Protozoal and bacterial infections can hardly be considered a rarity, because such cases are very often recorded in modern medical practice. It is in such a situation that it is advisable to take Metronidazole Nycomed tablets.
Many people are looking for additional information about the medicine. When and how to take Metronidazole Nycomed? Reviews of patients and doctors, instructions and dosage, possible complications and contraindications are important information that should not be ignored.
General information on the composition and form of release of the drug
Many patients are faced with the need to take the drug "Metronidazole Nycomed." Of course, to begin with, it’s worthwhile to deal with general information about him.
The medicine is available in the form of white tablets. They are oval in shape. The tablets are film-coated on top. The main active substance is metronidazole (500 mg in each tablet).
The composition contains auxiliary components, in particular, lactose monohydrate, propylene glycol, gelatin, talc, magnesium stearate, titanium dioxide, hypromellose, potato starch and microcrystalline cellulose.
How does the drug affect the body
What are the properties of the drug "Metronidazole Nycomed 500"? Reviews of experts, as well as research results, confirm that the drug has pronounced antimicrobial and antiprotozoal properties. Metronidazole restores the 5-nitro group, which interacts with the DNA of pathogenic cells, thereby inhibiting the synthesis of nucleic acids. This leads to the death of the pathogen.
The drug is effective against trichomonads, giardia, amoeba, Leishmania, gardnerella, clostridia. In addition, the drug is widely used to treat Helicobacter pylori, but in combination with amoxicillin. According to recent studies, metronidazole increases the sensitivity of tumors to radiation. That is why it is used in oncological practice.
Pharmacokinetics Information
This drug is rapidly and almost completely absorbed by the walls of the intestinal tract and penetrates the blood. With its current, metronidazole is rapidly distributed throughout the body. The substance penetrates the tissues of the brain, skin, liver, lungs, kidneys, as well as bile, saliva, cerebrospinal fluid, abscess cavities, seminal fluid, vaginal secretion, breast milk and amniotic fluid.
The maximum concentration of the drug is observed after 1 - 3 hours after taking the pill. Metronidazole undergoes certain metabolic processes, after which 2-oxymetronidazole is formed. This substance also has antibacterial and antiprotozoal properties. The elimination half-life ranges from 6 to 12 hours (if we are talking about patients with alcoholic liver damage, this figure can increase to 29 hours).
Metronidazole, like its metabolites, is mainly excreted by the kidneys, and only a small part of the substance leaves the body along with feces. It is worth noting that in patients with renal failure, the drug often accumulates in the blood. That is why it is so important to monitor the patient's condition while taking this drug. If necessary, it is possible to adjust the dose.
Tablets "Metronidazole Nycomed" (500 mg): use and indications
We will get acquainted with the main indications for taking the described drug. When are patients prescribed Metronidazole Nycomed? Why do these pills help?
- The medicine is widely used to treat protozoal infections. Indications include extraintestinal forms of amoebiasis, amoebic dysentery, trichomonas urethritis, giardiasis, trichomonas vaginitis, skin lesions that develop against the background of tissue infection with leishmania.
- The drug is effective in certain diseases of bones and joints.
- Tablets and Metronidazole Nycomed solution are used to treat and prevent infections of the central nervous system, heart, blood vessels and respiratory organs. The drug is effective in pneumonia, empyema and lung abscess, bacterial endocarditis.
- The indications include infectious diseases of the pelvic organs (abscess of the ovaries and fallopian tubes, endometritis, in particular, and those forms of diseases that develop after surgery).
- Tablets are prescribed for liver abscesses, peritonitis, infections of the skin and soft tissues, pseudomembranous colitis, gastritis and peptic ulcer (if the mucous membrane is associated with the activity of Helicobacter bacteria).
- Sometimes the drug is prescribed to patients undergoing radiation therapy.
- As part of complex therapy, the drug is used in the treatment of chronic alcoholism (especially if there are severe systemic lesions of various organs).
The drug "Metronidazole Nycomed": instructions for use
You already know when to take your medicine. But it is worthwhile to understand that only a doctor can prescribe Metronidazole Nycomed 500 tablets. The instruction contains only information intended for general familiarization.
Tablets are best taken with or after meals. You can not chew them, you need to swallow them with a small amount of water or milk. Dosage depends on the type and severity of the disease:
- If the patient has trichomoniasis, then he is prescribed 250 or 400 mg of metronidazole twice a day. Therapy lasts from 5 to 10 days. Women are additionally prescribed vaginal tablets or suppositories with metronidazole.
- With giardiasis, 500 mg of Metronidazole Nycomed is prescribed twice a day. The treatment lasts about a week.
- Patients with amoebiasis take 1 - 1.5 g per day (they need to be divided into 2 or 3 doses) for 5 to 7 days.
- If there is a liver abscess, then the maximum daily dose is increased to 2.5 g of the active substance per day (it is still divided into 2 or 3 doses). Metronidazole is combined with other antibiotics. Such therapy lasts approximately 3 to 5 days.
- Patients with pseudomembranous colitis take one tablet (500 mg) three or four times a day.
- If Helicobacter pylori infection is treated, then patients take 500 mg three times a day for a week.
- For prophylaxis, patients take this drug 3 to 4 days before surgery. The daily dose is 0.75-1.5 g of metronidazole. Preventive therapy is also carried out within a week after surgery (patients, as a rule, take 750 mg per day).
Application restrictions
Is it always possible to use the drug Metronidazole Nycomed? Instructions for use contain information about the presence of contraindications. You should definitely familiarize yourself with their list before starting therapy.
- The drug is not prescribed for patients with leukopenia (we are talking not only about an active disease, but also about the availability of information about the disease in history).
- Contraindications include organic damage to the organs of the central nervous system.
- The medicine is not used if the patient has an increased sensitivity to any of the ingredients that make up the tablets.
- The drug is not used in the presence of liver failure. If there is a need for therapy, patients are prescribed very low doses of the drug.
- Contraindications include epilepsy (the drug can only aggravate the situation).
- You can not take pills for women during the first trimester of pregnancy. The active components of the drug can be excreted together with breast milk. If there is a need for treatment during lactation, then feeding the baby for a while should be stopped.
Adverse Event Information
Can therapy with the Metronidazole Nycomed drug be considered safe? The instruction contains information that sometimes complications develop when taking pills. A list of possible adverse reactions is worth a look. It includes such information:
- Therapy sometimes affects the digestive system. Sometimes patients complain of nausea (often ends with vomiting), constipation, dryness and an unpleasant metallic taste in the mouth. Perhaps the development of intestinal colic, stomatitis, pancreatitis, as well as inflammation of the tongue.
- The possibility of the development of allergic reactions cannot be ruled out. Against the background of therapy, skin rash, fever, urticaria, edema, nasal congestion may occur.
- Perhaps the appearance of reactions from the urinary system. Sometimes the urine of patients after taking the drug turns red-brown. There is a possibility of developing cystitis, urinary incontinence.
- Sometimes treatment leads to disruption of the nervous system. Patients complain of dizziness, increased irritability and irritability, inexplicable weakness, headaches and sleep problems. There is a likelihood of confusion, depressive states. Adverse reactions include convulsions, impaired motor coordination, hallucinations, and peripheral neuropathies.
- Other possible complications include cardiac arrhythmias, neutropenia, and candidiasis (the inflammatory process can affect the mucous membranes of different organs).
The appearance of any violations and complications should be urgently reported to the attending physician. Sometimes to eliminate side effects, it is enough to just adjust the dose.
Symptoms and treatment of overdose
Metronidazole Nycomed is a potent medicine. That is why it is very important to observe the dosage selected by the doctor. If you take too much of the medicine, you may experience severe nausea, which often ends with vomiting. Against the background of an overdose, peripheral neuropathy can also develop. Some patients develop epileptic seizures. The patient must be urgently taken to the hospital and shown to the doctor. There are no specific therapies. The patient is prescribed symptomatic treatment.
Additional drug information
Before starting therapy, it is necessary to inform the doctor about all the medications taken, since there is always the possibility of negative interaction:
- During therapy, you must definitely abandon alcohol. In combination with ethanol, metronidazole can cause the development of a disulfiram-like reaction. A similar condition is accompanied by headaches, nausea, sudden flushing of the face.
- If we are talking about the simultaneous use of this drug with amoxicillin, then such therapy is contraindicated in patients under 18 years of age.
- Against the background of therapy, it is necessary to monitor the state of the blood, constantly making tests. If leukopenia occurs, then the dose of metronidazole is reduced (otherwise, the likelihood of developing infectious processes is high).
- Sometimes tablets change the color of urine - it turns dark.
- Separately, it is worth mentioning the trichomonas lesion of the organs of the reproductive system. During therapy, you need to abandon sexual activity. Both partners should be treated (even if one of them has no symptoms of trichomoniasis). Therapy should not be stopped during menstruation.
In no case should you use this medicine without permission - this can only worsen the situation. Only the attending physician can prescribe such a remedy, after conducting a thorough diagnosis.
How much is the drug
We have already considered the question of when it is advisable to take the drug "Metronidazole Nycomed" (500 mg). Instructions, indications, restrictions and possible adverse reactions are, of course, important information. But for many patients, one of the criteria is cost. The price of a package consisting of twenty tablets ranges from 65 to 90 rubles (depending on the company - manufacturer, distributor, price policy of the pharmacy).
Reviews of specialists and patients
In many cases, doctors prescribe Metronidazole Nycomed (500 mg) for patients. Reviews of specialists for the most part are positive. The medicine really has pronounced antimicrobial properties and effectively copes with protozoal infection. The drug is widely used not only for treatment, but also for the prevention of various diseases, especially when it comes to the postoperative period.
Patients also respond well to the drug. The effect appears only a few days after the start of therapy. The drug has not so many contraindications. Despite a rather impressive list of possible adverse reactions, in fact complications are rarely recorded. Only in some reviews it was noted that taking the drug caused nausea or headaches. The advantages of the drug include its affordable cost. This fact is very important for many patients, because the price of many analogues is much higher.