The life of a modern person is full of stressful situations when outside help in the form of special medications becomes a necessity. One such remedy is Afobazole tablets. Instructions for use, reviews of them are discussed below.
Pharmacological form of the drug
According to the instructions for use, Afobazole can be purchased online in pharmacies in the form of tablets. Each unit of the drug has a rounded flat shape, processed at the edges in a chamfer. The color of the tablets is white, may have a slightly creamy tint. One package includes 60 tablets, placed in 20 pieces in individual plastic foil-coated cells.
Pharmacological group
Specialists have developed the separation of drugs depending on their pharmaceutical affiliation. The division into pharmacological groups of drugs is carried out in accordance with their purpose, that is, the effect exerted on the human body. Instructions for use with Afobazole indicate that it belongs to the pharmacological group of tranquilizers as an anxiolytic agent.
What works in the drug?
Medicines that help normalize the mental state, relieving anxiety, increased irritability, have been used since ancient times, probably from the birth of medicine as a science and practice. Pharmacists are developing many drugs that are based on different substances, but have a similar end result in the form of a successful fight against stress and anxiety.
Afobazole tablets have exactly this effect. Instructions for use indicate that they contain the active substance fabomotizole. It was obtained at the beginning of the 21st century at the Research Institute of Pharmacology of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Its synthesis was the result of a long-term search for a substance that has an anti-anxiety effect, but does not have side effects, as it is widely used in the treatment of anxiety states of benzodiazepine. Currently, this substance is part of the drug, which is produced in Russia under the name "Afobazol".
In the instructions for the use of contraindications, side effects of this drug are described by the manufacturer of Otisifarm PJSC. But given the fact that no randomized controlled trials have been performed for fabomotizole, this medicine is not the first choice drug. The ability of the active substance to interact with certain components of the human body was investigated by the French company CEREP using radioligand analysis.
For the patient and specialist, all the necessary information will be described in sufficient detail about the Afobazol preparation by the instructions for use. Contraindications to this medicine should be considered when choosing a therapy. The active component of fabomotizole is contained in one 10 mg tablet. In addition, the manufacturer includes:
- collidone 25;
- potato starch;
- magnesium stearate;
- microcrystalline cellulose;
- lactose monohydrate;
- medical polyvinylpyrrolidone
All these substances do not have therapeutic value, but are used as forming components.
How does the active substance work?
In recent years, very often, many of those who seek the help of medical professionals are prescribed the drug Afobazol as an anti-anxiety medication . Instructions for use, enclosed by the manufacturer in each pack of tablets, indicate that fabomotizole, the substance of the latest generation of anxiolytics, works in it. According to the conducted radioligand studies, it contributes to the inhibition of functionality:
- sigma-1 receptors;
- MT-1 receptors (type 1 melatonin receptor);
- MT-3 receptors (type 3 melatonin receptor).
Fabomotizole also inhibits MAO-A. It should be noted that officially the action of the drug as an inhibitor of monoamine oxidase - a substance of nerve endings - and MT-3 receptors is not confirmed. This action of the active substance is due to its chemical structure C 15 H 21 N 3 O 2 S and the antagonistic ability to type 1 and type 3 melatonin receptors, as well as the ability to stabilize the membranes of nerve cells, which makes them more sensitive to special substances - inhibitory mediators, which provides recovery of emotional state. Taking the drug does not affect muscle tone and cognitive functions of the human body, does not cause drowsiness.
What is the path of medication in the body?
Once in the body through the gastrointestinal tract, the medicine "Afobazole" is quickly absorbed into the systemic circulation, starting its work. Without exerting a negative effect on cellular structures, it is rapidly excreted, the half-life of the drug is less than an hour. Due to its good absorption in the systemic circulation, this substance easily penetrates into the vascular organs, that is, having a wide circulatory network of blood vessels and capillaries, quickly passing from blood plasma to nerve receptors. The instruction for the use of Afobazole tablets stipulates that the active substance is engaged in a kind of “repair” of nerve cell receptors, activating their sensitivity to inhibitory mediators.
In the human body, fabomotizole passes through the liver twice. In the first round, the substance partially undergoes metabolic decomposition, as a result of which the processes of hydroxylation along the aromatic ring of the benzimidazole ring and oxidation along the morpholine fragment occur. The drug is excreted mainly with feces and with urine in the form of metabolites and partially unchanged.
When is the drug prescribed?
Tells all the necessary information about the drug "Afobazol" instructions for use. Analogues of this drug should also have the necessary explanations from the manufacturer and belong to the same pharmacological group - anxiolytics. These drugs are used to suppress the severity of anxiety, fear, anxiety, emotional stress in psychiatric and psychological practices. The drug "Afobazole" does not belong to the preferred drugs of this group. But given that he is allowed to leave the pharmacy network without a specialist’s prescription, in many cases he is recommended for use for stopping:
- anxiety
- depressed mood;
- nervous tension;
- nervousness
- irritability;
- anxiety.
The manufacturer especially notes the importance of the drug for people with a labile psyche, suspicious and sensitive, vulnerable and insecure. Afobazole can help cope with such manifestations of emotional disturbance as sweating, dry mouth, dizziness, insomnia, and fear. It helps to normalize concentration and memory, reduce somatic problems in the form of respiratory, motor, muscle, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, sensory disturbances.
Are there any contraindications?
As with any other medicinal product, all the necessary information important for the patient and for the specialist contains instructions for use for Afobazole tablets. Contraindications are also described by the manufacturer in the insert for the drug:
- lactase deficiency;
- glucose-galactose malabsorption;
- galactose intolerance;
- sensitivity to the active component or other substances that make up the tablets.
Due to insufficient knowledge of the actions of fabomotizole exerted on the human body, in childhood, in particular, it is forbidden to take children under 18 years of age. For the same reason, as well as due to good penetration into vascular organs, the drug should not be taken by pregnant women. You should refrain from using Afobazole for young mothers who are breast-feeding a baby.
How to take the medicine?
Recently, often enough to help in stressful and anxious situations, people are recommended to use the drug "Afobazole". The instructions for use clearly describe the treatment regimen: the medicine is taken 1 tablet in 10 mg 1 to 3 times a day. Therapy should be course, since the first significant improvements in the patient's condition are observed after 5-8 days from the start of treatment. The duration of the course can be 3 months, but its duration must be agreed with the doctor. The drug should be taken immediately after eating, drinking plenty of water.
In case of overdose
Some people believe that taking more tablets or increasing a single dose of the drug, they can accelerate the onset of the desired therapeutic effect. But this is not at all true. Violation of the dosage of treatment with Afobazole (more than 3 tablets of 10 mg per day) can lead to the following consequences:
- strong sedation;
- excessive drowsiness.
Unlike some other sedatives, an overdose of Afobazole does not cause muscle weakness or impaired motor activity. If an overdose accidentally or intentionally still occurs, it is recommended that the patient be injected subcutaneously 2-4 times a day with a 20% solution of caffeine sodium benzoate in an amount of 1 ml per 1 injection. If necessary, the patient should be placed in a medical facility under the supervision of medical personnel.
Possible negative consequences
Both for the doctor and the patient, it is important that the instructions for use be studied before starting the course of therapy with the Afobazole drug. Side effects of the drug should be considered during treatment. As a negative effect of the drug, allergic reactions can occur, in extremely rare cases, patients noted the development of a headache, which took place on its own or with painkillers.
As noted in the annotation for Afobazole tablets, the drug does not interact with ethanol and sodium thiopental (a substance used for ultrashort anesthesia). This anti-stress agent activates the anticonvulsant activity of carbamazepine, as well as the anxiolytic effect of diazepam.
How to buy and store medicine?
A feature of the drug "Afobazole" is that it is assigned to the group of anxiolytics. But unlike similar drugs, with their active components mainly substances from the benzodiazepine group that can cause patient’s addiction, fabomotizole is not addictive, although its action, declared by the manufacturer, is classified by the World Health Organization in the drug classifier under the code N05BX04, that is, it belonging to the group of other anxiolytics is officially confirmed.
Thanks to its active component, Afobazol can be purchased in pharmacies without a prescription. Pills should be stored in the packaging in which they were purchased at a temperature of not more than 25 0 C, so that children could not get them. The shelf life of this medicine is only 2 years from the date of manufacture. After its expiration, the tablets must be disposed of as household waste, they can not be taken!
What do patients say about the medicine?
All medicines without fail have an annotation from the manufacturer. Informative instructions for the use of the drug "Afobazole". Contraindications, side effects, regimen of pills - all this describes the package insert in the medicine. Since the drug is in demand among sedatives dispensed without a prescription, people leave a lot of reviews about it.
Those patients who used it in the treatment of anxiety, anxiety, almost always note that "side effects" are extremely rare, making this a big plus for this medicine. Unfortunately, to say that this medicine has mainly only positive feedback is not possible. Many of those who decided to cope with stress with the help of Afobazol consider it ineffective. Some do not like the fact that they do not have instant effects, since the first results of drug therapy appear only on the 5-8th day after the start of its use. Among the positive aspects, those to whom the medicine helped to cope with negative emotions and conditions note that the medicine is quite economical - packing 60 tablets costs about 300-350 rubles.
The opinion of experts
All the information necessary for the patient is told about the anti-stress medication "Afobazol", instructions for use and reviews of doctors. Contraindications are considered the main point at which the medicine is not suitable for many patients, as many experts say. Moreover, it is effective only in mild forms of anxiety, nervousness, and increased irritability. If the patient suffers from deep depression, these pills can not help him.
Are there any analogues?
Describes the main active component of the drug "Afobazol" instructions for use. Analogue tablets should contain fabomotizole as a working substance, but in pharmacies there are no such drugs, except for the specified drug. There are drugs that have similar effects and are also available over the counter. These include Tenoten, NovoPassit, Persen. If the doctor prescribes tranquilizers for use, in which any derivative of the diazepine series enters into the active component, then for its acquisition a prescription is strictly necessary. These are drugs such as Adaptol, Sibazon, Relanium and many others.
One of the modern OTC drugs that help people to normalize their condition in a stressful situation and increased nervousness are Afobazol tablets. Instructions for use indicate that they contain a substance such as fabomotizole. Unfortunately, no randomized controlled trials were conducted for this drug, and therefore the evidence base for its effectiveness is insufficient to consider it fully effective for prescribing as the first choice drug.