Get your patient on Propranolol Hydrochloride - Propranolol Hydrochloride tablet (Propranolol Hydrochloride)

Propranolol hydrochloride tablets, USP are indicated in the management of hypertension. They may be used alone or used in combination with other antihypertensive agents, particularly a thiazide diuretic. Propranolol hydrochloride tablets, USP are not indicated in the management of hypertensive emergencies.

Propranolol hydrochloride tablets, USP are indicated to decrease angina frequency and increase exercise tolerance in patients with angina pectoris.

Propranolol hydrochloride tablets, USP are indicated to control ventricular rate in patients with atrial fibrillation and a rapid ventricular response.

Propranolol hydrochloride tablets, USP are indicated to reduce cardiovascular mortality in patients who have survived the acute phase of myocardial infarction and are clinically stable.

Propranolol hydrochloride tablets, USP are indicated for the prophylaxis of common migraine headache. The efficacy of propranolol in the treatment of a migraine attack that has started has not been established, and propranolol is not indicated for such use.

Propranolol hydrochloride tablets, USP are indicated in the management of familial or hereditary essential tremor. Familial or essential tremor consists of involuntary, rhythmic, oscillatory movements, usually limited to the upper limbs. It is absent at rest, but occurs when the limb is held in a fixed posture or position against gravity and during active movement. Propranolol hydrochloride causes a reduction in the tremor amplitude, but not in the tremor frequency. Propranolol hydrochloride tablets, USP are not indicated for the treatment of tremor associated with Parkinsonism.

Propranolol hydrochloride tablets, USP improves NYHA functional class in symptomatic patients with hypertrophic subaortic stenosis.

Propranolol hydrochloride tablets, USP are indicated as an adjunct to alpha-adrenergic blockade to control blood pressure and reduce symptoms of catecholamine-secreting tumors.

Because of the variable bioavailability of propranolol, the dose should be individualized based on response.

The usual initial dosage is 40 mg propranolol hydrochloride twice daily, whether used alone or added to a diuretic. Dosage may be increased gradually until adequate blood pressure control is achieved. The usual maintenance dosage is 120 mg to 240 mg per day. In some instances a dosage of 640 mg a day may be required. The time needed for full antihypertensive response to a given dosage is variable and may range from a few days to several weeks.

While twice-daily dosing is effective and can maintain a reduction in blood pressure throughout the day, some patients, especially when lower doses are used, may experience a modest rise in blood pressure toward the end of the 12 hour dosing interval. This can be evaluated by measuring blood pressure near the end of the dosing interval to determine whether satisfactory control is being maintained throughout the day. If control is not adequate, a larger dose, or 3 times daily therapy may achieve better control.

Total daily doses of 80 mg to 320 mg propranolol hydrochloride, when administered orally, twice a day, three times a day, or four times a day, have been shown to increase exercise tolerance and to reduce ischemic changes in the ECG. If treatment is to be discontinued, reduce dosage gradually over a period of several weeks (see WARNINGS ).

The recommended dose is 10 mg to 30 mg propranolol hydrochloride three or four times daily before meals and at bedtime.

In the Beta-Blocker Heart Attack Trial (BHAT), the initial dose was 40 mg t.i.d., with titration after 1 month to 60 mg to 80 mg t.i.d. as tolerated. The recommended daily dosage is 180 mg to 240 mg propranolol hydrochloride per day in divided doses. Although a t.i.d. regimen was used in the BHAT and a q.i.d. regimen in the Norwegian Multicenter Trial, there is a reasonable basis for the use of either a t.i.d. or b.i.d. regimen (see PHARMACODYNAMICS AND CLINICAL EFFECTS ). The effectiveness and safety of daily dosages greater than 240 mg for prevention of cardiac mortality have not been established. However, higher dosages may be needed to effectively treat coexisting diseases such as angina or hypertension (see above).

The initial dose is 80 mg propranolol hydrochloride daily in divided doses. The usual effective dose range is 160 mg to 240 mg per day. The dosage may be increased gradually to achieve optimum migraine prophylaxis. If a satisfactory response is not obtained within four to six weeks after reaching the maximum dose, propranolol hydrochloride therapy should be discontinued. It may be advisable to withdraw the drug gradually over a period of several weeks.

The initial dosage is 40 mg propranolol hydrochloride twice daily. Optimum reduction of essential tremor is usually achieved with a dose of 120 mg per day.

Occasionally, it may be necessary to administer 240 mg to 320 mg per day.

The usual dosage is 20 mg to 40 mg propranolol hydrochloride three or four times daily before meals and at bedtime.

The usual dosage is 60 mg propranolol hydrochloride daily in divided doses for three days prior to surgery as adjunctive therapy to alpha-adrenergic blockade. For the management of inoperable tumors, the usual dosage is 30 mg daily in divided doses as adjunctive therapy to alpha-adrenergic blockade.

Bradycardia; congestive heart failure; intensification of AV block; hypotension; paresthesia of hands; thrombocytopenic purpura; arterial insufficiency, usually of the Raynaud type.

Light-headedness, mental depression manifested by insomnia, lassitude, weakness, fatigue; catatonia; visual disturbances; hallucinations; vivid dreams; an acute reversible syndrome characterized  by disorientation for time and place, short-term memory loss, emotional lability, slightly clouded sensorium, and decreased performance on neuropsychometrics. For immediate- release formulations, fatigue, lethargy, and vivid dreams appear dose-related.

Nausea, vomiting, epigastric distress, abdominal cramping, diarrhea, constipation, mesenteric arterial thrombosis, ischemic colitis.

Hypersensitivity reactions, including anaphylactic/anaphylactoid reactions, pharyngitis and agranulocytosis; erythematous rash, fever combined with aching and sore throat; laryngospasm, and respiratory distress.

Bronchospasm

Agranulocytosis, nonthrombocytopenic purpura, thrombocytopenic purpura.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Stevens-Johnson syndrome, toxic epidermal necrolysis, dry eyes, exfoliative dermatitis, erythema multiforme, urticaria, alopecia, SLE-like reactions, and psoriasiform rashes. Oculomucocutaneous syndrome involving the skin, serous membranes and conjunctivae reported for a beta blocker (practolol) have not been associated with propranolol.

Male impotence; Peyronie’s disease.

To report SUSPECTED ADVERSE REACTIONS, contact Innogenix, LLC. at 1-844-466-6469 or FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 or www.fda.gov/medwatch.

Propranolol is a nonselective beta-adrenergic receptor blocking agent possessing no other autonomic nervous system activity. It specifically competes with beta-adrenergic receptor agonist agents for available receptor sites. When access to beta-receptor sites is blocked by propranolol, the chronotropic, inotropic, and vasodilator responses to beta-adrenergic stimulation are decreased proportionately. At dosages greater than required for beta-blockade, propranolol also exerts a quinidine-like or anesthetic-like membrane action, which affects the cardiac action potential. The significance of the membrane action in the treatment of arrhythmias is uncertain.

The mechanism of the antihypertensive effect of propranolol has not been established. Factors that may contribute to the antihypertensive action include: (1) decreased cardiac output, (2) inhibition of renin release by the kidneys, and (3) diminution of tonic sympathetic nerve outflow from vasomotor centers in the brain. Although total peripheral resistance may increase initially, it readjusts to or below the pretreatment level with chronic use of propranolol. Effects of propranolol on plasma volume appear to be minor and somewhat variable.

In angina pectoris, propranolol generally reduces the oxygen requirement of the heart at any given level of effort by blocking the catecholamine-induced increases in the heart rate, systolic blood pressure, and the velocity and extent of myocardial contraction. Propranolol may increase oxygen requirements by increasing left ventricular fiber length, end diastolic pressure, and systolic ejection period. The net physiologic effect of beta-adrenergic blockade is usually advantageous and is manifested during exercise by delayed onset of pain and increased work capacity.

Propranolol exerts its antiarrhythmic effects in concentrations associated with beta-adrenergic blockade, and this appears to be its principal antiarrhythmic mechanism of action. In dosages greater than required for beta-blockade, propranolol also exerts a quinidine-like or anesthetic-like membrane action, which affects the cardiac action potential. The significance of the membrane action in the treatment of arrhythmias is uncertain.

The mechanism of the antimigraine effect of propranolol has not been established. Beta-adrenergic receptors have been demonstrated in the pial vessels of the brain.

The specific mechanism of propranolol’s antitremor effects has not been established, but beta-2 (noncardiac) receptors may be involved. A central effect is also possible. Clinical studies have demonstrated that propranolol hydrochloride is of benefit in exaggerated physiological and essential (familial) tremor.