Brain injuries, stress, anxiety, alcohol abuse, drug addiction, a genetic predisposition - all these factors can cause schizophrenia and other mental disorders. The drug “Clozapine” will help to correct the situation and cure the person from such serious problems. This is an antipsychotic drug that should only be used under the supervision and control of a doctor. Today we learn everything about this medication: its release form, rules of use, analogues, cost.
When can it be useful?
The drug "Clozapine", the instructions for use of which are placed in the insert, can be prescribed by a doctor with the following problems:
- schizophrenia at any stage;
- psychoses;
- sleep disorders;
- depression;
- psychomotor agitation;
- emotional and behavioral disorder.
Components, release form, manufacturing country
The main component of the drug is clozapine.
The drug is produced in the form of:
- tablets of 25, 50, 100 mg, the package may contain 10, 50 or 100 pills;
- granules for children (in 500 mg bags);
- solution for injection (in ampoules of 2 ml).
The medicine is produced in India, Russia, Germany.
Instructions for use of tablets
The dosage of the drug “clozapine” is set individually. Typically, the daily norm is from 200 to 400 g. The first time the doctor prescribes 25-50 mg, gradually bringing to the desired dose over 1 or 2 weeks.
After the main course of therapy, the doctor may prescribe supportive treatment, in which it will be necessary to take from 25 to 200 mg of the drug.
In small daily doses, the drug “Clozapine”, the instructions for use of which should always be in the package, is taken with:
- renal, hepatic or heart failure;
cerebrovascular disorders;
- sleep problems.
The daily dose should not be more than 600 mg.
Instructions for use of the solution and granules
The medicine "Clozapine" can be used for injection. The drug is administered by a nurse intravenously in 2 ml.
For children, this medicine is prescribed in the form of a solution. To do this, pour the granules from the bag into a glass, pour them with 10 ml of water, stir well. For 1 dose, you can drink from 5 to 20 mg of the drug, depending on the age of the child. However, the maximum daily allowance for children should not be more than 100 mg of Clozapine. A prescription from a doctor is a prerequisite when buying this medication in any form of release. Without it, the pharmacist will not sell the medicine.
Contraindications
Clozapine tablets are forbidden to use:
- with a strong susceptibility to the components of the drug;
- during epilepsy;
- with vascular insufficiency;
- during intestinal obstruction;
- with hepatic, renal failure;
- if the patient cannot regularly take a blood test;
- during alcoholic psychoses, drug intoxication;
- with granulocytopenia, agranulocytosis;
- with coma;
- women carrying children under their hearts, as well as during lactation:
- boys and girls under 5 years old.
Unwanted effects
The medicine “Clozapine”, the instructions for the use of which will seem incomprehensible to many, must be taken with caution. Side effects after treatment with this drug may be different, for example:
- tachycardia, arterial hypertension, respiratory arrest.
- nausea, vomiting, heartburn, abdominal pain;
- increase in body weight;
- drowsiness, dizziness, fatigue, tremor.
- dry mouth, constipation, excessive sweating, problems with urination.
- skin rash, dermatitis, pigmentation, urticaria.
Overdose
Means "Clozapine", analogues of which will be discussed below, must be taken strictly by prescription. Otherwise, unpleasant and even dangerous symptoms of an overdose may occur:
- confusion;
- drowsiness;
- delusional state;
- cramps;
- coma;
- vision problems;
- tachycardia;
- respiratory depression;
- collapse.
If a person has taken the drug in large quantities, then he definitely needs help. Overdose treatment will be as follows:
1. Flush the stomach.
2. Drink activated carbon.
3. Seek medical attention.
Cost
The drug “Clozapine”, the price of which differs depending on the form of release of the medicine, the dosage of tablets and solution, the location of the pharmacy, is currently difficult to purchase. Analogues of this tool are slowly displacing it. After all, they put a decent price on them, while the drug “Clozapine” is cheaper. So, for 50 tablets you need to give about 200 rubles. If you take granules for children, then they will cost 1000 rubles.
Connection with other medicines
Many people do not know that it is necessary to take Clozapine medication very carefully. Drugs that can be used in parallel with this tool, but under the scrutiny of a doctor:
- pills that suppress the central nervous system, - the fact is that with the parallel use of such drugs in a patient, the inhibition of the respiratory center may increase;
- medicines containing ethanol;
- drugs that lower blood pressure;
- pills that cause myelodepression, concomitant use of such drugs can inhibit bone marrow hemorrhage;
Also, with special care you need to use the drug “Clozapine” with caffeine due to a possible increase in side effects.
Substitutes
The drug "Clozapine" has analogues, and there are many of them. The most popular substitutes include the following medicines: Genodin, Quetixol, Quetiron, Nantarid, Zalast, Ziprex Zidis, Parnasan, Egolanza. The analogues have exactly the same effect as the drug “Clozapine”, but the active substances they have are different.
The drug "Quetixol"
This medication is also intended for the treatment of schizophrenia, as well as manic conditions.
The medicine is in the form of tablets. The main active ingredient of this drug is quetiapine.
The medicine is used only in relation to adult patients. Typically, the daily dose for the first 4 days is not more than 300 mg. In the future, the doctor can increase the dosage of this medicine to 450 mg per day.
The cost of Quitexol tablets of 25 mg (30 pills) will cost a person 200 rubles. If you buy tablets in a larger dosage - 100 mg in the same amount, then you will have to pay about 750 rubles.
The drug "Ziprex Zidis"
This medication can compete well with the medicine in question. Ziprex Zidis is available in the form of tablets, where olanzaline acts as the active substance.
Pills are used in such cases:
- treatment of exacerbations of schizophrenia;
- therapy of acute manic conditions;
- treatment of depression.
The daily dose of the drug is set personally, depending on the diagnosis of the patient.
To treat schizophrenia , the doctor initially prescribes 10 mg of the drug once a day.
For the treatment of acute mania, the recommended starting dose is 15 mg 1 time per day.
But these are all conditional values. For a specific treatment regimen of the above ailments, you need to consult a doctor.
The medicine "Ziprex Zidis" is available on prescription.
The cost of 7 tablets is about 2500 rubles. This is very expensive, given that the pills in the package will last only for a week. And for 28 tablets you need to give about 9 thousand rubles.
A medicine is produced in the UK.
What is a drug registry?
This is a documentation system that contains complete information about medicines. This includes: a registration certificate, instructions for use, an order for the production of a particular medicine, etc. All new drugs, including the drug “Clozapine”, are included in this register of medicines. This list allows you to officially use a particular tool.
As for the drug “Clozapine”, it is available under several trade names, and they are all registered in the registry, for example:
- Medication of Ukrainian production "Azaleprol".
- Swiss drug "Leponex".
- Russian tablets "Klozasten" and "Azaleptin."
Each of these medicines has its own state registration number, the date of completion and renewal of registration.
The name of the drug “Clozapine”, whose synonyms have just been listed, is international. And already such drugs as Azaleprol, Leponex, Klozasten and Azaleptin are considered to be its derivatives. They are developed and implemented in a particular country.
The drug "Azaleptin"
This is also an antipsychotic medicine, an antipsychotic prescribed for schizophrenia, manic states, psychoses, psychomotor agitation, emotional disorders in children, etc.
A medicine is being produced in the Russian Federation.
The release form of Azaleptin is the only one, and these are 25 and 100 mg tablets. The active substance of the drug is clozapine.
About 420 rubles need to be paid for 50 tablets of 25 mg of Azaleptin. “Clozapine” - a medication to which the article is devoted, costs 2 times cheaper.
Swiss drug "Leponex"
This is another synonym for the drug in question, which is prescribed for the same health problems. The Leponex medication is available in two forms:
- Tablets.
- Injection.
The active substance of this medicine is the same clozapine. One Leponex tablet may contain 25 or 100 mg of the main component. And additional elements are: magnesium stearate, anhydrous silica gel, talc, corn starch, polyvinylpyrrolidone, lactose.
At the initial stage of treatment, on the first day, 1 tablet (25 mg) is prescribed 1 or 2 times a day. On the second day - 2 pills. In the future, the doctor can gradually increase the dose to a maximum of 300 mg.
The drug "Leponex" also has the same side problems, limitations in use as the drug in question.
The cost of these 25 mg tablets in an amount of 50 pieces is 1200 rubles. And for 100 pills of 100 mg, you will need to give 5400 rubles. This is much more expensive than Clozapine, the price of which is affordable for anyone. It turns out that the Leponex medicine will be unavailable for some categories of the population (low-income people).
Conclusion
From this article you have taken out a lot of interesting and useful information regarding the drug “Clozapine”. Instructions for use, contraindications, side effects, cost have been described. We realized that this medicine has many analogues that can compete with it. True, the cost of these medicines is higher. However, in pharmacies, these analogues have long supplanted the drug Clozapine. But if you are lucky enough to find him, then you will save a lot.