Drotaverine in pregnancy

Drotaverine is prescribed during pregnancy to relieve nagging pain in the lower abdomen and spasms of the uterus or cervix. The causes of muscle spasms are very diverse (constipation, gastrointestinal problems, cystitis, etc.). Like all medications, drotaverine has contraindications and side effects.

Drotaverine is a synthetic antispasmodic, an effective vasodilator. The drug helps reduce spasms of smooth muscles of internal organs. Usually, drotaverine effectively eliminates pain and discomfort associated with spasms of smooth muscles or. The drug also lowers blood pressure, dilates blood vessels and improves blood circulation.

It is not advisable to use such a drug during pregnancy, but there are still situations in which the benefit of the drug for the mother significantly exceeds the possible risk to the unborn child. The drug is effective in the case of a threat of miscarriage, in case of difficulty in opening the cervix during childbirth, to relieve postpartum contractions. The drug, acting directly on smooth muscles, removes tone (tension), reduces intestinal activity, and dilates blood vessels.

Drotaverine is a domestic drug, in Hungary an analogue of the drug is produced under the name No-shpa (a more familiar drug to us), the chemical composition of the drugs is absolutely identical. Many women do not even suspect that there is a drug completely identical to No-shpa, only much cheaper.

Dosage of drotaverine during pregnancy

Drotaverine is taken orally, on average the drug is prescribed up to 6 tablets per day (240 mg), depending on the disease and the severity of the condition.

Drotaverine during pregnancy in the first trimester is usually prescribed in the form of tablets. Indications for prescribing drotaverine are nagging, aching pain in the lower abdomen of a pregnant woman, increased uterine tone, which leads to the threat of spontaneous rejection of the fetus, oxygen starvation of the child, as well as to facilitate labor, etc. If the drug is not effective enough, drotaverine is prescribed in the form of injections, usually 10 ml twice a day. If drotaverine does not have the expected effect, a specialist can increase the dosage, if this does not lead to effective treatment, another drug is selected. Drotaverine removes spasms of internal organs, which are the cause of abdominal pain. Unpleasant sensations can be associated with uterine tone, dysfunction of the intestines or other internal organs, the work of which is greatly influenced by hormones during this period.

[ 3 ], [ 4 ], [ 5 ], [ 6 ]

Is it possible to take drotaverine during pregnancy?

You cannot take drotaverine on your own during pregnancy. It should be prescribed only by a specialist, after a preliminary examination and a thorough study of the pregnant woman's medical history. Drotaverine has a number of side effects and before prescribing the drug, the doctor should carefully consider all possible consequences. In some cases, drotaverine lowers blood pressure, provokes arrhythmia, dizziness, the drug is not prescribed for cardiac and renal failure, cardiac conduction disorders, increased susceptibility to the components of the drug.

Self-administration of drotaverine (as well as analogues of the drug) can disrupt the clinical picture, which in the future will lead to a discrepancy between complaints and the woman's condition. In Hungary, a number of studies were conducted that were aimed at studying the effect of the drug on the fetus during the first months of pregnancy. As it turned out, the drug does not cause significant damage and abnormalities in the development of the child. The drug is used during pregnancy only in the CIS countries, in other countries the drug is either not registered or prohibited during pregnancy. However, as practice shows, the use of drotaverine effectively helps to remove hypertonicity of the uterus, which leads to oxygen starvation of the fetus and has been widely used by specialists for a long time.

Instructions for drotaverine during pregnancy

The active substance of the drug is drotaverine hydrochloride.

The drug is used mainly for gastrointestinal disorders and has an antispasmodic effect.

Drotaverine reduces the tone and spasms of smooth muscles of internal organs, completely eliminates or significantly reduces the pain associated with this, has a moderate vasodilatory effect. The drug does not affect the autonomic nervous system when taken.

The drug is prescribed for diseases that are accompanied by spasms of internal organs. The drug is also used as an auxiliary agent for gynecological diseases, gastrointestinal diseases (ulcers, gastritis, constipation, flatulence, etc.), to reduce tension during headaches.

Adults are usually prescribed 1-2 tablets 2 or 3 times a day.

Children and adolescents aged 12 to 18 years are usually prescribed one tablet 2 to 3 times a day.

The course of treatment depends on the disease and the severity of the disease; in each case, the doctor must determine the individual duration of treatment.

Side effects, when using the drug in doses recommended by the doctor, develop extremely rarely. In rare cases, blood pressure may decrease, hot flashes (heat), allergic rashes may appear.

Very rarely, arrhythmia, constipation, nausea, headaches and dizziness, sleep disturbances, and possible swelling of the nasal mucosa or bronchospasms are observed.

Drotaverine is contraindicated in cases of hypersensitivity of the body to the active substance, dysfunction of the heart or kidneys, lactase deficiency, prostatic hyperplasia, closed-angle glaucoma, during breastfeeding in children under 12 years of age.

Drotaverine can be used during pregnancy only after a doctor’s prescription, who will assess the positive effect of the drug on the mother’s body and the possible risks to the fetus and make the most correct decision in each specific case.

There is no data on taking the drug during breastfeeding, since no studies have been conducted in this area, so women are not recommended to use drotaverine during this time to treat and relieve unpleasant symptoms or to refrain from breastfeeding during treatment.

An overdose of the drug is manifested by pale skin, nausea and vomiting, difficulty breathing, AV block, paralysis of the respiratory center, cardiac arrest. On average, after three days, symptoms of liver damage appear. Negative consequences are eliminated by washing the stomach, taking saline solutions. In case of an overdose of the drug, it is imperative to consult a doctor.

Drotaverine is available in the form of tablets or injections, the shelf life is no more than three years in a place protected from light and heat.

Composition of the drug: the main substance is drotavrein hydrochloride, which is contained in one tablet of 40 or 80 mg. Potato starch, calcium stearate, microcrystalline cellulose, etc. are used as auxiliary substances.

The drug should be used with extreme caution in cases of existing arterial hypotension and coronary atherosclerosis.

If you need to reduce the pain as quickly as possible, you should not take the medicine during meals. It is not recommended to exceed the prescribed dosage of the drug. You cannot take drotaverine simultaneously with alcoholic beverages.

If the drug is used for more than three days or in high doses, it is necessary to monitor the liver condition and perform a blood test.

Drotaverine injections during pregnancy

In medicine, a solution of the drug for injections is widely used together with drotaverine tablets. It is not recommended to give injections on your own, since in case of an overdose, weakening of cardiac activity and respiratory depression may occur. Drotaverine injections are given both intramuscularly and intravenously. It is recommended to administer the drug under the supervision of a doctor in a hospital setting. Since there is a risk of collapse, the patient should be in a lying position during the administration of the drug.

After administration of the drug (especially after intravenous injections), you should refrain from driving a car and from operating complex machinery for at least one hour.

The drug is used with caution in cases of coronary artery atherosclerosis and closed-angle glaucoma. Drotaverine is used during pregnancy only after a doctor's prescription has been issued, who will decide that the benefits to the mother outweigh the possible risks to the developing child. Since there is no precise data on the use of the drug during lactation, taking the drug is not recommended. If there is an urgent need, breastfeeding is stopped for the duration of treatment with drotaverine.

After drotaverine injections (especially intravenous), a feeling of heat, headache, dizziness, heart rhythm disturbances, sleep disturbances, increased sweating, nausea (sometimes vomiting), constipation may occur. People with increased sensitivity to bisulfites may experience allergic reactions, patients who suffer from asthma or have had severe allergic reactions in the past may develop bronchospasms or anaphylactic reactions of the body.

Drotaverine tablets during pregnancy

One drotaverine tablet may contain from 40 to 80 mg of the active substance (drotaverine hydrochloride). When taken orally, the absorption of the drug is quite high, the effect can be observed after 15-20 minutes. Drotaverine during pregnancy in the form of tablets is usually prescribed in the first months of pregnancy with hypertonicity of the uterus, the threat of spontaneous abortion, nagging pain in the lower abdomen, etc. At later stages, drotaverine is used in the form of injections. The drug allows a woman to quickly get rid of nagging or aching pain in the lower abdomen, which occurs most often with increased uterine tone. Since the drug has a relaxing effect on smooth muscles, after taking drotaverine removes uterine spasm, relaxes the muscles, thereby reducing pain and maintaining pregnancy in the early stages.

The drug has a targeted effect on smooth muscles, reduces intestinal activity, slightly dilates blood vessels, and reduces uterine tone. Drotaverine tablets are light yellow and flat. They are usually prescribed 1-2 tablets 2-3 times a day. If the pain in the lower abdomen is severe enough, the doctor may increase the dose of the drug.

[ 1 ], [ 2 ]

Reviews of drotaverine during pregnancy

Usually, reviews of the drug are very diverse. Women who took drotaverine during pregnancy can be divided into two types: the first are those for whom the drug helped to save the child and carry it to term, get rid of nagging pain in the lower abdomen, facilitated the birth process, etc. and the second, for whom drotaverine did not bring the expected effect.

Before taking any medications, first of all, you need to consult a specialist, because, as already mentioned, self-administration of medications can affect the clinical picture, an incorrect assessment of which can lead to the doctor not prescribing timely and effective treatment.

Drotaverine in the CIS countries is considered a completely safe medicine for women who are pregnant, but even doctors do not recommend taking it without urgent need. When a doctor prescribes drotaverine to you, but you doubt the safety of such treatment, you have the right to ask a specialist to select a safer treatment.

Drotaverine is used quite widely in medical practice during pregnancy. Tablets are most often prescribed in the first month of pregnancy, when a woman may have increased uterine tone, there is a risk of termination of pregnancy, etc. The drug effectively removes spasms, relaxes smooth muscles and allows you to save the child in the early stages. In the second and third trimester, as well as during labor and after childbirth, drotaverine injections are most often used, which have a stronger effect.