unlikely to affect pharmacokinetics or pharmacodynamics of alprazolam due to its high bioavailability."

-- http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=10907671&dopt=Abstract

"Effects of repeated ingestion of grapefruit juice on the single and multiple oral-dose pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of alprazolam; Psychpharmacology (Berl). 2000 Jun; 150(2):185-90"

-- http://www.druginteractioncenter.org/consu.php?interaction_category=9&detail=61