The Androcur medicine refers to antiandrogenic drugs. It has the ability to reduce the activity of male sex hormones, which are androgens, they are also found in small quantities in the body of women. In addition to antiandrogenic effects, the drug is a strong antigonadotropic.
Thus, due to the use of this drug by men, they have a decrease in sexual activity and functional ability of the testes. However, after the cessation of treatment with this medicine, the work of the male genital organs is restored.
The treatment of women is aimed at reducing the androgenic effect on the body, which manifests itself in the termination of male and female excess hair growth on the face and body, the prevention or elimination of the hormonal causes of baldness, the decrease in the activity of the sebaceous glands and the inhibition of ovarian function, which can lead to the onset of menopause previously laid term.
The instruction for Androkur will be presented in this article.
Indications for use
This drug is widely used in medicine for the treatment of many diseases associated with increased production of androgens in the body. Depending on the complexity and stage of a particular disease, it can be prescribed in various forms of release and doses.
The Androkur drug is used for:
- excessive body hair, including faces, in women;
- baldness, which is androgenic in nature;
- seborrhea;
- acne
In cases where therapy with this medication does not help, it is prescribed as an auxiliary drug in the main treatment.
As indicated by the instructions for use, "Androkur" in large doses can be prescribed in the treatment of cancer of the prostate, in cases where surgical intervention is contraindicated. The same indications apply to metastatic and inoperable pathologies of this organ, including after orchiectomy.
Androcur oil solution is used as a means of reducing sexual activity in the detection of prostate carcinoma.
The composition of the drug "Androkur"
The instruction reports that this medication can be purchased at the pharmacy in tablet form at a dosage of 10, 50, as well as 100 mg. In addition to tablets, the drug is available in the form of an oil solution for injection. The tablets have a rounded shape, with a dividing line in the middle, as well as embossed in the form of a hexagon containing the letters "BW" inside. The color of the tablets is white or pale yellow.
The composition of one tablet includes:
- cyproterone acetate micro 10–20 mg;
- lactose monohydrate;
- polyvidone;
- potato starch.
The medicine is packaged in a cardboard box, and the tablets themselves are in an aluminum blister containing 15 of them.
A medicine with a dosage of 50 and 100 mg looks the same, but the package contains 10 tablets.
The oily solution of the drug for injection looks like a transparent, and sometimes a light yellow liquid that does not have a pungent odor. This solution is packaged in dark glass ampoules, in a volume of 3 ml each. These ampoules are packaged in three pieces in special cellular containers that are placed in cardboard boxes. This form of the drug involves the content in one ampoule of 100 mg of the main active substance of the specified drug. In this case, benzyl benzoate and castor oil are used as auxiliary substances.
Pharmacological properties of the drug
According to the instructions to Androkur 10 mg, it helps to reduce the effects of androgens, which can be produced in the body of women. This explains the fact that it is widely used to combat common female genital diseases associated with hormonal imbalance. The drug "Androkur" treat deviations that were triggered by androgens or by an increased sensitivity of the body to these hormones. Such disorders include increased facial hair growth in women, acne of a hormonal origin, seborrhea, which is also caused by the effects of increased production of androgens, in particular, increased secretory activity of the sebaceous glands. With joint treatment with the drug "Diane-35", which is often prescribed by endocrinologists, there is an active attenuation of ovarian function.
What else does the instruction for use with Androkur say?
A drug in doses of 50 mg and 100 mg is used, as a rule, in the treatment of males. The active substance in this case suspends the action of androgens against the so-called "target organs". For example, they do not allow the influence of hormones of the adrenal glands and sex hormones on the prostate gland, which is a very relevant measure in the treatment of cancerous tumors of this organ. In addition, the pharmacological effect of this drug involves a decrease in sexual function in men and testicular performance. However, such phenomena in the male body are temporary and pass after the cancellation of the Androkur medicine.
Instructions for use also indicate that the bioavailability of the drug is 89%, and the highest concentration of active substances in the patient’s blood is observed after a maximum of 3 hours after its absorption. The withdrawal of the active substance, as well as other auxiliary components of the drug, occurs in two stages: the first stage takes about a day in time, and the second from three to five days. Medicinal substances are modified through the work of the liver, after which they are excreted from the body through the work of the urinary system. A small amount of the components of the drug remains unchanged and comes out with bile.
What is the use of Androkur?
Dosage and administration
The medication in the form of tablets is taken orally, and should be washed down with plenty of water. In cases where the patient is worsening while taking the medicine, treatment with this drug should be stopped and consult a doctor. "Androkur" can sometimes be prescribed as a method of contraception, as well as to stop prolonged uterine bleeding. In this case, it will be advisable to prescribe the drug in conjunction with oral contraceptives.
In all such situations, both drugs should be taken from the first day of the menstrual cycle, and it is drunk from the first to the fifteenth day, and oral contraceptives - in accordance with the instructions for them. On the eighth day from the onset of menstruation, both drugs are started again, even if the menstruation has not yet ended. The instruction to Androkur confirms this.
If oral contraception was missed, you should take it the next day, or at the moment when the woman remembered this. If more than twelve hours have passed since the last contraceptive intake, their effect may be impaired, but stop taking these medications. Missed oral contraceptives do not affect the pharmacological effect of the Androkur drug. Nevertheless, if this medication was forgotten, then the tablets continue to be taken according to the usual scheme, because if you drink a missed tablet, unwanted bleeding can begin.
The therapeutic effect of taking these drugs together helps to accelerate the treatment of acne and seborrhea. However, baldness in women associated with the action of androgens takes much longer to heal.
According to the instructions for use, Androkur tablets in a dosage of 50 mg and 100 mg are taken daily at 200 mg in one dose. This pattern of drug use is indicated for men suffering from cancer of the prostate gland. If the patient has persistent remission of the disease, treatment is not recommended to be discontinued, nor is it advisable to reduce his dose. To eliminate discomfort after an orchiectomy procedure, the Androkur medicine is used, as a rule, at a dose of 50-100 mg per day.
In cases of hyperactivity libido, the drug can be prescribed 50 mg twice a day, however, in situations where the therapeutic effect is not achieved, the dose is increased to 10-150 mg per day. For the same purpose, the drug "Androkur Depot" is taken. This medicine is available in the form of a solution for injection and in this case, 300 mg (1 ampoule) can be prescribed to the patient, once every two weeks.
Treatment with Androkur during pregnancy
The use of this medication during pregnancy is contraindicated, since the substances that make up it can provoke hormonal disorders in the fetus. In cases where treatment with the specified drug is necessary during breastfeeding, the lactation process must be interrupted.
Contraindications
According to the Androkur instruction, 50 mg should be stopped if the patient develops the following diseases:
- thromboembolism;
- liver and gall bladder diseases;
- severe forms of depressive states and nervous disorders;
- diabetes mellitus complicated by diseases of blood vessels and heart;
- sickle cell anemia;
- hypersensitivity to one or more components of the drug;
- idiopathic jaundice.
Acceptance of the Androkur drug in doses of 50 mg and 100 mg is contraindicated in the presence of the following diseases and disorders of the body:
- rotor syndrome;
- severe forms of diabetes;
- cachexia;
- development of Dubinin-Johnson disease;
- thromboembolism;
- thrombosis;
- violation of the liver;
- renal failure;
- severe forms of depression;
- drug intolerance.
What else does the 10 mg instructions describe for Androkur?
Before you start taking the drug, you need to take some laboratory tests to determine the properties of blood coagulability, as well as other indicators, to exclude the development of concomitant diseases. In addition, the patient needs the advice of a qualified doctor who will determine the dose at which the Androkur medicine should be taken.
In addition, patients who are undergoing treatment with a medication need to conduct control tests of the functionality of the liver and adrenal glands.
It is not advisable to prescribe this drug to children under the age of puberty, since their endocrine system is still insufficiently developed and stable.
The interaction of the drug with other medicines
The entry into the patient’s blood of the active substances of this medication significantly reduces the effect of hypoglycemic drugs or insulin. In addition, the hormonal functions of the drug increase when taken together with GnRH agonists, and there is also a decrease in testosterone synthesis.
Side effects
Side effects from the use of the Androkur drug include:
- pain in the abdomen;
- digestive disorders of the body, including nausea;
- complete lack of sexual desire;
- gynecomastia;
- changes in body weight;
- mood swings;
- decreased attention span;
- osteoporosis;
- increased feelings of anxiety and apathy;
- high fatigue;
- dry skin
- emetic manifestations;
- menstrual bleeding.
We reviewed the instructions to Androkur.
Reviews
Most patients treated with this drug are not sure of its effectiveness. In this case, there are more negative reviews than positive ones, and this is due to the fact that the drug refers to hormonal agents for reducing androgenic function.
The female half of all those who shared their opinion about the drug believes that the main therapeutic effect when used together with oral contraceptives appears to be just them, and not the Androkur medication. Nevertheless, some of them nevertheless spoke out in favor of this drug, describing it as a very effective medication with very detailed instructions. Reviews about Androkur do not end there.
Men are unhappy with the drug because its effect affects the function of the genitals, which negatively affects the quality of life and causes emotional discomfort.
In addition, negative reviews androkur reviews contain information that the drug is too expensive, and not everyone can afford to buy it.
Many patients complained of side effects from taking the medicine, one of which is the development of depressive states and nervous disorders. Such information is also in the instructions for use. Analogs of Androkur will be considered below.
Drug Analogs
This medication has the only analogue, which is the drug Cyproterone. This medication also has antiandrogenic properties, and almost completely blocks the production of these hormones. In addition, it has a progestogenic effect on the hormonal background.
The downside of this medication is that if overdose occurs, serious liver pathologies occur.
The article describes instructions for use with Androkur, reviews and analogues.